NURS 9030-9032 DNP Project Practicum Immersion, NURS 9040 and 9041: your agency mentor

Five courses, in the order the prerequisites set

The prerequisites tell you the order. NURS 9040 DNP Project I has no printed prerequisite and is itself required for the first immersion, so the project starts in coursework before the agency work begins. Each immersion then requires the one before it, and NURS 9041 builds the capstone out of the immersion experience.

CUW publishes no hour split across these five courses. The catalog says only that DNP Project I includes practicum hours related to the project, so ask the Graduate Clinical Coordinator how your 258 hours should be spread before you agree on a schedule with a mentor.

Choosing the agency and the mentor

The immersion descriptions speak of a mentor from a selected health care agency, and the choice of agency is yours, subject to faculty approval. Because DNP Project I opens with an organizational needs assessment and quality improvement, the strongest agency is one with a real problem it wants studied and the access to let you study it: data, staff time and a leader willing to sponsor the work.

CUW publishes no minimum degree or title for the mentor. The undated DNP Residency Preceptor Proposal Form in CUW's archived form repository gives the clearest picture of what the school has asked for: the mentor's name and academic credentials, the site and its clinical administrator, and a list of duties. Your project faculty can tell you what the current version requires.

Mentor duties on CUW's archived DNP proposal form

• Help you set goals for the residency
• Guide the development of your leadership skills
• Meet with you regularly
• Stay in contact with CUW faculty

From Zoom orientation to the final cohort meeting

1. Before the program startsEvery CUW DNP opens with an initial cohort meeting held by Zoom.
2. DNP Project INeeds assessment and quality improvement work, with practicum hours tied to the project. Settle the agency and mentor during this course.
3. Immersions I to III (Post-BSN DNP)Work inside the agency with your mentor as part of an interdisciplinary team, moving from project design to implementation.
4. DNP Project IIThe capstone, built from the immersion experience.
5. Final cohort meetingA mandatory on-campus meeting that coincides with graduation, where final DNP projects are presented.

Because the presentation happens at graduation, a mentor who leaves the agency mid-project can affect more than one course; it can move your finish. Name a second contact at the agency early, someone who knows the project and could step in.

How we help with DNP project placements

Finding a health care agency with a real improvement need and a mentor willing to see a project through is its own search, separate from finding a clinical preceptor. We look for agencies near you whose leaders can sponsor a needs assessment and quality improvement project, and we collect the mentor's credentials, role and site details so your proposal reaches CUW's faculty complete.

We brief each mentor on the duties set out in CUW's archived DNP form (goal setting, regular meetings, contact with faculty) so expectations are clear from the first conversation. For Post-BSN DNP students, we plan the agency search alongside your three clinical residencies, and if a mentor steps away mid-project, your placement advisor moves quickly to find someone new. Use the form below or send a message.