510 ■ III: ROLE FUNCTIONS OF DOCTORAL ADVANCED NURSING PRACTICE
■ THE PREPARATION OF FUTURE NURSE LEADERS: THE GAP
IN GRADUATE NURSING EDUCATION
Although both types of doctoral education prepare graduates as future faculty for schol-
arship and service minimally, and make available preparation for teaching , perhaps the
true missing element in terms of preparing future academic administrators, is education
specific to leadership.
An underlying theme of the DNP essentials (AACN, 2006) seems to emphasize
leadership as an inherent part of DNP education, but is it enough? Similar to difference
in the proportion of attention paid to various components of PhD versus DNP curricula
surrounding policy, for example, leadership content may be “present,” but substan-
tively different between programs.
In DNP programs, emphasis on leadership content tends to rise from the DNP
essentials (AACN, 2006) and focuses on systems leadership intended for the practice
side of the academic practice environment. The goal is to educate both advanced prac-
tice nurses and nurse executives for upper level administrative roles. Interestingly, this
move to advocating for doctoral-level preparation for nurse executives in the practice
setting is relatively new and arguably has lagged behind previous advancements in
educational requirements for advanced practice nurses. Yoder-Wise (2014) argues that
preparation for upper level nursing leadership positions needs to be at the graduate
level for both the academic and practice settings. At present however, it appears that the
academic credentials for leadership in academia are generally higher than in health care
settings.
Leadership content in PhD programs traditionally focuses on leading sci-
entific research, either as a group or solo endeavor. Additionally, there is empha-
sis placed on mentoring for both students and faculty. According to Morin (2004)
the goal of an academic administrator is really to reward faculty and create balance
in a school in terms of faculty talents and diversity of scholarship making sure both
are consistent with the overarching mission of the setting. Obviously, past experi-
ence as a successful researcher is very important in this role for research-extensive
universities.
Perhaps a well-founded argument can be made that a new path in graduate nurs-
ing education needs to be established, which specifically focuses on leadership devel-
opment (Aduddell & Dorman, 2010; Morton, 2014; Waite, McKinney, Smith-Glasgow,
& Meloy, 2014). Such a program could include all of the necessary basic preparation for
future faculty (teaching, scholarship, and service), yet would also include the breadth
and depth of content necessary to prepare future administrators for both the practice
and academic settings.
Future academic administrators will need skills that are different in many ways
from those of the past. Perhaps going forward, qualities such as innovation, risk taking,
and entrepreneurialism (Greene & Ridenour, 2004; Morton, 2014) may take precedence
over past achievements in research or clinical practice, for example. To create programs
to foster these skills however, nurse leadership positions in the practice setting will
likely need to increase their minimal academic credentials for eligibility. Additionally,
requiring certification as a nurse executive at the advanced level might be required for
these positions, consistent with education and certification requirement for advanced
nursing practice. Elevating the credentials and educational preparation of nurse admin-
istrators, be they in the academic or practice setting, would reflect positively on the dis-
cipline and assist in moving nurse leadership, similar to APRN education, beyond the
apprenticeship model.