Bachelor of Science in Nursing (Accelerated)

Program Code: R-BSN
Degree Designation: Bachelor of Science in Nursing
Department: School of Nursing
Website: nursing.duke.edu/academic-programs/absn-accelerated-bachelor-science-nursing

Program Summary

The Duke University School of Nursing offers an Accelerated Bachelor of Science in Nursing (ABSN) Program as a full-time, campus-based, 16-month program designed for individuals who have completed an undergraduate degree in a non-nursing field as well as other prerequisites. This program incorporates all of the components of a traditional bachelor of science in nursing program with an additional focus on 21st-century health care needs and environment, including contemporary topics related to technological advances, changes in population demographics, current sociopolitical influences, and evolving health care needs. Threads throughout the program also include professional identity, care management, leadership, information management, collaboration, scholarship, and contextual relevance.

The accelerated bachelor of science in nursing (ABSN) is a full-time campus-based program with 58 credit hours. The program is completed in 16 months (four semesters, with students taking between 12 and 16 credit hours per semester). The program includes 6 credit hours of electives with graduate credit option. In the ABSN program, 1 credit hour is granted for the completion of each 56 clinical hours.

ABSN Program Outcomes

Integration of education, clinical practice, and clinical scholarship serves as the foundation for the ABSN program.

Upon completion of the program, the graduate is able to:

• act as an evolving scholar who contributes to the development of the science of nursing practice by identifying questions in need of study, critiquing published research, and using available evidence as a foundation to propose creative, innovative, or evidence-based solutions to clinical practice problems.

• express one’s identity as a nurse through actions that reflect integrity; a commitment to evidence-based practice, caring, advocacy, and safe, quality care for diverse patients, families, and communities; and a willingness to provide leadership in improving care and in promoting personal and professional growth in self and others.

• make judgments in practice that synthesize nursing science and knowledge from other disciplines to provide safe, quality care; promote the health of diverse patients, families, and communities; and assist them to continually progress toward fulfillment of human capability.

• use basic skills of negotiation, conflict resolution, team building, leadership, and communication to engage in positive working relationships within an interprofessional health care team and contribute a unique nursing perspective to care delivery.

• apply leadership concepts and skills to provide high quality nursing care, health care team coordination, and the oversight and accountability for care delivery in a variety of settings.

• provide care that takes into account socio-cultural-political determinants of health, illness and disease; promotes health and human flourishing; and addresses health disparities in vulnerable populations, locally and globally.

• integrate information from multiple sources that has been judged to be relevant and reliable in planning, delivering, and evaluating care with particular attention to nurse-sensitive quality indicators and national benchmarks.

DUSON-Trinity College Curriculum Bridge

The DUSON-Trinity College Curriculum Bridge provides a unique opportunity for students of the Duke University Trinity College of Arts & Sciences to transition into the Duke University School of Nursing (DUSON) Accelerated Bachelor of Science in Nursing (ABSN) program during their senior year. More detailed information about the Trinity Bridge Program and how to apply may be found on the School of Nursing website.

Academic Requirements