Graduate management education for nurses: a comparative study.

Area of Science:

• Healthcare Management
• Nursing Education
• Graduate Studies

Background:

• Historically, nursing schools offered nurse executive programs.
• Contemporary graduate programs increasingly blend nursing and business curricula.
• Demand for advanced management education in nursing is rising.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare alumni job characteristics from two distinct graduate management programs for nurses.
• To assess demographic variables and career trajectories of program graduates.
• To inform curriculum development in graduate nursing management education.

Main Methods:

• Case study of two graduate programs at a single university.
• Survey distributed to alumni holding a Master of Science (MS) in Nursing and Master of Science in Health Administration (MSHA).
• Comparative analysis of demographic data and job characteristics.

Main Results:

• Identified differences in job roles and responsibilities between alumni of the two programs.
• Demographic profiles of alumni from each program were detailed.
• Correlation between program type and specific career outcomes was explored.

Conclusions:

• Graduate management programs for nurses exhibit varied impacts on alumni career paths.
• The findings highlight the need to align educational offerings with evolving healthcare leadership demands.
• Further research can optimize curriculum design for nurse managers and executives.