Does Prior RN Clinical Experience Predict Academic Success in Graduate Nurse Practitioner Programs?

There is limited evidence on whether prior RN clinical experience is predictive of academic success in graduate nurse practitioner (NP) programs. The purpose of this study was to explore whether the frequently held assumption that more prior clinical experience is associated with better academic success in The George Washington University online NP programs.

Applications (n = 106) for clinical NP students entering from 2008-2010 were examined along with data on academic performance.

No relationship was found between years of prior RN clinical experience and three educational outcome variables (cumulative grade point average [GPA], clinical course GPA, and having failed any courses or been put on probation). However, students with the most prior RN clinical experience were less likely to graduate in 4 years, compared with those with the least experience.

These findings serve as a building block of empirical evidence for admissions committees as they consider entry requirements for NP programs.