Duke University School of Nursing

The Duke University School of Nursing (DUSON) is affiliated with Duke University and Duke University Health System. The school offers an accelerated Bachelor of Science in Nursing (ABSN), a Master of Science in Nursing (MSN), Doctorate in Nursing Practice (DNP), and a Ph.D. Program.

DUSON opened on January 2, 1931, and the first students, high school graduates, received a diploma after a three-year program. In 1938, the school began offering baccalaureate degrees to students who had completed two years of college along with the nursing curricula. In 1944, the school began a Bachelor of Science in Nursing Education degree program. In 1953, it added a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) degree program. Five years later, DUSON was one of the first schools in the nation to offer a graduate nursing program.

In 1984, as a part of Duke University's retrenchment plan, the last class of BSN students graduated. The graduate programs also ended in 1984, re-opening in 1985 with a new curriculum and focus on research. In response to the increasing nursing shortage, the school once again began offering a BSN degree in 2002--this time as an accelerated, 16-month degree offered to students already holding an undergraduate degree. In 2006, the school accepted the first students into the new PhD program. In 2008, the school launched the first Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) degree program in North Carolina to prepare nurses for leadership positions in clinical care.

"Duke Nursing" magazine, published by the Duke University School of Nursing, was published once a year from 2006 to 2009, and, starting in 2010, it has been published twice a year. Each issue contains news and information, features an emerging topic in nursing education and includes notes from alumni.