FYI: Creighton Offers Doctorate in Nursing Practice /

Creighton University has become the first Nebraska school to offer a doctoral degree in nursing practice.

School officials says the degree is for students who want to focus on advanced nursing. It differs from a traditional Ph.D. in nursing because graduates will focus on patients rather than research.

The degree is the first new nursing degree sanctioned by the American Association of Colleges of Nursing in the past 30 years. It was first offered in schools in 2006.

Creighton's School of Nursing enrolled its first DNP students this semester.

To pursue the degree, students must first have a bachelor's or master's in nursing.