Nursing Education
Graduate Certificate
Quick Facts
Top 1%
of all Higher-Ed
Institutions
- Center for World University Rankings, 2025
#1
In Best Value Among
Arizona's Public Universities
- Payscale, 2024
The Nursing Education Certificate prepares nurses who hold a master's or doctoral degree to serve as nurse educators in academic and health care settings. Building on prior nursing education and clinical experience, the curriculum explores teaching and learning, curriculum development, learner assessment, evidence-based instruction, and evaluation of teaching and learning. Students develop the knowledge and skills needed to educate future nurses and support professional development across a variety of clinical and academic environments.
Offered in a hybrid format, the certificate combines coursework with a mentored practicum that allows students to apply teaching strategies in academic or health care settings. Graduates are prepared for educator roles in entry-level nursing programs, nursing staff development, and other health care education settings.
*Residents of some U.S. Territories may not be eligible. Please see our Eligibility & State Authorization page for more information.
The curriculum for this program includes:
This course provides a foundation in the role of the nurse educator and evidence-based strategies for nursing education. Students will explore current research, other scholarly evidence, and various theoretical perspectives of teaching and learning. The course is intended to prepare future educators to employ effective teaching strategies in classroom, simulation laboratory, clinical, and online educational settings to meet the needs of diverse learners. Discussion of managing various challenges related to nursing education will be included throughout the course.
This course introduces the learner to evidence-based principles of curriculum design, formulation of program outcomes, and formative and summative outcome evaluation. Learners will evaluate current research and evidence on course planning with a focus on educational strategies and learning activities that facilitate student learning and appropriate methods of evaluation in a variety of settings. An emphasis will be placed on effective communication between teacher and student and sensitivity to varying needs of students based on culture, disabilities, and educational background.
This course provides an evidence-based foundation in assessment, measurement, and evaluation strategies for nursing education. Students will explore current research and other scholarly evidence, related to evaluation and practical application of strategies. The course is intended to prepare students to utilize strategies of measurement and assessment in identifying practice gaps and learning needs, developing exams, interpreting exam results, assessing clinical performance/competency, and evaluating written assignments.
The practical application, on an individual basis, of previously studied theory and the collection of data for future theoretical interpretation.
Outcomes
Skills
Earning your Graduate Certificate in Nursing Education will build core skills, including:
- Develop and implement highly engaging teaching strategies
- Develop and implement high fidelity simulations
- Clinical teaching strategies
- Coach diverse types of learners in the classroom and clinical settings
- Develop student-centered learning success plans
- Develop competency-based curriculum
- Conduct course and program evaluation
- Conduct strategic data collection for curriculum and program assessment
- Develop quality improvement skills
- Develop strong communication skills through a variety of teaching experiences
Potential Career Paths
Graduates of the Nursing Education Graduate Certificate program will be prepared to pursue careers in the following fields: