Nurse Midwifery Program

Program Description

The Nurse Midwifery Program is designed to prepare nurses as nurse midwives. The focus of the academic and clinical aspects of this program is the management of the health care of women and their newborns. While emphasis is placed on care during the childbearing cycle, the curriculum also includes study of women’s health needs throughout the life cycle. Graduates are prepared for full scope midwifery practice, including well-woman gynecology, family planning, antepartum, intrapartum, postpartum, primary care and normal newborn care. Intensive clinical experience is provided in each of these areas in a variety of settings, exposing students to diversity in patient populations and practice options. Students learn to provide independent care for healthy women and consultative or collaborative care for women with medical and/or obstetrical complications.

Graduates are eligible to take the national certifying examination administered by the American Midwifery Certification Board (AMCB) to become a Certified Nurse Midwife (CNM). Graduates are also eligible to register with New York State as a licensed midwife.

The Program Director of the Nurse Midwifery specialty is Laura Zeidenstein CNM, DNP.

Clinical Sites

Clinical sites are available in the tri-state area and beyond, and can be permanent or rotating. Clinical sites vary in setting and vary from public health hospital setting to private practice.

Admission

Please contact the Office of Admissions for details regarding admission and financial aid packages. Faculty review applications on a rolling basis so that students may apply to begin this program in the summer or fall semester.

Admission criteria include:

*RN's with an associate degree and a non-nursing baccalaureate degree are required to complete 5 credits in community health in addition to the course requirements listed.

Curriculum

For Applicants Who Hold an Undergraduate Degree in Nursing
A sample program plan is provided below to make you aware of the academic requirements of the program. Please be advised that this program plan is a sample, and individual plans of study are reviewed and approved upon acceptance to the program. Progression in the program is contingent upon meeting academic policies. The School of Nursing reserves the right to change the course offering schedule as stated in the student bulletin.

Sample Program Plan

Course Number Course Name Credits Type
Fall I: 12 Credits
N0001 Elective Course 2 Optional Specialty
N6100 Advanced Physiology 3 Core
N6920 Health and Social Policy: The Context for Practice and Research 4 Core
N8465 Primary Care of Women Across the Life Span II 3 Specialty
Spring I: 12 Credits
N6760 Primary Care of Women Across the Lifespan I 3 Specialty
N6835 Assessing Clinical Evidence 4 Core
N6930 Interpersonal Violence and Abuse: Prevention, Assessment and Intervention for Health Care Professionals 1 Core
N8290 Incorporating Genetics into Advanced Nursing Practice 3 Core
N8490 Independent Study in Nurse Midwifery 1 Optional Specialty
Summer I: 6 Credits
N6150 Maternal-Fetal-Newborn Physiology 2 Sciences
N6458 Pelvic Assessment of the Adult Woman 1 Specialty
N8102 Advanced Pharmacology 3 Sciences
Fall II: 12 Credits
N8471 Antepartum: Didactic 2 Specialty
N8472 PRACTICUM ANTEPARTUM NORMAL 2 Specialty
N8476 Well Woman Gynecology: Didactic 3 Specialty
N8477 Well Woman Gynecology: Clinical 2 Specialty
N8786 Advanced Clinical Assessment in Adults 3 Specialty
Spring II: 9 Credits
N6480 Professional Issues in Nurse-Midwifery 1 Specialty
N6940 Management and Advanced Practice Nursing 1 Core
N8469 Newborn Assessment & Care 1 Specialty
N8478 Breastfeeding and Postpartum Care 1 Specialty
N8479 Intrapartum: Didactic 2 Specialty
N8481 Intrapartum: Clinical 2 Specialty
N8490 Independent Study in Nurse Midwifery 1 Optional Specialty
Summer II: 5 Credits
N8475 Clinical Practicum in Nurse-Midwifery 3 Specialty
N8497 Complex Management of Women’s Health Conditions throughout the Lifespan 2 Specialty
Total Credits 56  

School of Nursing

The School of Nursing has paved the way for professional nursing since 1892 and continues to lead the field as the foremost institution for advanced practice nursing.

The School of Nursing is a designated World Health Organization Collaborating Center for International Nursing Development in Advanced Practice. With urban clinical sites, expert faculty practitioners, cutting edge research, and the strength of the Columbia name and reputation, the School of Nursing produces graduates who possess the skills necessary to bring advanced practice nursing into the new millennium. As medical advances offer a cascade of new and useful therapies, the need for more health care providers will increase exponentially. Our country will face many health care challenges in the next 20 years, and nurse practitioners are essential to providing access to quality primary care.

Founded in 1892 as Presbyterian Hospital School of Nursing, the School became part of Columbia University in 1937 and began offering the baccalaureate degree. It is one of the oldest schools of nursing in the US. In 1956, it became the first nursing program in the country to award a master’s degree in a clinical nursing specialty. In 1999, the School granted its first doctoral degree. More than 10,000 nurses have graduated since the School opened.

The School shares the Columbia University Health Sciences Campus with the Mailman School of Public Health, the School of Dental and Oral Surgery, and the College of Physicians and Surgeons. Each of these schools adds to the richness and diversity of the educational experience of students and faculty.

School of Nursing faculty have substantial experience in curriculum, instructional design, and research. They maintain expertise in their areas of teaching responsibility through participation at local, regional, and national conferences, involvement in scholarly presentations and publications, and faculty practice.

Columbia University School of Nursing is distinguished by the clinical excellence of its programs and graduates. Columbia nurses are making crucial contributions and improving the health of individuals wherever they practice.

This page was last updated on 09/11/2009 and is subject to change at any time.