October 15, 2025

At age 53, Kristin Kelly, MSN, FNP-BC, proudly added DNP to her credentials, reflecting the most recent milestone in her accomplished career as an advanced practice nurse.

In June 2025, Kelly graduated from the Drexel University College of Nursing and Health Professions’ Doctor of Nursing Practice program. Her decision to return to school after decades in clinical practice is already yielding exciting new possibilities for her future.

Kelly had been working for the last 20 years as a family nurse practitioner in maternal-fetal medicine at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital and Saint Peter’s University Hospital in New Brunswick, NJ. Her work with medical residents and research projects on behalf of the universities kept her involved in academia, but she hadn’t done anything classroom-related just for herself.

Then, at age 50, her life reached a crossroads.

“It sounds so cliché, but my youngest child was going off to college and I had a little bit of an empty nest,” she said. Kelly realized that after seeing her two children through high school and devoting years to helping others develop their own potential, “it’s time for me.”

“So that’s how I decided to go back to get my doctorate,” she explained. “I wanted to do something more for myself and really try to expand what I could do.”

As an advanced practice nurse, Kelly was no stranger to the rigors of higher education. After earning her associate’s degree and RN at a community college in South Jersey, she attended Kean University in Union, NJ, where she earned a Bachelor of Applied Science. A month later, she was in graduate school at the University of Medicine and Dentistry in Newark, where she earned a Master of Science in Family Practice Nursing.

Still, the last time she was a student was in 2003, and much had changed since then, including the professional status she’d worked so hard to achieve.

“I didn’t want to give up my full-time position, which I had for 20 years. I didn’t want to give up my income and my occupation just to go back to school,” she recalled.

After researching her options, Kelly chose Drexel’s online Doctor of Nursing Practice program, an option for advanced practice nursing leaders seeking a terminal doctoral degree rather than a research-based program.

“I sought out Drexel because, just from looking at the program in comparison to others, I was able to juggle full-time work and still be a doctoral student. I’m not going to say it was an easy juggle, but it was possible,” she said.

Kelly’s 18-month program combined asynchronous online learning and scheduled check-ins with her professors. She liked that Drexel’s flexibility allowed students to work different shifts and still be successful in the program. Drexel also offers a two-and-a-half-year track for students who wish to take fewer credits per quarter.

Aside from needing to retake a statistics class “because it had been a really long time,” Kelly’s biggest adjustment to being back in school after so many years was the learning curve for taking classes entirely online; an option that didn’t exist when she was in graduate school.

While she admits to feeling initially overwhelmed, Kelly eventually learned to navigate the online platform and figure out how to get what she needed without a professor in front of her.

“Once you get your feet wet with it, it’s pretty self-explanatory,” she said.

Kelly reached out to her online cohort, as well as the faculty, and all were responsive and helpful in guiding her.

Most of the students in her division—a mix of nurses with clinical experience across a variety of specialties—were in their 30s or early 40s, with many trying to manage the demands of work and young families. Kelly enjoyed meeting a group of colleagues she might not otherwise have known, had they not all converged through Drexel.

Challenging as the program was, Kelly was among the top students in her class, drawing on study habits she formed years ago in graduate school. Regardless of what else her day entailed, she dedicated two hours each day to schoolwork—either reading, writing or doing research.

“If I did that, my weekends were not totally devoted to school, where I felt like I had a second job and couldn’t enjoy my life or my family,” she said.

Kelly’s balanced approach allowed her to decompress, so she could be at her best when focusing on work or school. She made sure to incorporate breaks to read for pleasure or watch a mindless reality television show just for fun.

“It helped me to have that ability to break away and not feel like I was constantly shuffling from regular work life to school life, with nothing joyous in between,” she said, explaining that stress can take away from the pleasure of learning. “You should enjoy it. You’re choosing to do it.”

Kelly encourages others who may be considering a return to academics after a long hiatus to go for it.

“It’s never too late,” she said. Returning to school in her early 50s had its advantages, including the knowledge she acquired from nearly 30 years of nursing experience and the personal insight she gained from seeing the profession evolve over many years. Even having raised two children to adulthood enriched her perspective.

Kelly is already starting to reap the benefits of her doctoral preparation. One of the courses she took, an elective called Portfolio Development, required her to create an enhanced LinkedIn profile and update her CV. Kelly said that in a competitive job market, having a professional portfolio and social media presence is crucial.

As a direct result of enhancing her online profile, Kelly was approached about two different job opportunities before she even graduated: one as an adjunct professor at a university, and the other in pharmaceutical product development.

“Drexel has allowed me to broaden my horizons, not only with my degree, but being able to market myself and my new skills,” she said.

Written by Abby Schwartz