Nursing: Primary Care Nurse Practitioner — Graduate Certificate
The Post-Master's Primary Care Nurse Practitioner (PCNP) certificate program (19 credit/semester hours) is offered to nurses who hold a Master's degree in another specialty area. The goal of the PCNP graduate certificate is to give advanced practice nurses the opportunity to expand their practice by taking the clinical courses needed to qualify for the certification exam to be licensed as a PCNP. Students who complete the certificate program will be ready to lead in advanced practice roles in health-related services to diverse populations. The PCNP certificate program is offered via a hybrid format where some courses are totally online and other courses require one to two on-campus class sessions per semester.
Admission to the Post-MSN certificate program is competitive and all qualified applicants may not be admitted. All applications must meet the admission criteria for applications to be considered complete and to be considered for admission.
Admission Criteria
- Master's of Science in Nursing (MSN) or Master's in Nursing (MN or MS) from an accredited nursing program
- Current unencumbered license as a registered nurse in the United States
- Nursing GPA of 3.0 on a 4.0 scale in the Master's Program
- Good academic standing from the last university attended
- Successful completion of Advanced Pathophysiology, Advanced Pharmacology, and Advanced Physical Assessment with 3.0 or higher within the last 5 years
- Successful completion (C or better) of an undergraduate statistics course
- Three professional references for online recommendation form - References should be qualified to judge abilities to be successful in graduate studies
- Minimum 1-year clinical experience
- 500-word Professional Goal Statement
- Submission of all official transcripts sent directly to Graduate School
- Current resume or curriculum vitae
College of Nursing Specific Admission and Progression Information
- If applicant is a student in a MSN program at time of application, the applicant must submit a request for waiver of the MSN and NP Certification admission requirements to the Graduate Program Director. If waiver is approved, the applicant must complete the MSN in good standing before admission and must obtain the NP Certification during the first semester of study. These students will be admitted as provisional until the NP Certification is obtained. An official transcript indicating completion of the MSN and documentation of NP Certification must be provided to AUCON and the Graduate School in order to remove the provisional status. If a waiver is obtained, these applicants will be considered based on their MSN GPA on their current transcript.
- Students may be interviewed by the Graduate Admission, Progression, and Graduation Committee and other faculty and/or community members.
- Students must accept enrollment within their application and complete the letter of intent by the date indicated on the admission offer.
- Students are required to submit required compliance documentation, including a background check and drug screen. All compliance requirements must be completed by the date indicated prior to course registration. Students who fail to satisfy all requirements for admission within the specified time period will be dismissed from the nursing graduate program.
- To progress through the program, all AUCON graduate students must receive a grade of at least a B in all courses. Students earning any two course grades of less than a B will be dismissed from the graduate program.
Program Requirements
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Primary Care Nurse Practitioner Specific Courses | ||
| NURS 7220 | Roles and Issues of the Primary Care Practitioner | 3 |
| NURS 7330 | Diagnostic Reasoning and Clinical Management | 3 |
| NURS 7440 | Primary Care I: Women and Children | 3 |
| NURS 7550 | Primary Care II: Adults and Elderly | 3 |
| NURS 7920 | Primary Care Practicum | 7 |
| Total Hours | 19 | |