The Master of Science in Nursing prepares registered professional nurses for practice as a Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP), Clinical Nurse Leader (CNL), Nurse Administrator or Nurse Educator. The graduate degree builds upon the foundation of concepts and skills acquired in undergraduate degrees in nursing. Concentrations include the Family Nurse Practitioner, Clinical Nurse Leader, Administrator, Educator or dual Educator/Administrator. Most of these roles are enacted in health systems to promote and support quality care, with Educators working in both clinical and academic settings. This degree prepares nurse leaders to work with teams and transform systems in clinical and academic settings, as well as in the communities served by those organizations.
Nursing students will experience state of the art/high-tech laboratories, simulation areas, educational rooms and computer facilities to enhance learning in the new Health and Human Services building constructed in 2010.
The MSN degree is usually a part-time (6-7 credits per semester) program that is offered in a hybrid learning environment, a combination of in-class and online course instruction. This blended delivery mode is preferred by students allowing them face-to-face instruction without the demands of attending each week.
Upon successful completion of the FNP program, students are eligible to sit for the FNP certification examination which is a requirement for licence to practice as an Advanced Practice Nurse-FNP. Two examinations are available for this certification; they include American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) and American Academy of Nurse Practioners Certification Program.
American Nurses Credentialing Center Certification
| Year of Graduation | # of Examinees | Overall ANCC Pass Rate | School Pass Rate |
| 2012 & 2013 Combined | 12 | 83.38 | 83.33 |
The Registered Nurse to Master of Science in Nursing (RN to MSN) program provides the opportunity to be admitted to the Master of Science in Nursing degree without a Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree. This option is only available for the Nurse Educator, Nurse Administrator and Clinical Nurse Leader programs. This is accomplished in a two-step process:
Step 1: The RN to MSN program requires undergraduate admittance and approval into the RN to BSN program, along with the completion of undergraduate requirements based upon credit evaluation. Upon successful completion
Step 2: Following the completion of Step 1, students may apply to the MSN degree program. Upon admittance to the MSN degree program, students continue with Step 2 in conjunction with the remainder of the MSN degree program core, concentration, cognate and capstone courses.
Click here for more information on the RN to BSN step.
