Primary Care Family Nurse Practitioner: Online (Graduate Certificate)

Primary Care Family Nurse Practitioner: Online (Graduate Certificate)
Student in the Primary Care Family Nurse Practitioner program at UNH checking a patient with a stethoscope

Our online Post-Master's Primary Care Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP) certificate is designed for professionals with a Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) to expand into the role of a family nurse practitioner able to provide comprehensive primary care for patients across their life span. Our state-of-the-art Health Sciences Simulation Center provides experience in a clinical setting with real equipment and technology.

Credit hours are customized to individual students’ academic experience.


WHY GET A GRADUATE CERTIFICATE AS A FAMILY NURSE PRACTITIONER?

The family nurse practitioner (FNP) graduate certificate is designed for you if you already have a nursing master's degree and wish to expand your practice,  providing comprehensive care for children and adults of all ages. You’ll learn a family-oriented approach that emphasizes health promotion, maintenance and restoration. You’ll combine theory, research and evidence-based practice to develop skills in advanced health assessment, illness and disease management, pathophysiology, pharmacology, epidemiology, and population health and risk reduction. You’ll complete your certificate with a practicum in the primary care of families, and successful completion qualifies you to sit for the family nurse practitioner certification examination.

WHY CHOOSE UNH’S FAMILY NURSE PRACTITIONER PROGRAM?

At UNH you’ll be supported by a productive faculty and outstanding facilities as you advance your nursing career. Faculty members conduct research in family-based health issues such as women’s health, health promotion for children and adolescents, and nursing care for the elderly.  Clinical placement assistance is provided.  An individualized plan of study based on previous coursework and academic experience will be prepared for admitted students.

POTENTIAL CAREER  AREAS

  • Correctional facilities
  • Government health services
  • Home health agencies
  • Hospitals
  • Long-term care facilities
  • Military
  • Physicians’ offices
  • Primary care clinics
  • Schools
  • Workplace clinics
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Curriculum & Requirements

The Department of Nursing offers the Post-Master's Primary Care Family Nurse Practitioner Certificate Program for students who completed a master of science degree in nursing. The certificate of advanced practice is designed for those individuals with a master's degree in nursing who wish to expand their practice into the role of a primary care family nurse practitioner. The PM-PC-FNP specialty area prepares family nurse practitioners (FNP) who are clinically competent and practice with cultural humility as advanced practiced registered nurse (APRN). FNPs provide patient centered health care to individuals, families,and communities across the life span. Clinical practice includes health promotion, disease prevention, teaching, counseling, and acute and chronic disease management. At the completion of the program, students are eligible to sit for national certification as a family nurse practitioner. Upon licensure, FNPs may practice autonomously as well as in collaboration with other health professionals.

Students accepted into the PM-PC-FNP certificate program will have an individualized plan of study developed. Course waivers will be granted based upon their educational background and previous coursework in master's program. 

Admission Requirements

Applicants are required to have an unencumbered RN license in the United States, degree in nursing or outside nursing, and successful completion of undergraduate statistics and research to be eligible to apply to this program.

  1. Unencumbered, active RN license in the United States
  2. Baccalaureate degree in nursing or another field. Masters degree in nursing. 
  3. Cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher in associate and baccalaureate programs
  4. Successful completion of undergraduate statistics course and undergraduate research course
  5. 2 letters of recommendation. Recommendation letters submitted by relatives or friends, as well as letters older than one year, will not be accepted. References should be substantial with one academic, if available, and two current nursing professionals with graduate education background.
  6. Updated Resume
  7. Personal Statement. Prepare a brief but careful statement regarding:
    1. Reasons you wish to do graduate work in this field, including your immediate and long-range objectives.
    2. our specific research or professional interest and experiences in this field.
  8. Course descriptions should be submitted for any course you request waived.

Students accepted into the PM-FNP certificate program will have an individualized plan of study developed. Course waivers will be based upon educational background and previous coursework in master's program.

Certificate Requirements

Clinical Hours: 750*

NURS 818Foundations of Evidence Based Practice3
NURS 969Health Systems Policy, Economics & Financial Planning3
NURS 816Health Promotion Theory and Population Health3
NURS 915Leadership, Role & Collaboration3
NURS 910Genomics & Ethics3
NURS 820Advanced Physiology and Pathophysiology Across the Lifespan3
NURS 812Advanced Pharmacology and Therapeutics3
NURS 814Advanced Health Assessment Across the Lifespan3
NURS 911Diagnosis & Management - Diagnostic Reasoning3
NURS 917Biostats and Epidemiology3
NURS 920FNP Health Management I - Didactic3
NURS 921FNP Health Management I - Clinical4
NURS 922FNP Health Management II - Didactic3
NURS 923FNP Health Management II - Clinical4
NURS 924FNP Health Management III - Didactic3
NURS 940FNP Health Management III - Clinical4
*

Clinical hours are completed through the following required courses NURS 921, NURS 923 and NURS 940.

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Deadlines

Applications must be completed by the following deadlines in order to be reviewed for admission:

  • Fall: June 15
  • Spring: November 1
  • Summer: N/A
  • Special: N/A

Application fee: $25

Campus: Durham

New England Regional: No

Accelerated Masters Eligible: No

New Hampshire Residents

Students claiming in-state residency must also submit a Proof of Residence Form. This form is not required to complete your application, but you will need to submit it after you are offered admission, or you will not be able to register for classes.

Transcripts

If you attended UNH or Granite State College (GSC) after September 1, 1991, and have indicated so on your online application, we will retrieve your transcript internally; this includes UNH-Durham, UNH-Manchester, UNH Non-Degree work and GSC. 

If you did not attend UNH, or attended prior to September 1, 1991, then you must upload a copy (PDF) of your transcript in the application form. International transcripts must be translated into English.

If admitted, you must then request an official transcript be sent directly to our office from the Registrar's Office of each college/university attended. We accept transcripts both electronically and in hard copy:

  • Electronic Transcripts: Please have your institution send the transcript directly to grad.school@unh.edu. Please note that we can only accept copies sent directly from the institution.
  • Paper Transcripts: Please send hard copies of transcripts to: UNH Graduate School, Thompson Hall- 105 Main Street, Durham, NH 03824. You may request transcripts be sent to us directly from the institution or you may send them yourself as long as they remain sealed in the original university envelope.

Transcripts from all previous post-secondary institutions must be submitted and applicants must disclose any previous academic or disciplinary sanctions that resulted in their temporary or permanent separation from a previous post-secondary institution. If it is found that previous academic or disciplinary separations were not disclosed, applicants may face denial and admitted students may face dismissal from their academic program.

Letters of Recommendation: 2 Required

Recommendation letters submitted by relatives or friends, as well as letters older than one year, will not be accepted.

References should be substantial with one academic referee (e.g., faculty) and one current nursing professional referee with graduate education background. If an academic reference is unavailable, then please submit two references from current nursing professionals with graduate education background.

Personal Statement/Essay Questions

Prepare a brief but careful statement regarding:

  1. Reasons you wish to do graduate work in this field, including your immediate and long-range objectives.
  2. Your specific research or professional interest and experiences in this field.

Resume

A current resume is required with your submitted application.

Additional Department Requirements

Additional requirements: 1) Student must hold an unencumbered active RN license in the United States and have a master's degree in nursing; 2) A course description should be submitted for any course you request waived.

Important Notes

All applicants are encouraged to contact programs directly to discuss program-specific application questions.

International Applicants

Prospective international students are required to submit TOEFL, IELTS, or equivalent examination scores. English Language Exams may be waived if English is your first language. If you wish to request a waiver, then please visit our Test Scores webpage for more information.

Licensing Requirements

Applicants who intend to pursue licensure after completing UNH's online Primary Care Family Nurse Practitioner (Post Masters) should become familiar with their state's licensure requirements. To assess if UNH licensure programs meet the requirements in your location, visit the Professional Licensure Disclosure Information webpage.

Learn more

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The University of New Hampshire has been approved to participate in the National Council for State Authorization Reciprocity Agreements. LEARN MORE

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UNH Nursing Department is nationally accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education.

Explore Program Details

Tuition & Fees:

The University of New Hampshire’s online graduate tuition and fees information is available on the UNH Business Services Website. Program costs and technology fees are subject to change.

Course Fees: Specific courses may have additional course fees. Visit the course schedule for more information. 

TUITION & FEES INFORMATION

Financial Aid:

Federal Unsubsidized Direct Loans are a form of federal financial aid available to Graduate Students. To apply, you must complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA).

ADDITIONAL FINANCIAL AID INFORMATION

Student schedules will be customized based on prior academic experience. Our faculty advisor will work closely with you to develop a schedule for the Post Master's Family Nurse Practitioner Graduate Certificate.