OVERVIEW
Become a Family Nurse Practitioner—Online, On Your Schedule
Do you want to take your nursing career to a new level and deliver cost-effective, holistic, high-quality primary care to individuals, families, and communities as a family nurse practitioner?
WGU’s Family Nurse Practitioner Post-Master’s Certificate (PMC FNP) is a cutting-edge post-graduate certificate program for nurses who have already earned their MSN and wish to become advanced practice registered nurses.
This nurse practitioner certificate focuses on the courses you need to become a Family Nurse Practitioner; you will not repeat coursework from your MSN program.
NOTE: Due to the clinical requirements of this program, the Family Nurse Practitioner post-master’s certificate is currently NOT available to students who have a permanent residence in the following states: Arizona, California, District of Columbia, Louisiana, Massachusetts, New York, North Dakota, and Washington.
Students must have a permanent and active license from a state that is not listed above, must complete the internships in that state, and intend to obtain initial APRN licensure in that state. See more state-specific information related to nursing licensure. Compact licenses must be endorsed by your state of residence. More about compact licenses. You can also compare post-master's certifications to MSN programs.
This program can be finished within
1 Year
This is dependent on transfer credit and how quickly you move through core coursework. Please note the clinical components of this program are set.
Tuition per six-month term is
$6,850
This includes tuition and all associated program fee costs. Tuition and fees charged per 6-month term—rather than pay per credit—helps students control the ultimate cost of their degree!
This is a highly competitive program.
97%
Currently, WGU's Family Nurse Practitioner Post-Master's Certificate program is accepting applications from a limited number of students. The required FNP Skills Workshop and Clinical Internship in this degree make it a highly practical and demanding program of study.
COURSES
Post-Master's Certificate
Family Nurse Practitioner Courses
Program consists of 10 courses
If you have already taken any of the three Nurse Practitioner Core courses or their equivalent, you will have the option to transfer those credits, lowering the total number of classes you need to take and decreasing the time to earn your post-master’s Family Nurse Practitioner certificate.
The WGU Post-Master's Certificate FNP curriculum is evidence-based. It's designed to make you an effective and caring nurse practitioner and healthcare provider. Courses in this online nursing degree are consistent with the NONPF (National Organization of Nurse Practitioner Faculties) standards for nurse practitioners.
This is not an acute or emergency care practitioner program. WGU's mostly online program provides the knowledge and skills needed to sit for the national FNP certification exam and obtain state licensure. Learn more about nurse licensure and certification.
This program consists of the following courses, which you will typically complete one at a time as you make your way through your program, working with your Program Mentor each term to build your personalized Degree Plan. As soon as you’re ready, you’ll pass the assessment, complete the course, and move on.
10 Courses
Program consists of 10 courses
At WGU, we design our curriculum to be timely, relevant, and practical—all to help you show that you know your stuff.
Field Experiences
Special requirements for this program
While most of your coursework will be completed online, your nursing program includes some requirements—including field experiences—that must be completed in a facility near you.
Skills For Your Résumé
As part of this program, you will develop a range of valuable skills that employers are looking for.
- Care Coordination: Successfully educated patients on disease processes and treatment plans using credible sources, empowering them to make informed decisions about their health and treatment.
- Clinical Reasoning: Expertly evaluated outcomes of patient care plans to prioritize and modify the plans according to the patient's changing status and needs, ensuring personalized and effective care delivery.
- Health Promotion: Implemented health improvement programs for individuals, cohorts of patients, families, populations, or groups on topics such as health education, disease prevention, or self-care management, positively impacting the health and well-being of diverse populations.
- Acute Care: Applied in-depth knowledge of patients' pathophysiology when analyzing lab data, test results, physical assessment data, telemetry, invasive monitoring, and vital signs, leading to accurate and comprehensive patient assessments.
- Care Delivery Process: Proficiently assessed the efficacy of nursing data to increase value in nursing interventions, nursing services, and patient outcomes, promoting continuous improvement in patient care and nursing practices.
- Data Analysis: Analyzed data to identify populations at-risk to health issues, enabling targeted interventions and preventive measures to enhance community health and reduce health disparities.
“Our partnership with WGU enables our employees to advance their education affordably without interrupting their careers.”
—John Steele, Senior Vice President of Human Resources
HCA Healthcare
Why WGU?
Valued
Top accreditations mean that your FNP degree is respected by employers and peers. You will get a quality education that is valuable in the industry.
Flexible
You can continue working at your full-time job or maintaining your responsibilities while pursing your FNP degree. You don't have to log-in to classes and there aren't due dates. You are in charge of your degree.
Strong Alumni Network
When you enroll in this nursing master's program at WGU, you join an impressive network of healthcare professionals.
Accredited, Respected,
Recognized™
One important measure of a degree’s value is the reputation of the university where it was earned. When employers, industry leaders, and academic experts hold your alma mater in high esteem, you reap the benefits of that respect. WGU is a pioneer in reinventing higher education for the 21st century, and our quality has been recognized.
The baccalaureate degree program in nursing, master's degree program in nursing, and post-graduate APRN certificate program at WGU are accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (http://www.ccneaccreditation.org).
COST & TIME
An Affordable Family Nurse Practitioner Certificate
By charging per term rather than per credit—and empowering students to accelerate through material they know well or learn quickly—WGU helps students control the ultimate cost of their degrees.
Note: The Post-Master's Certificate FNP program may be completed in as little as 1 year.
A Post-Master's Certificate Is Within Reach
There is help available to make paying for school possible for you:
The average student loan debt of WGU graduates in 2022 (among those who borrowed) was less than half* the national average.
Most WGU students qualify for financial aid, and WGU is approved for federal financial aid and U.S. veterans benefits.
Many scholarship opportunities are available. Find out what you might be eligible for.
*WGU undergraduate students have approximately half the debt at graduation compared to the national average, according to the Institute for College Access and Success (2022).
FLEXIBLE SCHEDULE
An Online Family Nurse Practitioner Degree Program Built for a Busy Nurse’s Schedule
WGU offers unparalleled flexibility to work with your busy schedule. Online coursework and tests are available anytime, anywhere. Our commitment to education means that you move through your courses as quickly as you demonstrate mastery of the material. Your prior experience and education can help you complete your courses more quickly.
Once you’ve mastered the material, you prove what you know through tests, papers, projects, or other assessments. Demonstrating mastery is how you pass a course, so learning what it takes to be outstanding in your career as an effective nurse practitioner is at the heart of WGU’s Family Nurse Practitioner curriculum.
"WGU has a wonderful learning platform where you can learn and succeed at your own pace, and they have mentors and course instructors to guide you along the way..”
—Breann Dickey
M.S. Nursing
CAREER OUTLOOK
A Family Nurse Practitioner Master's Prepares You to Deliver Primary Care with a Comprehensive Perspective
Working as a nurse practitioner is a rewarding career where helping others is at the forefront. As an FNP, you’ll provide care to families, improving patient outcomes while serving your community.
In addition to the clinical skills you’ll develop, you will be prepared to:
- Lead interprofessional healthcare teams
- Help shape healthcare policy
- Make business decisions in order to deliver high-quality, cost-effective healthcare
- Work in a wide variety of settings to provide care to patients
A rewarding career starts with a respected degree which is what you get at WGU. Our FNP education prepares each graduate to work independently in delivering healthcare to individuals and families. If you enjoy caring for others, you may find a career as a family nurse practitioner particularly rewarding.
Return on Your Investment
On average, WGU graduates see an increase in income post-graduation
Average income increase from all degrees in annual salary vs. pre-enrollment salary. Source: 2023 Harris Poll Survey of 1,655 WGU graduates.
Survey was sent to a representative sample of WGU graduates from all colleges. Respondents received at least one WGU degree since 2017.
40%
Projections indicate that employment of nurse practitioners will grow 40% by 2031, much faster than the average for all occupations.
—U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
WGU's Post-Master's Certificate—Family Nurse Practitioner Grads Can Expect Rewarding Careers
Primary care FNP careers you can pursue after graduating with a post-master's certificate from WGU include:
- Outpatient primary care and specialty clinics
- Family practice clinics
- Urgent care clinics
- Women's health clinics
- Community service centers
- Pediatric clinics
- Hospitals
- Retail health centers
- Corporate wellness centers
- Telehealth clinics
- Community health centers
- Rural health centers
- Federal qualified health centers
- Chronic pain
WGU Grads Hold Positions With Top Employers
Hospitals and clinics around the country know the benefit of a degree from WGU, so your healthcare degree is valuable.
ADMISSIONS
Admissions Requirements Unique to our Post-Master's Certificate, Family Nurse Practitioner Degree Program
To be considered for this program, you must:
- Possess an M.S. in Nursing or Terminal Nursing Degree (e.g., DNP, PhD) from an accredited institution or state board of nursing-approved program.
- Possess a current, active, unencumbered registered nurse (RN) license from AND a permanent residence in an approved state. Students must complete the internships in their state of residence/license and intend to obtain initial APRN licensure in that state. Compact licenses must be endorsed by your state of residence. (The Post-Master's FNP is currently not available for students in Arizona, California, District of Columbia, Louisiana, Massachusetts, New York, North Dakota, and Washington.)
- Submit a criminal background check through American Databank. Additional fees may apply.
- Submit a professional resume or CV outlining your academic, professional, and service history.
- Submit an application essay. You must submit a 3- to 4-page student statement detailing your experience in nursing and explaining why you want to become an FNP. This document helps us understand your unique situation and personal goals.
- Provide three letters of recommendation from:
1. A supervisor or manager who directly supervised you in a clinical setting.
2. A professor, faculty member, or academic advisor who can provide meaningful input regarding your academic record.
3. A Board Certified practicing healthcare provider (APRN, NP, PA, MD, DO) who has served as a mentor or whom you have shadowed, preferably in the specialty to which you are applying. Note: A registered nurse cannot serve as the practicing provider for this recommendation source.
- Have one year of clinical experience and be actively working as an RN at the time of application. *This requirement is strongly preferred, as these will be competitive factors in the admission decision-making process.
Transfer Credits
Get Your Enrollment Checklist
Download your step-by-step guide to enrollment.
Get Your Questions Answered
Talk to an WGU Enrollment Counselor.
Safety Notice
WGU and the Leavitt School of Health are committed to the health, safety, and well-being of all patients, community members, and key stakeholders that interact with WGU students at various clinical/host sites. Interactions might include direct patient interaction, observation experiences, laboratory experiences, project development, or conducting research. Standard compliance verification for students in applicable LSH programs is required to protect the public, meet LSH program expectations, reasonably assure compliance with state regulatory board requirements, meet WGU’s contractual and legal obligations with clinical partners, and support WGU’s mission to prepare students who will be qualified to enter their desired field. Compliance items may include, but are not limited to, background checks, immunizations, and drug screens as needed.
Due to the clinical requirements of this degree program, the Post-Master's FNP is currently NOT available to students who have a permanent residence in the following states: Arizona, California, District of Columbia, Louisiana, Massachusetts, New York, North Dakota, and Washington.
WGU offers certifications for Family Nurse Practitioner and Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner. Other nurse practitioner certifications include pediatric, acute care, adult-gerontology, and women’s care, among others.
While both registered nurses and nurse practitioners focus on patient observation and care, nurse practitioners can prescribe treatments, order tests, and diagnose patients—duties normally performed by physicians—that RNs cannot. Registered nurses usually work under a physician who determines patient care, diagnoses, and follow-up. Typically, nurse practitioners have greater autonomy and responsibility due to their advanced education, training, and experience.
WGU is approved to offer federal student aid. You will need to apply using the FAFSA, which is used to determine your eligibility for aid. WGU’s FAFSA school code is 033394.
Scholarships are available for new WGU students and returning graduates. This video shows more about scholarship opportunities and how they can help you pay for school. Get information on:
- How to apply
- Eligibility requirements
- Examples of scholarships
- What happens after you apply
- FAQs
- Other financial aid options
WGU's tuition is a flat rate that is charged every six months. You can take as many courses as you are able in that six-month term—with no extra cost. You simply pay for the term and do as much work as you can or want to during that time. This means that finishing faster helps you save money—a major benefit you won't find at most other schools.
