DNP- Family Nurse Practitioner
Overview
An FNP is an advanced practice registered nurse (APRN) who provides a broad range of family-focused health care services to patients of all ages, including infants, adolescents, adults, and seniors. FNPs keep and maintain patient records; perform physical exams; order/perform and interpret diagnostic tests; prescribe medications and other therapies; develop treatment plans; and treat acute and chronic illnesses, conditions and injuries that fall under primary care. FNPs practice in a variety of health care settings, including community health centers, private practice, health care systems and schools/universities.
Why Choose FNP?
Students should choose the FNP track if they enjoy working with diverse communities and focusing on health promotion and disease prevention across the lifespan. As an FNP, the learner will learn how to deliver family-focused care in diverse, non-hospital settings to patients from different backgrounds, including underserved and vulnerable populations. FNPs encourage preventative care and support the treatment of acute and chronic conditions in the context of the family unit. Our FNP track strongly emphasizes the broad, comprehensive preparation necessary for primary care practice throughout the life cycle.
Sites of Practice
Graduates from our FNP track practice independently and serve as valued members of larger health care teams. Our graduates practice in a range of settings and with diverse populations, including:
- Primary care (adults and children)
- Cardiology
- Internal Medicine
- Oncology
- Veteran’s Health
- Gastroenterology
- Dermatology
- Neurology
- Urgent care (generally not in Emergency Rooms without additional training)
Our FNP students are prepared to:
- Utilize developmental, patient and family-centered approaches;
- Partner with patients and families for health promotion and disease prevention;
- Perform comprehensive health assessments, including ordering and interpreting diagnostic procedures;
- Make differential diagnoses and manage acute and chronic health problems; based on a robust foundation in the biological sciences;
- Prescribe and evaluate therapies (medication and non-medication based); and
- Serve as leaders in healthcare systems and advocate for nursing and the role of the Family Nurse Practitioner
Available Pathways
BSN to DNP Family Nurse Practitioner
Post Master's FNP to DNP Family Nurse Practitioner
Curriculum
The DNP program’s academic (didactic) curriculum and required clinical hours provide each student with a solid foundation to become a leader in the advanced practice nursing profession. Each student will have the opportunity to work with nationally recognized faculty for their clinical practice, research, and health advocacy work. Additionally, students will gain hundreds of hours of hands-on clinical experience within diverse organizations with expert clinical preceptors across the country (but local to the student).
All Doctor of Nursing Practice tracks are offered online as full-time and part-time study tracks, with minimal on-campus skill practice and testing -The majority of our courses do have a synchronous [real-time] component and are delivered via Zoom.
Program by Year
Year 1
Year one of the DNP program is offered online and requires no campus visits. Students will complete core DNP academic classwork with peers across all DNP tracks in the College of Nursing.
- Leadership and DNP role transition;
- Appraisal and application of evidence to advance practice;
- Health equity, health systems, and policy;
- Wellness and health promotion;
- Advanced pathophysiology, advanced health assessment, and advanced pharmacology
Year 2
The second year includes track-focused classes, seminars, and clinical experiences. The DNP courses are comprised of distance learning methods, but now also include more intensive clinical experiences and three on-campus visits to complete Objective Clinical Skills Exams (OSCE).
Year 3
Students will work with faculty to complete an Evidence-based Quality Improvement DNP project/product based on AACN’s The Essentials of Doctoral Education for Advanced Nursing Practice in collaboration with a clinical agency or organization local to the student.
In the final year of the program, students will continue clinical training and complete online course content. Learners will come to the FSU campus for an evaluative OSCE and final Project Exposition; students will also complete a comprehensive exit exam prior to graduation (HESI).
How to Apply
Complete the Florida State University Graduate application. Upload all required admissions documents and video interview to the application.
FALL ADMISSION
APPLICATION DEADLINE
July 1st
Florida State University Graduate Application
Application Requirements
1. BSN degree from a nationally accredited program with an upper division grade point average of 3.0 or higher or MSN degree from a nationally accredited program with a grade point average of 3.0 or higher.
2. Official transcripts from all undergraduate and graduate institutions attended.
3. Graduate Record Exam (GRE) score or Miller Analogies Test (MAT).*
4. Unencumbered and unrestricted RN license.
5. Three (3) letters of recommendation.
6. Current CV or resume.
7. Essay (Writing Sample) answering the following questions:
- Tell us about your professional work experience as a nurse and other relevant professional experiences. Include leadership activities such as serving on committees, leading projects and involvement in professional associations.
- What are your career goals and how will a DNP degree help you with your goals?
8. Record a video answering the questions below. The video should not be more than 5 minutes long answering all the questions.
- Tell us about your previous clinical or volunteer experiences? When have you had a direct impact on a patient’s life? Please include activities such as patient advocacy, involvement in professional associations or an instance you were a change agent to improve quality care delivery.
- What patient population are you most passionate about? Why? What are your thoughts about any health disparities affecting that group? As a DNP prepared nurse practitioner, how might you contribute in finding solutions to these issues?
- What is your research interest for your Doctor of Nursing Practice evidence based practice project?
GRE/MAT Waiver Criteria
The GRE requirement will be waived for outstanding applicants meeting ONE of the following criteria:
- A completed master’s degree with a 3.0 or better GPA from an accredited institution.
- A completed BSN (60 hours of nursing or RN to BSN courses) with a 3.5 GPA from an accredited institution.
Applicants must provide evidence to satisfy the criteria being applied.
Applicants with a competitive GRE or MAT score will still be able to apply to the program and will not be held to these additional criteria.
For those accredited institutions that are competency-based (no GPA assigned) the applicant must submit a GRE/MAT score.
*States where we can and cannot accept students
For more information on Graduate application process, contact Carlos Urrutia currutia@fsu.edu
For information regarding Tuition and Fees, visit https://studentbusiness.fsu.edu/tuition-fees
National Certifications
After completing the FNP track, FNP students are eligible to sit for the FNP certification exams through the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) or American Academy of Nurse Practitioners Certification Program (AANPCP).
