Post-Master's Acute Care Pediatric Nurse Practitioner
Program Overview
The Acute Care Pediatric Nurse Practitioner (AC-PNP) role is designed to meet the specialized physiologic and psychological needs of children with acute, complex acute, critical, and chronic health conditions. AC-PNPs respond to rapidly changing clinical conditions, including the recognition and management of emerging health crises, organ dysfunction and failure. In accordance with this practice focus, Acute Care Pediatric Nurse Practitioner role activities encompass a wide range of APRN practice strategies including contributions to the evidence-based management of children's illness/health states, the patient/family-nurse relationship, the teaching-coaching function, the professional role, managing and negotiating healthcare delivery systems, monitoring and ensuring the quality of health care practice, providing family-centered care, and demonstrating cultural competency.
The short-term goal of care is stabilization of the child, minimizing complications, and providing physical and psychological care measures. The long-term goal of care is to restore maximal health potential through implementation of Advanced Practice Registered Nurse (APRN) strategies to reduce health risks.
The continuum of care spans the geographic settings of the home, emergency departments, hospitals, subspecialty clinics, and intensive care units; however, the needs of the population guides the practice setting rather than location.
A Post-Master's Acute Care Pediatric Nurse Practitioner Certificate is also available to those who currently hold a Master of Science in Nursing and wish to assume a specialized role as a pediatric acute care provider.
Upon completion of course requirements, graduates of the Masters and Post-Master's Programs are eligible to sit for the Pediatric Nursing Credentialing Board Acute Care CPNP exam.
Disclaimer: We are unable to accept students living in the following states at this time – New York, Louisiana, Arizona, Washington, and Oregon.
The MSN ACPNP track is completed in up to 39 semester credit hours.
For transcript post-master evaluation, email unofficial/official transcripts to Veronica Sifuentes prior to applying to ensure all applicants are applying to start in the correct semester since some courses may qualify for transfer credit.
Current tuition information can be found here or by contacting Student Business Services from 8:30am-4pm CST at (806) 743-7867.
Financial aid (student loans, grants, scholarships) are available upon admittance to the School of Nursing. Additional information may be found at the Financial Aid Office website or by calling 806-743-3025.
Admission Requirements
All applicants will be reviewed in an individual and holistic manner. No single factor will determine a student's admission. The Program Chair and appropriate committee carefully evaluate all qualified applicants with regard to the applicants' potential for successful completion of the program.
The Graduate Department Chair and/or Program Director will review the applicant's previous academic preparation and/or competency in required courses in order to award transfer credit. Any deficiencies will be met by enrollment in required courses.
Generally, credits earned at an accredited college or university are accepted for transfer credit provided course content is equivalent. A grade below B is not acceptable for transfer credit.
- Valid unencumbered RN License
- Master of Science in Nursing degree from a regionally accredited college or university with nursing program accreditation from the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE) or from the American Commission for Education in Nursing (ACEN), formerly the National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission (NLNAC)
- A minimum GPA of 3.0 (4.0 scale) in all graduate level course work
- Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS) or Pediatric Advanced Live Support (PALS) certification for FNP, GNP, PNP, or ACNP tracks
- Personal Statement/Essay (maximum of 500 words)
- Professional letters of reference (3). Family members, friends, ministers, are not considered a professional reference
- Official transcript for the MSN degree. (NOTE: all transcripts must be from a regionally accredited college or university with nursing program accreditation from the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE), or from the American Commission for Education in Nursing (ACEN), formerly the National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission (NLNAC)
- Official transcripts from all other previously attended institutions of higher education.
- Applicants with a nursing transcript from a foreign university are to submit an official course-by-course evaluation from CGFNS. If the coursework is not related to a nursing degree, the applicant must submit an official course-by-course evaluation from one of the four agencies listed here.
- Computer Literacy: defined as an understanding of the capabilities and limitations of a computer and how to use them wisely within clinical workflow and for scholarly work. Applicants must complete the TTUHSC SON Computer Literacy Test located at http://nursing.ttuhsc.edu/skills/ prior to applying
- TOEFL Scores – Applicants from a country where the primary language is not English must provide evidence of achieving a total score of 84 or higher with a speaking score of 26 or higher and a writing score of 27 or higher on the TOEFL iBT. This may only be waived if the student has received a degree from an accredited college/university in one of the listed countries: Australia, Canada (except the Province of Quebec), Commonwealth Caribbean countries (including Anguilla, Antigua, the Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, British Virgin Islands, Bermuda, Cayman Islands, Dominic, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, Montserrat, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, Trinidad and Tobago, Turks and Caicos Islands), Republic of Ireland, Liberia, New Zealand, United Kingdom (England, Scotland, Northern Ireland, and Wales), United States.
- Evidence of leadership in nursing (Professional organizations, committees, etc.)
- Potential for leadership in an advanced role as evidenced by reference letters
- Professional nursing work experience
- Diversity of work or life experience (For example: experience with other cultures, study/travel/work abroad, community service, military service, degree in other field, volunteerism or other related extracurricular activities)
- Curriculum vitae/resume which includes educational background, honors, nursing experience, professional membership(s), and community service
- Permanent resident of Texas or TTUHSC service area/county or TTUHSC campus location
- First generation college student
- Fluent in a language in addition to English
- Required to have two (2) years of RN pediatric experience prior to admission. For applicants to the PNP Acute Care track, RN pediatric experience in critical care, ER, or acute care is preferred
- PALS certification
- Response to Track specific essay questions
Application
It is the responsibility of the applicant to make sure that their application is complete: Application Instructions
| Admission Term | Application Open | Application Deadline |
|---|---|---|
| Fall | November 1 of previous year | February 15 |
| Spring | May 1 of previous year | August 1 of previous year |
| Summer | November 1 of previous year | February 15 |
- It is to your advantage to include as much information as possible in your application including any certifications you may have (i.e. BLS, ACLS, PALS, CCRN, etc.), information on any professional nursing organizations of you may be a member, current and previous work experience. Additional tips can be found by reviewing Tips for Successful Applications to the MSN Program.
- Ensure that all required application documents are received by the deadline. It is the responsibility of the applicant, not that of TTUHSC, to make sure that your application is complete and submitted. We will not contact you for missing items.
- If you do not already have your MSN degree and are interested in applying for the MSN program, you will need to follow a different application process which is outlined on the websites for the MSN Tracks.