Texas State University FNP Programs

St. David's School of Nursing • Round Rock, TX • Online • $502/credit

Texas State University offers an MSN Family Nurse Practitioner pathway:

Program Tracks Overview

ProgramEst. TuitionEst. DurationCredit Hours
MSN$21.1K-$21.6K2 years (6 semesters)43

Tuition estimates use Texas State’s published $502 per-credit online rate. The low figure is the university’s own published per-program cost; the high figure is 43 credits charged at that rate.

Texas State backs its clinical requirement with more than 1,000 standing clinical agreements across Texas and a dedicated Clinical Education Placement Coordinator who approves sites and handles departmental paperwork. The school is explicit about where that help stops: students make first contact with clinical sites themselves, and Texas State does not assign preceptors. This is a substantial assist rather than a placement guarantee, and the distinction matters most in the semester you are trying to line up a pediatric rotation.

Quick Facts

FeatureDetails
Program TypesMSN only. No FNP certificate or FNP doctoral pathway at this school.
FormatOnline. Accelerated 8-week and 16-week courses, no stated campus requirement.
Clinical Hours750 direct care hours plus 150 indirect care hours.
Clinical PlacementStudent-initiated from a 1,000+ agreement database. Coordinator approves. No assigned preceptors.
PopulationPrimary care across the lifespan, with stated rural and underserved emphasis.
Distinctive CourseworkIntegrative health theory and technique built into required core and specialty courses.
RN License RequirementTexas Board of Nursing license, plus one year full-time RN experience before applying.
Admission GPA3.25 overall and 3.25 in nursing coursework. No GRE.
Grading GateMinimum 80% (B) in every nursing course. One withdrawal or repeat allowed.
Tuition$502 per credit, flat online rate with no published residency split.
AccreditationCCNE for the master’s program; SACSCOC for the university.

MSN • Family Nurse Practitioner

The estimated tuition for the MSN at Texas State is approximately $21,586 (43 credits at $502/credit), against a published per-program figure of $21,084. The program can generally be completed in about 2 years of full-time study, with a part-time option running on the same 43-credit plan.

The Master of Science in Nursing – Family Nurse Practitioner admits BSN-prepared nurses only. There is no RN-to-MSN bridge and no direct-entry option, so an ADN-prepared nurse must finish a BSN elsewhere first.

MSN Curriculum

The 43 credits divide into 22 credits of core and APRN foundation coursework and 21 credits of FNP specialty coursework. What distinguishes the plan is not the split but the integrative health thread running through it.

Integrative health as a curricular spine. Texas State names integrative practice in its course titles rather than in marketing copy alone. The theory course is Theoretical Foundations and Role Development of Advanced Integrative Nursing, and the capstone specialty pair is Integrative Family Primary Care and its practicum, where students build treatment plans combining conventional and evidence-based complementary approaches. Texas State states that graduates develop competence in the theory and techniques of integrative health. If you want that framework, few FNP programs embed it this structurally; if you do not, you will still take these courses, because none of them are elective.

Population sequence. The specialty courses move through adult, pediatric, and geriatric primary care as paired didactic-and-practicum sets, then converge on the integrative family course that treats co-morbid and complex patients across the lifespan. Each didactic course runs 8 weeks; its matching practicum runs 16. That pairing means clinical hours accumulate alongside coursework rather than being deferred to a final residency block.

Assessment consolidation. Advanced Health Assessment and Clinical Practicum is a single 4-credit course carrying 50 indirect practicum hours, combining didactic assessment content with simulation and standardized patient work. Many programs split this into a lecture course and a separate lab.

Capstone as comprehensive exam. Translational Science for Evidence Based Practice and Innovation Capstone doubles as the master’s comprehensive examination. It has three graded components: a systematic review paper, a professional poster, and an oral presentation delivered at the Annual MSN Capstone Seminar.

  • NURS 5351 – Theoretical Foundations and Role Development of Advanced Integrative Nursing (3)
  • NURS 5401 – Advanced Health Assessment and Clinical Practicum (4)
  • NURS 5301 – Advanced Pathophysiology (3)
  • NURS 5303 – Advanced Pharmacotherapeutics (3)
  • NURS 5345/5346 – Young and Middle Adult Primary Care and Practicum (6)
  • NURS 5354/5255 – Pediatric and Adolescent Primary Care and Practicum (5)
  • NURS 5256/5257 – Geriatric Primary Care and Practicum (4)
  • NURS 5392/5393 – Integrative Family Primary Care and Practicum (6)
  • NURS 5391 – Translational Science for EBP and Innovation Capstone (3)
  • NURS 5190 – Transition to Practice: The APRN as Healthcare Provider (1)

More curriculum details are available here.

You Should Know
  • Specialty course prerequisites in the graduate catalog still reference NURS 5209 and NURS 5210, two assessment courses that do not appear anywhere in the current 43-credit plan. NURS 5401 carries that content now. The prerequisite strings appear to predate the consolidation.
  • Failing the capstone comprehensive examination means failing the course and losing eligibility to graduate that term. The course may be repeated once.
  • Every nursing course requires a minimum grade of 80% (B), and students may withdraw from or repeat only one nursing course across the entire program.
  • Courses run in a semi-lockstep sequence and students must be advised by a graduate advisor before every semester.

MSN Clinical Requirements

  • 750 direct patient care hours plus 150 indirect care hours, for 900 hours total.
  • The 750 direct hours map to 10 practicum credits across four courses: Young and Middle Adult (3), Pediatric and Adolescent (2), Geriatric (2), and Integrative Family (3).
  • Advanced Health Assessment and Clinical Practicum publishes 50 of the 150 indirect hours.
  • Direct hours are completed with individual preceptors in clinical settings; practicum courses also carry a virtual component.
  • The School of Nursing maintains a database of more than 1,000 clinical agreements with providers across Texas, plus previously used preceptors at those sites.
  • Students contact clinical sites directly to ask about availability and openings.
  • A Clinical Education Placement Coordinator facilitates the process and issues departmental approval once a suitable site is identified.
  • Texas State does not assign preceptors. Students and preceptors set the clinical schedule together.

At 750 direct hours, Texas State sits 250 hours above the 500-hour national certification floor and above the 600 to 700 range common among FNP programs. That is a meaningful amount of additional supervised practice, and it is the single strongest argument for this program on curriculum grounds alone. The placement model is the counterweight. A 1,000-agreement database with a coordinator who clears approvals removes real friction compared with programs that hand students nothing, but the school states plainly that it does not assign preceptors and that students make the initial contact. Budget time for that search, particularly for pediatrics, which is the rotation nurses most often struggle to secure.

You Should Know
  • Only 50 of the 150 indirect care hours are attributed to a named course. Where the remaining 100 hours sit in the plan is not published.
  • The clinical agreement network is described as covering Texas. Coverage outside Texas is not stated.
  • Texas State states it is not authorized to conduct internships leading to professional licensure without direct coordination with the relevant licensure board, which is a step out-of-state students should resolve before enrolling.
  • Preceptor qualification rules, faculty site-visit policy, and whether any placement is guaranteed if a student’s search fails are not clearly stated.

MSN Admissions

Two gates screen harder than the norm for an online FNP program: a 3.25 GPA floor applied twice, and a full year of RN experience that must be complete before the application period rather than before enrollment.

  • BSN from a regionally accredited institution and an ACEN- or CCNE-accredited nursing program, posted on the transcript at the time of application.
  • Minimum 3.25 GPA overall and a separate 3.25 GPA in nursing coursework, both on a 4.0 scale.
  • Current, unencumbered RN license issued by the Texas Board of Nursing, with a Nursys licensure report uploaded to the application.
  • At least one year of full-time RN experience, calculated from the license issue date and completed before the application period.
  • A completed college statistics course with a grade of C or higher, finished and reflected on transcripts at the time of application.
  • Short-answer responses covering interest in the program, chosen APRN role, and relevant professional experience.
  • No GRE. Application fee is $55 domestic, $90 with international credentials.
  • After admission and before classes start: criminal background check and drug test, liability insurance fee, health certificate, immunizations, BLS certification, health insurance documentation each semester, and new student orientation.
You Should Know
  • The Texas Board of Nursing license requirement is the most restrictive admission term on this page. Texas State’s curriculum is designed to meet Texas licensure requirements, and the university directs out-of-state applicants to its professional licensure disclosures before enrolling.
  • Health insurance must be documented every semester of enrollment, not once at matriculation.
  • Transfer credit is evaluated only after acceptance is confirmed and is not guaranteed. The stated ceiling is 6 to 12 credits and varies by program.
  • Students who stop out for more than one year must reapply through the standard process and may be required to retake foundational NP courses.
  • Published application deadlines follow an annual cycle tied to 8-week term starts in fall, spring, and summer rather than a single yearly intake.

Tuition

Texas State charges $502 per credit hour for the online MSN – FNP, billed by the course. This is a flat online program rate, and the university publishes no separate resident and non-resident figures for it.

Line ItemAmount
Published per-credit rate$502
Program credits43
Tuition derived at 43 credits$21,586 (derived)
Texas State’s published per-program cost ⚠$21,084
Unexplained difference$502, exactly one credit hour

Confirmed costs:

  • $502 per credit hour, charged course by course rather than as a semester block.
  • $55 application fee, or $90 for applications with international credentials.
  • Fees for online simulation software and standardized patients, charged in the first semester only.
  • A student liability insurance fee, paid to Texas State before classes begin.
  • Health insurance coverage documented for every semester of enrollment.

Be aware that:

  • The published per-program cost of $21,084 divides to exactly 42 credits at $502, not 43. The footnote says that figure already includes first-semester simulation and standardized patient fees, which means it should exceed $21,586 rather than fall short of it. Nothing in Texas State’s published materials explains the gap. Ask admissions which figure governs before you budget.
  • The dollar amounts for liability insurance, simulation and standardized patient fees, the background check, and the drug test are not published. These sit on top of the per-credit rate.
  • BookSmart charges are added automatically each semester and are not included in the program cost. Opting out requires action by the start of each term.
  • Students in Accelerated Online Programs are not eligible for payment plans or emergency loans. Tuition is due by the published deadline, and registrations after that deadline require payment in full at registration.
  • Texas State’s general graduate cost-of-attendance table shows roughly $9,020 in tuition and fees for a nine-month resident year. That table reflects the standard on-campus graduate billing structure, not the flat online per-credit rate, and does not apply to this program.
  • Rates are subject to change by legislative or Board of Regents action, effective on the date of enactment, so a multi-year plan carries real exposure.

Read against the derived figure, this is an inexpensive route to an FNP credential at a public university, and the pay-by-the-course structure means a part-time student never faces a large semester bill. The honest caveat is that the all-in number is not knowable from published materials. Unpriced insurance, simulation, and screening fees, plus semester health insurance, sit above the tuition line, and the ineligibility for payment plans means those costs land when they land. Current tuition detail is on the program tuition section.

Why Choose This FNP Program?

Best suited for Texas-licensed nurses who want above-average clinical volume, a genuinely low per-credit price, and real institutional help finding rotations without expecting the school to hand them a preceptor.

The clinical hours are the substance of the offer. 750 direct patient care hours put Texas State meaningfully above both the 500-hour certification floor and the 600 to 700 band where most FNP programs land, and the hours are distributed across four population-specific practicums rather than concentrated in one terminal residency. Graduates arrive at certification with more supervised reps in more settings. Paired with a $502 per-credit rate, that is an unusual combination: the extra practice does not carry an extra price.

The placement model is assistance, not a guarantee. Texas State sits in a useful middle position. A 1,000-agreement database and a Clinical Education Placement Coordinator are more than most online programs provide, and far more than a list of phone numbers. But the school states directly that it does not assign preceptors and that students contact sites themselves. If you need a program that places you, this is not it. If you have some professional network in Texas healthcare and want the paperwork and approvals handled, the model works well.

Geography decides this one. Every structural advantage here is anchored to Texas. Admission requires a Texas Board of Nursing license. The curriculum is designed against Texas licensure requirements. The clinical agreement network covers Texas providers. The university states it cannot arrange licensure-bearing internships without coordinating directly with the relevant board. For a nurse licensed and working in Central Texas, within reach of the Austin and San Antonio healthcare markets, this is a strong and affordable option with clinical depth above the norm. For a nurse licensed elsewhere, the same program becomes a series of obstacles to clear before the first course, and the sensible step is to resolve licensure and clinical authorization with both Texas State and your own board of nursing before you apply.

Accreditation

The master’s degree program in nursing at Texas State University is accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education, 655 K Street NW, Suite 750, Washington, DC 20001, 202-887-6791. CCNE’s accreditation at Texas State also covers the baccalaureate program and the post-graduate APRN certificate program. The MSN – FNP falls within the master’s scope, which is the accreditation that matters for advanced practice licensure and certification eligibility.

Texas State University is institutionally accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges. Institutional accreditation is what makes the degree transferable, makes students eligible for federal financial aid, and allows a future doctoral program to recognize the MSN. It operates separately from nursing programmatic accreditation, and a nurse considering later DNP study should confirm that both are current for the intended admission year.

Graduates of the MSN – FNP are eligible to apply to sit for the national FNP certification examination through either the American Nurses Credentialing Center or the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners. Passing one of these examinations is required for APRN licensure. Texas State reports a 100% pass rate for recent graduates on national certification examinations, a figure published as program marketing without a stated cohort year or methodology.

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