Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi FNP Programs

College of Nursing and Health Sciences • Corpus Christi, TX • Online

Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi offers 2 Family Nurse Practitioner Tracks:

  • MSN
  • Post-Master’s Certificate

Program Tracks Overview

ProgramEst. TuitionEst. DurationCredit Hours
MSNNot clearly stated2.7 years
(8 semesters)		49
CertificateNot clearly stated2 years
(6 semesters)		37

Tuition is not estimated because TAMU-CC’s graduate nursing rate charts could not be verified, and durations are derived from credit totals at the published part-time pace.

Every FNP student at TAMU-CC takes Finance for the Nurse Practitioner, a required course on private-practice finances, payment systems, and when to bring in a lawyer. Coursework is fully online, and the MSN is built as a part-time plan for nurses who keep working full time.

The trade-off is the clinical side. Students find and arrange their own preceptors, clinical training is completed in Texas, and both tracks admit in fall only.

Quick Facts

FeatureDetails
Program TypesMSN (BSN, RN-Bridge, or RN-MSN entry); Post-Master’s Certificate
FormatOnline
Clinical Hours630 across four clinical courses
Clinical PlacementStudent-arranged; site and preceptor approved by clinical faculty
Clinical LocationTexas (per the MSN student handbook)
PopulationFamily/individual across the lifespan
Distinctive CourseworkFinance for the Nurse Practitioner; radiology and EKG interpretation in health assessment
ConcentrationsNone
RN License RequirementsMSN: Texas or compact RN with Texas authorization. Certificate: Texas RN
Start TermFall only, both tracks
TuitionNot clearly stated
AccreditationCCNE (MSN and post-graduate APRN certificate); SACSCOC

Master of Science in Nursing, Family Nurse Practitioner

The estimated tuition for the Family Nurse Practitioner, MSN at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi is not clearly stated (49 credits; per-credit rate unverified). The program can generally be completed in about 2.7 years (8 semesters, derived), running from a fall start through the spring of year three.

MSN Curriculum

The 49 credits split into 12 credits of graduate nursing core and 37 credits of FNP role specialization. The specialty half is back-loaded: 25 credits (about half the degree) sit in four clinical courses that run in a strict chain, each a prerequisite for the next.

What stands out: Finance for the Nurse Practitioner covers private-practice fiscal management, payment system design, and cost-effectiveness of clinical decisions. Most FNP curricula touch business topics inside a role course. Here it is a standalone 3-credit requirement. Advanced Health Assessment also covers radiology, EKGs, and common office tests, and several clinical courses name rural and multicultural populations in their design.

  • NURS 5310 Science in Nursing (3)
  • NURS 5315 Health Policy and Cultural Diversity (3)
  • NURS 5323 Finance for the Nurse Practitioner (3)
  • NURS 5341 Wellness and Health Promotion (3)
  • NURS 5624 Advanced Health Assessment and Differential Diagnosis (6)
  • NURS 5644 Management of Acute and Chronic Illness I (6)
  • NURS 5645 Management of Acute and Chronic Illness II (6)
  • NURS 5746 Integrated Clinical Practice: FNP (7, capstone; B or better required)

More curriculum details are available here.

You Should Know
  • TAMU-CC does not publish a semester-by-semester plan on the program page. The 8-semester, 2.7-year figure is derived from 49 credits at a part-time load of about 6 credits per term.
  • All degree credit must be completed within seven years of the first enrolled term.

MSN Clinical Requirements

  • Total: 630 hours (90 + 135 + 135 + 270)
  • NURS 5624: 90 hours; NURS 5644: 135; NURS 5645: 135; NURS 5746: 270
  • Placement: students identify and select their own agencies and preceptors
  • Clinical faculty must approve the site and preceptor, and a signed preceptor agreement is required before hours begin
  • Faculty make one to two evaluative site visits per clinical course (per a recent course syllabus)
  • Hours and patient encounters are logged in Typhon within seven days
  • Course exams are taken remotely with a lockdown browser and webcam

630 hours clears the 500-hour certification floor and sits inside the 600 to 700 hour range common among FNP programs. The load climbs steeply. Over a 15-week term, the first three clinical courses need about 6 to 9 hours a week. The capstone needs about 18, roughly two clinic days a week. Because students source their own preceptors, nurses without an existing network of Texas primary care providers should start the search well before NURS 5624.

You Should Know
  • The 2023 MSN student handbook states that all clinical education must be completed in Texas. Nurses outside Texas should confirm this before applying.
  • TAMU-CC’s current program pages describe the FNP as completely online. Some third-party directories and past-student reports describe an on-campus health assessment session. Confirm with the program whether any campus visit is required.

MSN Admissions

The MSN admits in fall only, uses rolling review within each cycle, and has three entry doors into the same 49-credit FNP plan.

  • BSN entry: begin graduate coursework on admission
  • RN-Bridge entry (RN with a non-nursing bachelor’s): 16 undergraduate credits first; no BSN is awarded
  • RN-MSN entry (ADN or diploma RN): 19 undergraduate nursing credits plus 58 general education and support credits first; no BSN is awarded
  • Unencumbered Texas RN license or compact RN license with authorization to practice in Texas
  • 3.00 GPA on the last 60 semester hours; conditional admission possible by waiver below 3.00
  • Resume showing professional contributions, including activity outside the workplace
  • Official transcripts from all colleges attended
  • $50 application fee ($70 international)
  • After admission: background check, drug screen, immunizations, annual TB screening, AHA or Red Cross healthcare provider CPR
You Should Know
  • Reference requirements conflict. The FNP page’s checklist lists none, the same page later mentions 3 reference forms, and the general MSN catalog and program page require 2.
  • No application deadline date is published. The college may defer admission if enrollment is low.
  • TAMU-CC has not determined whether the FNP MSN meets nurse practitioner licensure requirements in California, the District of Columbia, the U.S. Virgin Islands, or Puerto Rico.
  • Bridge and RN-MSN coursework is billed and scheduled separately from the 49 graduate credits, so it adds time and cost before FNP courses begin.

Family Nurse Practitioner, Post-Master’s Certificate

The estimated tuition for the Family Nurse Practitioner, Post-Masters Certificate at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi is not clearly stated (37 credits; per-credit rate unverified). The program can generally be completed in about 2 years (6 semesters, derived), since it keeps the MSN’s full four-course clinical chain.

Certificate Curriculum

The certificate is the MSN minus its 12-credit core. It keeps all 37 role-specialization credits, including advanced pathophysiology, pharmacology, health assessment, and the NP finance course. No gap analysis or course waiver is published, so current APRNs should expect to repeat foundational courses they may have taken before.

  • NURS 5326 Advanced Physiology with Pathophysiological Applications (3)
  • NURS 5322 Advanced Pharmacological Concepts (3)
  • NURS 5323 Finance for the Nurse Practitioner (3)
  • NURS 5341 Wellness and Health Promotion (3)
  • NURS 5624 Advanced Health Assessment and Differential Diagnosis (6)
  • NURS 5644 and 5645 Management of Acute and Chronic Illness I and II (6 each)
  • NURS 5746 Integrated Clinical Practice: FNP (7)

More curriculum details are available here.

Certificate Clinical Requirements

  • 630 hours, through the same four clinical courses as the MSN (derived from the shared course list; the certificate pages do not state a total)
  • Same student-arranged placement, faculty approval, and Typhon logging rules as the MSN

Certificate students complete the same clinical volume as MSN students. That is useful for RNs with a non-clinical MSN, who need the full hours anyway. It is heavier than necessary for an APRN adding a second population focus, since no prior hours are credited.

Certificate Admissions

The certificate is fall intake only and asks for more application material than the MSN.

  • MSN degree required
  • Current, unencumbered Texas RN license
  • Three letters of recommendation on the CONHS reference form
  • Personal statement and CV or resume
  • Official transcripts (a TAMU-CC transcript is not required)
  • $50 application fee ($70 international)
You Should Know
  • The certificate page header labels the program “On Campus,” while the catalog marks every certificate course as an online offering. Confirm delivery before applying.
  • The certificate page asks for a Texas RN license only and does not mention compact licenses, unlike the MSN.
  • The page still links the CONHS Graduate Form, which TAMU-CC has discontinued in favor of an emailed resume and essay.
  • State boards set their own rules for recognizing a second APRN population focus earned through a certificate. Check with your board before enrolling.

Tuition

TAMU-CC’s cost per credit for graduate nursing is not clearly stated in any source that could be verified for this profile. The university publishes per-semester charts by residency and college on its Business Office graduate tuition page, and those charts are the place to price the program.

TrackCreditsPer-Credit RateEstimated Total
MSN49Not clearly statedNot clearly stated
Certificate37Not clearly statedNot clearly stated
  • Tuition is charged per semester credit hour, at a higher rate for non-residents
  • Professional liability coverage is billed with fees at registration each academic year
  • Application fee: $50 ($70 international)

Be aware that:

  • A 2023-24 TAMU-CC fee chart notes a distance education fee of $50 to $100 per web-based course. At that range, the MSN’s 12 courses would add about $600 to $1,200, and the certificate’s 8 courses about $400 to $800 (derived; current amounts unverified).
  • Non-resident RNs who are authorized to practice in Texas and intend to teach in a Texas pre-licensure program may qualify to pay the resident rate.
  • RN-Bridge and RN-MSN entrants pay separately for their undergraduate prerequisite credits.
  • Background checks, drug screens, immunizations, CPR, and clinical tracking software are not priced on the program pages.

Without a verified rate, the useful comparison is structural. The MSN bills 49 credits, the certificate 37, and the certificate saves only the 12 core credits because it keeps every clinical and foundation course. Price both tracks from the current CONHS graduate chart for your residency before comparing TAMU-CC with other Texas programs.

Why Choose This FNP Program?

Best suited for working Texas RNs who can line up their own preceptors and want FNP training that treats the business of practice as core content.

If you plan to own or run a practice: Finance for the Nurse Practitioner is the clearest reason to pick TAMU-CC. Payment systems, practice finances, and legal decision points are graded coursework, not a module inside a role course. The certificate includes the same course, so post-master’s students get it too.

If you want to stay at your job through school: The MSN is designed as a part-time plan, coursework is online, and exams are proctored remotely. The pressure point is the final capstone, which needs about two clinic days a week. Plan employer flexibility for that term.

If you hold an ADN or a non-nursing bachelor’s: The RN-MSN and RN-Bridge doors lead into the same FNP plan without a separate BSN. Expect the prerequisite coursework to add at least a year.

If you need a Texas-free or placement-supported path: Look elsewhere. Clinicals are completed in Texas, students arrange their own sites, entry is fall only, and the certificate offers no credit for prior APRN coursework.

Accreditation

The master’s degree program in nursing and the post-graduate APRN certificate at TAMU-CC are accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE). That scope covers both FNP tracks on this page, including the certificate by name. The university’s DNP is separately CCNE-accredited. Current status for each program can be checked in CCNE’s online directory.

Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi is institutionally accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) to award associate, baccalaureate, master’s, and doctoral degrees. Institutional accreditation supports federal financial aid eligibility and the transfer and recognition of graduate credit.

MSN graduates are eligible to sit for the national FNP certification exam (AANP or ANCC). TAMU-CC states that certificate completers should meet the requirements for national certification in the family specialty. Passing either exam is required for APRN licensure in Texas, and both certifying bodies accept graduates of CCNE-accredited programs.

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