Morehead State University FNP Programs

Department of Nursing • Morehead, KY • Mostly Online • $573/credit

Morehead State University offers an MSN Family Nurse Practitioner track.

Program Tracks Overview

ProgramEst. TuitionEst. DurationCredit Hours
MSN$30.0K (all residencies)About 2.3 years (7 semesters)49

Tuition estimates use Morehead State’s Fall 2026 graduate rate of $573 per credit plus the $29 internet course fee and the $11 per-credit facility and recreation fees.

Morehead State keeps its FNP clinical training anchored in primary care. All 600 hours run through three equal 200-hour practica: the first allows no specialty time at all, and the next two cap specialty rotations at 60 hours each. Students also log at least 160 patient encounters across 12 body systems, and the final clinical evaluation must score 100% to pass.

The trade-off is a strict, Kentucky-tied structure. Practicum requires an active Kentucky RN license, at least one course requires campus attendance in Morehead, and a dismissed student cannot reapply. Pricing is simple in return: one $573 graduate rate for every residency.

Quick Facts

FeatureDetails
Program TypesMSN (FNP, Primary Care Concentration); RN-MSN pathway for MSU RN-BSN students
FormatMostly Online: online lectures, required campus attendance for the Advanced Procedures course
Clinical Hours600 (three 200-hour practica)
Clinical PlacementSite and signed agreement required by day one of each practicum; sourcing responsibility not clearly stated
PopulationFamily/individual across the lifespan; mission centers northeastern and eastern Kentucky
Distinctive CourseworkAdvanced Procedures lab; separate pediatrics, women’s health, and aging courses; optional opioid use disorder elective
RN License RequirementsUnencumbered RN license to apply; active Kentucky RN license to begin practicum
Experience GateOne year (2,080 hours) of RN clinical experience
Tuition$573/credit for all residencies; about $613/credit with fees
AccreditationCCNE (master’s program); SACSCOC institutional

Master of Science in Nursing, Family Nurse Practitioner (Primary Care Concentration)

The estimated tuition for the MSN at Morehead State University is approximately $28,077 (49 credits at $573/credit), or about $30,037 with mandatory and online fees. The Master of Science in Nursing, Family Nurse Practitioner (Primary Care Concentration) can generally be completed in about 2.3 years on the full-time plan (seven semesters, fall start).

MSN Curriculum

Foundation year. Year one front-loads the advanced practice core: health assessment with a lab, pathophysiology, pharmacology, and evidence-based practice. Population courses start early. Pediatrics runs in the first fall, and childbearing and women’s health follows in the first summer.

Procedures before patients. The one-credit Advanced Procedures course (NURG 636 with lab) comes in the first summer and is a prerequisite for both Common Alterations in Primary Care and Practicum I. Students arrive at their first clinical site with hands-on procedural skills already checked on campus.

Paired didactic and practicum. Each practicum runs alongside a matching management course: Common Alterations with Practicum I, Complex Alterations with Practicum II, and Professional Practice with Practicum III. Professional Practice covers quality improvement, change management, and business plan development, and it carries a required portfolio project in the final semester.

  • NURG 610: Health Assessment for Advanced Practice (3, with lab)
  • NURG 631: Pediatrics for Advanced Practice (3)
  • NURG 632: Childbearing and Women’s Health for Advanced Practice (2)
  • NURG 633: Care of the Aging Population (3)
  • NURG 636: Advanced Procedures (1, with lab; campus attendance required)
  • NURG 634 / 641: Common and Complex Alterations in Primary Care (3 each)
  • NURG 635 / 645 / 655: Practicum I, II, III (3 each)
  • NURG 650: Professional Practice (3)
  • AVH 600: Managing the Patient with Opioid Use Disorder (3, optional elective by petition)

More curriculum details are available here.

You Should Know
  • The program page lists completion as “2 Years, Full Time,” but the handbook’s full-time sample plan spans seven semesters, from Year 1 fall through Year 3 fall.
  • The opioid use disorder elective (AVH 600) is outside the 49 required credits. Taking it would add 3 credits of tuition.
  • A part-time plan is not published. Students must finish within six years of entry.

MSN Clinical Requirements

  • Total: 600 practicum hours (3 courses × 200 hours, about 67 hours per credit)
  • Practicum I (NURG 635): 200 hours, primary care only; specialty areas not allowed
  • Practicum II and III (NURG 645, 655): 200 hours each; up to 60 hours per course in an approved specialty such as obstetrics or pediatrics
  • Weekly load: 10 to 15 practicum hours per week
  • Encounter minimums: at least 160 encounters across 12 areas, including 20 each in HEENT, respiratory, cardiovascular, and GI, plus 10 in well pediatrics and 10 in OB/GYN
  • Preceptors: APRN, physician, or PA with at least one year of experience in the same population focus; maximum two students per preceptor; at least some hours with an APRN preceptor in the FNP role
  • Site agreement: placement arranged, approved, and under a signed Memorandum of Agreement by the first day of each practicum
  • Oversight: practicum faculty are nationally certified FNPs; hours, logs, and evaluations are tracked in Meditrek
  • Grading: the final faculty evaluation must reach 100% for a satisfactory clinical grade; an unsatisfactory clinical component caps the course grade at C

At 600 hours, Morehead State sits at the low end of the 600 to 700 hour range common among FNP programs and 100 hours above the 500-hour certification floor. The distinguishing feature is not volume but control: at least 480 of the 600 hours (80%) must be primary care, and the encounter quotas force breadth across pediatrics, women’s health, and chronic disease. At 10 to 15 hours a week, each practicum is a realistic load for a nurse still working, but the 100% evaluation standard leaves no room for a weak final review.

You Should Know
  • The handbook does not say whether Morehead State or the student finds clinical sites and preceptors. It only requires that each placement be contracted before the course starts.
  • Alternative site options are not always available, and the handbook warns that a site change can delay graduation.
  • Because the program requires a B in every nursing course, a capped C from an unsatisfactory clinical evaluation counts as a failing grade. A second failing grade means dismissal.
  • Practicum absences above 12 hours trigger a mandatory meeting to decide whether the student may progress.
  • Compliance items (background check, 10-panel drug screen, immunizations, BLS, health insurance letter) must be cleared in CastleBranch before Practicum I. PALS or ACLS may be required by individual sites.

MSN Admissions

Admission is selective and separate from graduate school admission, with a one-year RN experience gate and three recommendations.

  • Admission to Morehead State’s graduate school
  • BSN or MSN from a CCNE, ACEN, or CNEA accredited program
  • GPA of 3.0 or higher
  • Current, unencumbered RN license
  • Minimum one year (2,080 hours) of RN clinical experience
  • 3-credit descriptive statistics course (graduate or undergraduate)
  • 1 to 2 page goal statement and resume or CV
  • Three FNP Applicant Recommendation forms, at least one from an immediate or upline supervisor
  • Criminal background check and immunization compliance
  • Deadlines: April 15 for fall entry, October 15 for spring entry (late applications case by case)

RN-MSN pathway: Morehead State RN-BSN students can be conditionally admitted to the MSN and take NURG 610, 613, and 630 (9 credits) for both degrees. A B or higher in each course plus BSN completion converts the offer to full admission.

You Should Know
  • The admission page asks only for an unencumbered RN license, but the practicum handbook requires an active Kentucky RN license, verified through the Kentucky Board of Nursing, before Practicum I. Nurses licensed elsewhere should confirm whether a multistate compact license satisfies this.
  • Morehead State cannot admit online students living in California or the Northern Mariana Islands.
  • A grade below B in any graduate nursing course, or dismissal from another graduate nursing program, disqualifies an applicant.
  • Students dismissed from this FNP program are not eligible for readmission.
  • Transfer credit is limited: pharmacology, pathophysiology, and assessment within 10 years; clinical and theory courses within 5 years.
  • The separate Post-Master’s FNP track has been discontinued. Nurses with a graduate degree now apply to the full MSN.

Tuition

Morehead State charges $573 per credit for graduate tuition in Fall 2026 and Spring 2027, the same rate for Kentucky residents, out-of-state students, and international students. With required per-credit fees, the effective cost is about $613 per credit (derived).

ComponentPer Credit49 Credits
Graduate tuition$573$28,077
Internet course fee$29$1,421
Recreation and Wellness Center fee$6$294
Facility fee$5$245
Estimated total (derived)$613$30,037
  • Graduate tuition is charged per credit; the undergraduate full-time flat rate does not apply.
  • Recreation fee caps at $66 and facility fee at $60 per fall or spring semester. The heaviest planned term is 9 credits, so the caps never apply.
  • The same rates apply in summer terms.

Be aware that:

  • The $29 internet fee applies to courses delivered at least 50% online. NURG 636 requires campus attendance and may not carry it, which would lower the total by $29.
  • Student liability insurance is billed as part of each practicum course fee. The amount is not published.
  • CastleBranch background check, compliance tracking, and the separate drug screen are paid by the student.
  • MSU enrolls students in Eagle Books course materials at $25 per credit. Whether graduate nursing students are enrolled automatically is not clearly stated.
  • Travel to Morehead for campus-attendance coursework is not included.

The real cost is about $30,000 regardless of where the student lives, since the graduate rate does not change by residency. For out-of-state nurses this removes the usual public-university premium. The unknowns (practicum course fees, compliance vendors, and possible book charges) are likely to add a few hundred to low thousands of dollars, not change the overall picture.

Official rates: Morehead State Tuition & Fees.

Why Choose This FNP Program?

Best suited for Kentucky-licensed nurses who want a primary care FNP with defined clinical breadth and one tuition rate for every residency.

Clinical training built around primary care. Practicum I bans specialty hours and later courses cap them at 60 each, so at least 80% of training stays in primary care. The 160-encounter minimum across 12 body systems means students cannot spend a whole semester in one narrow clinic. Nurses who want broad family-practice readiness get a structure that enforces it.

A good fit for eastern Kentucky. The program’s mission targets northeastern and eastern Kentucky, and graduates work at employers such as Appalachian Regional Healthcare, Pikeville Medical Center, King’s Daughters Medical Center, and UK HealthCare. Nurses already in that region gain a program designed around their practice setting, and the Kentucky RN license requirement fits them naturally.

Honest drawbacks. The progression rules are strict: B or better in every course, a 100% final clinical evaluation, dismissal after a second failing grade, and no readmission. Who finds clinical sites is not clearly stated, and placements must be contracted before each practicum starts. Nurses outside Kentucky should confirm license and placement rules before applying.

Accreditation

The master’s degree program in nursing at Morehead State University is accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE). The MSN FNP Primary Care Concentration first earned CCNE accreditation in 2019, and its continuing accreditation review included an October 2023 site visit.

Morehead State University is institutionally accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC). Regional institutional accreditation supports federal financial aid eligibility and credit transfer to doctoral programs.

The FNP program is also approved by the Kentucky Board of Nursing and the Kentucky Council on Postsecondary Education.

Graduates are eligible to sit for the national FNP certification exam (AANP or ANCC).

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