LSU Health New Orleans FNP Programs (Family Nurse)

LSU Health New Orleans offers 4 Family Nurse Practitioner Tracks:

BSN-to-DNP
BSN-to-DNP Dual — FNP + Adult-Gerontology Acute Care
BSN-to-DNP Dual — FNP + Psychiatric-Mental Health
Post-Master’s DNP — FNP Role Addition

Program Tracks Overview

Program	Est. Tuition (In-State )	Est. Duration	Credit Hours
BSN-DNP (FNP)	$68.6K	3 yrs (full-time)	86
Dual FNP + Acute Care	$92.7K	4 yrs (full-time)	110
Dual FNP + Psych	$92.7K	4 yrs (full-time)	119
Post-Master’s DNP	$33.7K–$54.6K	16 mos (FT) / 2.3 yrs (PT)	36–51

LSU Health’s defining advantage is dual certification: FNP can be paired with acute care or psychiatric-mental health inside a single BSN-to-DNP, qualifying graduates to sit for both national boards. The cost is a doctorate-only entry with a live GRE requirement and campus attendance at least six times per semester.

Quick Facts

Feature	Details
Program Types	BSN-to-DNP (FNP), two dual-certification BSN-to-DNP tracks, Post-Master’s DNP. No standalone MSN-FNP.
Format	Hybrid. DNP core courses meet Monday–Saturday a minimum of six times per semester.
Clinical Hours	1,080 (FNP); 1,860 (FNP + acute care) ; 1,800 (FNP + psych); individualized (PM-DNP).
Clinical Placement	Preceptor-supervised under faculty guidance. Placement responsibility not clearly stated.
Population	Across the lifespan, infancy through end of life. Community clinics and urgent care settings.
Distinctive Coursework	Separate diagnostic and therapeutic procedures course; primary care pharmacotherapeutics beyond advanced pharmacology.
Concentrations	Dual FNP + AGACNP; dual FNP + PMHNP. Both are full second certifications, not electives.
Admissions Gate	GRE required: 300 combined verbal and quantitative, 3.0 writing, within five years. Interview required.
Intake Terms	Full-time entry is summer only (Feb 1). Fall and spring accept part-time applicants only.
RN License Requirements	Current unencumbered RN license in any state, with eligibility for Louisiana licensure.
Tuition	DNP-specific rate schedule. Nonresidents pay nonresident rates for the entire enrollment.
Accreditation	CCNE (BSN, MSN, DNP). SACSCOC institutional. Full approval from the Louisiana State Board of Nursing.

BSN-to-DNP: Primary Care Family Nurse Practitioner

The estimated tuition for the Primary Care Family Nurse Practitioner BSN-to-DNP at LSU Health New Orleans is approximately $68,554 for Louisiana residents and $119,718 for nonresidents, covering 86 credits under a mix of flat-rate and per-credit billing. The program can generally be completed in about three years of full-time study across nine consecutive semesters, starting in summer.

BSN-to-DNP Curriculum

Structure. This is a doctorate from day one. There is no master’s exit point and no MSN-FNP alternative at LSU Health, so the 86 credits are a single continuous commitment. Year 1 covers DNP core and the three Ps. Year 2 is the FNP specialty sequence. Year 3 is the DNP scholarly project plus role transition.

Specialty sequence design. The FNP sequence is unusual in how it partitions the lifespan. Rather than one general “family primary care” block, LSU Health splits the population across three escalating courses: adults and episodic disease, then vulnerable populations and chronic disease, then pediatrics and reproductive health. Each carries an embedded lab credit alongside didactic and practicum, so skills practice is built into the specialty courses rather than isolated in a separate simulation term.

Unique coursework. Two courses stand out against typical FNP curricula. Diagnostic and Therapeutic Procedures is a dedicated three-credit course with its own lab, covering procedures and test interpretation that many programs fold into assessment. Primary care pharmacotherapeutics runs as a second, separate pharmacology course after the standard advanced pharmacology requirement, which means prescribing gets two passes instead of one.

NURS 6315 — Advanced Health Assessment (5 credits, includes 1.5 lab credits)
NURS 7708 — Diagnostic & Therapeutic Procedures and Tests, Across the Lifespan (3)
NURS 7709 — Primary Care Pharmacotherapeutics Across the Lifespan (2)
NURS 7716 — Primary Care NP I: Adult Populations & Episodic Disease Management (7)
NURS 7718 — Family PCNP II: Vulnerable Populations & Chronic Disease Management (8)
NURS 7720 — Family PCNP III: Pediatric Populations and Reproductive Health (9)
NURS 7110 / 7120 / 7130 — Scholarly Project I, II, and III (3 each)
NURS 7950 — Role Transition into Professional NP Practice (3)

Semester credit loads sum to exactly 86, matching the published total. More curriculum details are available here.

A 91-credit version of this plan applies to students who started before Summer 2025. It used a four-course FNP sequence ending in Primary Care NP IV: Role Transitions. Applicants entering now follow the 86-credit plan. The university catalog still lists course groupings consistent with the older structure, so treat the program page as current over the catalog.

BSN-to-DNP Clinical Requirements

1,080 total practicum hours, stated by the school and confirmed by course math.
Conversion rate: 1 practicum credit equals 60 practicum hours.
Derivation: 18 practicum credits × 60 = 1,080 hours. NURS 7716 (3), 7718 (4), 7720 (5), 7021 (1), 7022 (2), 7023 (2), 7950 (1).
FNP population-focused portion: roughly 720 hours across the three specialty courses.
DNP advanced practicum portion: roughly 360 hours across the three Advanced Nursing Practicum courses and role transition.
Preceptors must be approved by the program; practicum is faculty-guided with direct preceptor supervision.
Practicum may be scheduled on weekdays, weekends, evenings, or night shifts.
NOTE: Whether the school arranges placements or students secure their own preceptors is not clearly stated.

At 1,080 hours, this program runs well past the 500-hour national certification floor and above the 600 to 700 hours common in FNP programs. The important nuance is what those hours contain. About two-thirds are FNP population-focused clinical work; the remaining third sits in DNP-level advanced practicum tied to the scholarly project and role transition. That still leaves roughly 720 hours of direct family primary care, which clears the certification floor comfortably on its own. The unstated placement model is the real open question — in a program with this much clinical volume, whether you are hunting your own preceptors for three years materially changes the workload.

BSN-to-DNP Admissions

Two gates here are unusual enough to shape whether you can apply at all: LSU Health still requires the GRE, and full-time admission is offered in the summer term only.

BSN or BSN equivalent from a regionally accredited institution; a BSN equivalent qualifies only with a conferred master’s degree.
3.0 GPA on all undergraduate and graduate coursework.
GRE: 300 or higher combined verbal and quantitative on the 130–170 scale, plus a 3.0 writing score, both within the last five years. School code 6353.
Three references, including at least one peer and one current supervisor.
Current unencumbered RN license in any state, with eligibility for Louisiana licensure. Verified through the Louisiana State Board of Nursing.
Successful completion of an interview.
Clinical nursing experience as specified by the concentration. A specific year requirement is not published.
Applications run through NursingCAS. $100 non-refundable application fee.
BLS for Healthcare Providers; criminal background check and urine drug screen at student expense, with random screening during enrollment.
TOEFL 550 paper-based or 79–80 internet-based for applicants whose first language is not English.
Annual deadlines: Feb 1 for summer (full-time or part-time), July 1 for fall (part-time only), Nov 1 for spring (part-time only).

NOTE: The program’s overview page lists a summer deadline of January 31st, while the current application page lists February 1st. The application page is the operative source.

BSN-to-DNP Dual: FNP + Adult-Gerontology Acute Care

The estimated tuition for the AGACNP and PCFNP Dual Concentration at LSU Health New Orleans is approximately $92,651 for residents and $161,805 for nonresidents, covering 110 credits. The program can generally be completed in about four years of full-time study across twelve semesters.

Dual FNP + Acute Care Curriculum

This track produces two certifications from one degree: family primary care and adult-gerontology acute care. Structurally it takes the 86-credit FNP plan and inserts a parallel three-course acute care sequence in Year 3, covering systems management twice and then critical illness and trauma. Year 1 adds an acute care procedures course and swaps in acute care pharmacotherapeutics alongside the primary care pharmacology requirement.

The practical meaning is scope range. A dual-certified graduate can work a primary care panel and an inpatient or ICU service without returning for a post-master’s certificate later. Admission requires meeting the criteria for both concentrations, so this is not a mid-program add-on.

NURS 7706 — Acute Care Therapeutic and Diagnostic Procedures (3)
NURS 7909 — Advanced Practice Nursing Acute Care Pharmacotherapeutics (2)
NURS 7716 / 7718 / 7720 — the full three-course FNP primary care sequence (24 combined)
NURS 7310 — Adult/Gerontology ACNP I: Systems Management (7)
NURS 7312 — Adult/Gerontology ACNP II: Systems Management (8)
NURS 7314 — Adult/Gerontology ACNP III: Critical Illness & Trauma Management (9)
NURS 7950 — Role Transition into Professional NP Practice (3)

Semester loads sum to 110, matching the published total. A 116-credit version applies to students who started before Summer 2025.

Dual FNP + Acute Care Clinical Requirements

1,860 total practicum hours as published by the school.
Approximate split: 720 hours FNP primary care, 720 hours adult-gerontology acute care, 360 hours DNP advanced practicum.
Practicum may be scheduled on weekdays, weekends, evenings, or night shifts.
Placement model not clearly stated.

The headline number is large, but read it as two certifications sharing one total rather than a deeper FNP experience. The FNP-specific portion here is the same roughly 720 hours as the standalone track — the extra volume buys acute care competency, not additional family practice depth. If your goal is FNP alone, the added hours are a cost in time, not a benefit. Verify the 1,860 figure with the program office before relying on it for a certification application.

Dual FNP + Acute Care Admissions

Applicants must independently satisfy the admission criteria for both concentrations before a dual plan of study is approved. All BSN-to-DNP requirements listed above apply, including the GRE and interview. The AGACNP concentration may carry its own clinical experience expectation; confirm this directly, since concentration-specific experience requirements are referenced but not published in detail.

BSN-to-DNP Dual: FNP + Psychiatric-Mental Health

The estimated tuition for the PCFNP and PMHNP Dual Concentration at LSU Health New Orleans is approximately $92,651 for residents and $161,805 for nonresidents, covering 119 credits.

The program can generally be completed in about four years of full-time study across twelve semesters.

Dual FNP + Psych Curriculum

This is the more clinically coherent of the two duals for primary care work. Behavioral health presents constantly in family practice, and the program’s own description of the FNP role already names the intersection of physical and mental health conditions as a defining competency. Adding full PMHNP preparation turns that overlap into prescriptive authority and therapy training rather than a referral reflex.

The psych sequence runs in Year 2, ahead of the FNP sequence in Year 3 — the reverse of how most dual programs stack a secondary specialty. Students get psychopharmacology, clinical neuroanatomy, psychotherapeutic modalities, and separate pediatric and adult mental health courses before entering family primary care.

NURS 7206 — Psychopharmacology & Pharmacotherapeutics Across the Lifespan (3)
HLSC 7426 — Clinical Neuroanatomy, Neurophysiology, and Mental Health (3)
NURS 7207 — Advanced Psychiatric-Mental Health Assessment & Diagnostics (3)
NURS 7210 — PMHNP I: Psychotherapeutic Modalities (6)
NURS 7211 — PMHNP II: Infant, Child and Adolescent Mental Health (9)
NURS 7212 — PMHNP II: Adult and Gerontology Mental Health (9)
NURS 7716 / 7718 / 7720 — the full three-course FNP primary care sequence (24 combined)
NURS 7950 — Role Transition into Professional NP Practice (3)

Semester loads sum to 119, matching the published total. Earlier plans of 123 credits (Spring 2022–Spring 2025) and 126 credits (Summer 2019–Fall 2021) apply to prior cohorts.

Dual FNP + Psych Clinical Requirements

1,800 total practicum hours, stated by the school and confirmed by course math.
Derivation: 30 practicum credits × 60 hours = 1,800. Figures reconcile exactly.
Approximate split: 720 hours FNP primary care, 720 hours psychiatric-mental health, 360 hours DNP advanced practicum.
Practicum may be scheduled on weekdays, weekends, evenings, or night shifts.
NOTE: Placement model not clearly stated.

Unlike the acute care dual, the stated and itemized totals here agree, which is a small but real signal about how carefully this plan is maintained. The 720 psychiatric hours meaningfully exceed what most standalone PMHNP programs require, and they arrive before the FNP sequence, so students enter family primary care already able to work up a depression or anxiety presentation without deferring it.

Dual FNP + Psych Admissions

Admission criteria for both the PCFNP and PMHNP concentrations must be satisfied independently before the dual plan is approved. Standard BSN-to-DNP requirements apply, including the GRE, interview, and NursingCAS application.

Post-Master’s DNP: FNP Role Addition

The estimated tuition for the Post-Master’s DNP at LSU Health New Orleans ranges from approximately $33,727 to $54,621 for residents and $58,912 to $95,370 for nonresidents, reflecting a 36 to 51 credit range.

The program can generally be completed in four semesters full-time or seven semesters part-time, with a maximum of eight years allowed.

Post-Master’s DNP Curriculum

The post-master’s pathway has two branches. One deepens practice in the role and population you are already certified in. The other adds a new APRN role or population — and this is the FNP-relevant one. The Louisiana State Board of Nursing lists FNP (Primary Care) as approved at LSU Health under both the BSN-DNP and PM-DNP pathways, so this is a legitimate route to family primary care certification for an already-credentialed NP or CNS.

The published PM-DNP curriculum lists only the DNP core. The FNP specialty courses required to add the role are not itemized on the program page, and credits and practicum hours are individualized case by case. Expect the total to land toward the upper end of the 36 to 51 range if the FNP sequence and any missing three-P courses are needed.

BSDS/BIOS 6100 — Biostatistical Methods (3–4)
NURS 6324 — Introduction to Epidemiology (3)
NURS 7103 — Organization and Systems Leadership (4)
NURS 7109 — Health Outcomes: Information Systems, Measurement, Analysis and Management (3)
NURS 7110 / 7120 / 7130 — Scholarly Project I, II, and III (3 each)
NURS 7306 — Health Policy & Politics (3)
NURS 7481 — Evidence Based Practice for Advanced Nursing Practice (4)
NURS 7021 / 7022 / 7023 — Advanced Nursing Practicum I, II, and III (1–6 each)

More curriculum details are available here.

Post-Master’s DNP Clinical Requirements

Practicum hours are individualized based on hours completed during the master’s degree.
Minimum requirement of 180 practicum hours (3 credits) regardless of prior work.
The advanced practicum series brings students to a minimum of 1,000 post-baccalaureate practice hours.
FNP-specific clinical hours for a role addition are not published and will be set by gap analysis.

The 180-hour floor is the DNP residency minimum, not an FNP clinical requirement. Adding a new population focus normally demands a full specialty practicum on top of that — likely close to the 720 FNP hours in the BSN-to-DNP plan, since national certification requires population-specific supervised practice. Get your individualized plan of study in writing before enrolling, because the credit and hour range here is wide enough to swing the total cost by more than $20,000.

Post-Master’s DNP Admissions

Plans of study for post-master’s students are customized case by case, so the intake process is more advising-driven than the BSN-to-DNP tracks. Core requirements mirror the doctoral criteria: a master’s degree in nursing, 3.0 GPA, three references, current unencumbered RN licensure with Louisiana eligibility, and an interview. Applicants adding a new APRN role must meet the admission criteria for that concentration as well.

Tuition

LSU Health New Orleans publishes DNP tuition on a per-credit basis for part-time students: $1,011 per credit in tuition for residents in fall and spring, or $757 per credit in summer. Adding mandatory fees brings the all-in resident cost to $1,071 per credit (fall and spring) and $806 (summer). Nonresidents pay $1,870 and $1,406 per credit all-in.

Most full-time FNP students never pay those rates. LSU Health bills full-time enrollment at a flat semester rate, and the DNP schedule is separate from the general graduate schedule — do not use the university-wide graduate table, which excludes DNP programs. The flat resident rate is $9,630 per fall or spring semester and $4,837 per summer, totaling $24,097 per academic year including fees. Nonresidents pay $16,825, $16,825, and $8,437 for a $42,087 annual total.

Where the billing switches. Full-time status requires 9 or more credits in fall and spring and 6 or more in summer. In the 86-credit FNP plan, Years 1 and 2 clear those thresholds in every term. Year 3 does not: its terms carry 4, 8, and 8 credits, all below the full-time line. Year 3 therefore bills per credit.

Years 1–2 (flat rate): $24,097 × 2 = $48,194 resident; $42,087 × 2 = $84,174 nonresident.
Year 3 (per credit): 4 × $806 + 8 × $1,071 + 8 × $1,071 = $20,360 resident; $35,544 nonresident.
FNP total: $68,554 resident, $119,718 nonresident.
Both dual tracks: three full-time years plus one part-time year = $92,651 resident, $161,805 nonresident.
Effective cost per credit: $797 (FNP, resident), $842 (acute care dual), $779 (psych dual).

Additional costs beyond tuition and mandatory fees: a $100 non-refundable application fee, criminal background check and urine drug screening at student expense, random drug screenings during enrollment, a $100 doctoral graduation fee, and $7.25 per official transcript.

The general institutional catalog lists a $50 nursing application fee while the program page lists $100; the program page governs.

NOTE: All figures use the published Fall 2026 through Summer 2027 rate schedule applied unchanged across three or four years. The LSU Board of Supervisors reserves the right to change fees without prior notice, so real totals will run higher. Nonresidents should note a hard rule: applicants classified as nonresident at admission are assessed nonresident tuition for the entire duration of enrollment, with no path to reclassification. That single rule is worth $51,164 on the FNP track and $69,154 on either dual.

Official tuition and fee information is available here.

Why Choose This FNP Program?

Best suited for nurses who want a doctorate and a second national certification from a single program, and who can restructure their life around a summer-only full-time start.

The dual tracks are what make this school worth a long look. Pairing FNP with adult-gerontology acute care or with psychiatric-mental health inside one degree is uncommon, and it removes the usual sequence of finishing an FNP program, working a few years, then returning for a post-master’s certificate. The psych pairing in particular fits how family practice actually runs, since behavioral health complaints arrive in primary care whether or not the clinician is prepared for them. Both duals require meeting admission criteria for two concentrations, so the gate is real, but the payoff is dual board eligibility on graduation day.

The clinical volume supports that ambition. At 1,080 hours for the standalone FNP track and 1,800 for the psych dual, students log well beyond the 500-hour certification floor. What the school does not publish is who finds the preceptors. In a program running 720 or more population-focused hours, that omission matters more than it would at 600, and it is the first question to ask an admissions counselor.

The cost verdict. For a Louisiana resident, $68,554 buys a doctorate with 1,080 clinical hours, and the flat-rate billing structure quietly rewards heavy semesters — a 15-credit term costs the same as a 9-credit one, pushing the effective rate down to $797 per credit against a $1,071 published rate. The duals expose this more sharply: the 119-credit psych dual and the 110-credit acute care dual bill identically at $92,651, so nine extra credits and a second full certification arrive at no additional tuition. For nonresidents the arithmetic inverts. At $119,718 for the FNP track and $161,805 for either dual, with no reclassification available, the price sits in private-university territory without private-university flexibility. Add the GRE requirement, the summer-only full-time intake, and campus attendance at least six times per semester, and this is a program that asks a lot before it gives anything back. Louisiana residents pursuing dual certification get the strongest return; out-of-state nurses seeking FNP preparation alone should price the alternatives carefully.

Accreditation

The Bachelor of Science in Nursing, Master of Science in Nursing, and Doctor of Nursing Practice programs at LSU Health New Orleans School of Nursing are accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE), verified from the school’s own accreditation page. The institution is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) to award associate, baccalaureate, master’s, and doctoral degrees, and the School of Nursing holds full approval status from the Louisiana State Board of Nursing. The school states that graduates of the PCFNP program meet the academic and clinical requirements to sit for the Family Nurse Practitioner examination through either the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners Certification Board (AANPBC) or the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC), and that certified graduates are eligible for advanced practice licensure in all fifty states and the District of Columbia.

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