Augusta University offers 2 Family Nurse Practitioner Tracks:
- BSN-to-DNP
- Post-MSN DNP
Program Tracks Overview
| Program | Est. Tuition | Est. Duration | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| BSN-DNP | $34.7K in-state / $97.4K out | 3 yrs (FT), 4 yrs (PT) | 78 |
| Post-MSN DNP | $445/cr in-state | Not stated | Not stated |
Augusta University’s defining advantage is clinical training volume: 1,200 total hours — 840 in FNP patient-care rotations plus 360 DNP practice hours — delivered mostly online with faculty who visit each student, preceptor, and clinical site in person. The trade-off is geography: you must live in Georgia or South Carolina, and admission runs once a year for a Fall start.
Quick Facts
| Feature | Details |
|---|---|
| Program Types | BSN-to-DNP FNP; Post-MSN DNP FNP |
| Format | Mostly Online — over 50% web-based, plus multi-day MEGAI campus intensives in Augusta |
| Clinical Hours | 1,200 total: 840 FNP clinical + 360 DNP practice hours |
| Clinical Placement | Faculty visit each student, preceptor, and site in person |
| Population | Families across the lifespan; primary and preventive care |
| Distinctive Coursework | MEGAI skills intensives: suturing, joint injections, ultrasound, casting |
| Concentrations | None; optional electives (rural global health, psychopharmacology, finance) |
| Enrollment Restriction | Must reside in Georgia or South Carolina; single Fall intake |
| Tuition | $445/credit in-state; $1,249/credit out-of-state |
| Accreditation | CCNE |
BSN-to-DNP, Family Nurse Practitioner Concentration
The estimated tuition for the BSN-to-DNP FNP track at Augusta University is approximately $34,710 for Georgia residents (78 credits at $445/credit). The program can generally be completed in about 3 years full-time or 4 years part-time, on a Fall-start cohort schedule.
BSN-to-DNP Curriculum
This is a doctoral curriculum from day one, not an MSN with a DNP added on. Year one is entirely DNP core — epidemiology and biostatistics, evidence-based practice, health care management — alongside the 3 Ps. FNP specialty courses don’t begin until year two, so nurses wanting to see patients as students quickly will wait longer here than in a typical MSN.
Practice-change project sequence. A four-course scholarly project thread (Strategies for Practice Change, then Design, Implementation, and Dissemination) runs across all three years, accounting for the 360 DNP practice hours.
FNP specialty sequence. Three didactic-plus-practicum pairs progress by population: adults (FNP I), children and women of reproductive age (FNP II), then older adults (FNP III), capped by an APRN practicum and synthesis course.
MEGAI campus intensives. Multi-day on-campus events teach procedural skills most online programs leave to preceptors: suturing, joint injections, ultrasound, and casting.
Representative courses:
- STAT 6300: Introduction to Epidemiology and Biostatistics
- NURS 7425: Advanced Pathophysiology
- NURS 7460: Diagnostic and Clinical Reasoning for Advanced Practice Nurses
- NURS 7465: Advanced Studies in Lifespan Development
- NURS 8311: FNP I: Health Promotion and Primary Care of the Adult
- NURS 8314: FNP II: Primary Care of Children and Women of Reproductive Age
- NURS 8317: FNP III: Primary Care of the Older Adult
- NURS 7475: Population Health and Emerging Disease
- Electives: Global Rural Health; Advanced Psychopharmacology; DNP Finance and Systems Thinking
More curriculum details are available here.
BSN-to-DNP Clinical Requirements
- 1,200 total hours: 840 direct FNP clinical hours + 360 DNP practice (project) hours
- Clinical hour build: FNP Practice I (180) + FNP Practice II (180) + FNP Practice III (240) + APRN Practicum (240) = 840
- Faculty travel to visit the student, preceptor, and clinical site — the stated reason for the Georgia/South Carolina residency rule
- 135 lab hours plus multi-day MEGAI on-campus skills intensives
- Clinicals begin spring of year two, after the full DNP core and 3 Ps
This is one of the heaviest clinical loads you’ll find in an FNP program. The certification floor is 500 hours and most programs run 600–700; Augusta’s 840 direct-care hours exceed even strong programs, and the 1,200 combined total reflects the doctoral scope. In-person faculty site visits are rare among mostly-online programs — they mean real oversight of your preceptorship, but they’re also why enrollment is limited to two states.
BSN-to-DNP Admissions
The gates here are geography and timing, not experience: there is no stated RN experience minimum, but you must live in Georgia or South Carolina and there is one intake per year.
- BSN with active RN licensure (residency in GA or SC required)
- 3-credit statistics or biostatistics course, grade of B or higher
- Fall admission only; Fall 2027 applications open August 7, 2026
- Applications completed after the deadline reviewed space-available only
Post-MSN DNP, Family Nurse Practitioner Concentration
Augusta’s tuition schedule lists a separate Post-MSN DNP-FNP track billed at the same rates ($445/credit in-state, $1,249/credit out-of-state). Credit total, curriculum, and duration for this track are not clearly stated in the university’s published materials — MSN-prepared nurses adding the FNP specialty should request the plan of study from the DNP office (dnp@augusta.edu) before comparing costs. The same Georgia/South Carolina residency rule applies.
Tuition
Augusta University charges $445 per credit for Georgia residents and $1,249 per credit for out-of-state students in the DNP-FNP program. At 78 credits, the BSN-to-DNP totals approximately $34,710 in-state or $97,422 out-of-state.
- Augusta publishes a flat full-time semester rate ($5,340 in-state at 12+ credits), but the full-time DNP-FNP plan of study never reaches 12 credits in any semester (loads run 9–11) — so the per-credit rate is what you’ll actually pay
- Mandatory university fees are not itemized on the graduate tuition schedule; travel costs for MEGAI campus intensives are additional
- Figures are estimates derived from the published per-credit rate and 78-credit plan
For a doctoral FNP credential, roughly $34,700 in-state tuition is genuinely low — many private MSN programs cost more for a master’s alone.
Why Choose This FNP Program?
Best suited for Georgia or South Carolina nurses who want the doctorate, unusually deep clinical preparation, and public-university pricing — and who can commit to three years.
The clinical package is the core argument. 840 direct-care hours put graduates well past what most FNP programs require, procedural skills like suturing and joint injections are taught by faculty at campus intensives rather than left to whatever your preceptor happens to do, and faculty physically visit your clinical site. That level of oversight is possible precisely because the program stays regional.
The honest trade-offs: there is no MSN exit — you’re committing to the doctorate, three years full-time, before you can sit for certification. Nurses who want to practice as an FNP in two years will do that faster and cheaper through an MSN elsewhere. Clinicals also don’t start until midway through year two, and the single Fall intake means a missed deadline costs a full year.
On cost, the verdict is straightforward for Georgia residents: $445/credit makes this one of the least expensive routes to a DNP-FNP anywhere, and the extra doctoral year buys leadership coursework and a practice-change project on top of certification eligibility. At $1,249/credit, out-of-state students lose the entire price advantage.
Accreditation
The Augusta University College of Nursing DNP program is accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE), and Augusta University is an accredited public academic health center. The university states graduates are eligible for FNP certification through both the American Nurses Credentialing Board (ANCC, FNP-BC) and the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners (AANP, FNP-C) — dual eligibility, so you can choose your exam. Note the university’s licensure disclosure: the program meets initial APRN licensure requirements in all states and territories except Idaho, Maryland, and Michigan.
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