Missouri State University offers 3 Family Nurse Practitioner Tracks:
- MSN
- BSN-DNP
- Graduate Certificate
Program Tracks Overview
| Program | Est. Tuition | Est. Duration | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| MSN | $32.1K / $46.1K | 3 years (6 semesters) | 49 |
| BSN-DNP | $48.3K / $62.3K | 4 years (8 semesters) | 76 |
| Certificate | $16.7K / $26.5K | 2 years (4 semesters) | 24 |
Tuition estimates are Missouri State’s published fall 2026 tuition plus its program, student service, clinical course, and application fees (in-state / out-of-state).
Missouri State schedules your clinical rotations, but it also expects you in Springfield every week. The School of Nursing assigns FNP sites and preceptors rather than leaving students to find their own, and the on-campus MSU Care primary care clinic is one of the sites available.
That support comes with a regional footprint. The FNP courses are billed as seated classes, BSN-DNP students attend campus at least one day a week, and the school warns that assigned sites may require travel outside your home community. This is a program for nurses within commuting distance of Springfield.
Quick Facts
| Feature | Details |
|---|---|
| Program Types | MSN, BSN-DNP, post-master’s graduate certificate |
| Format | Hybrid: online core plus seated FNP courses in Springfield; DNP requires weekly campus attendance |
| Clinical Hours | MSN 672 (2024-25 plan); certificate 750 minimum; BSN-DNP 1,200 |
| Clinical Placement | School-assigned sites and preceptors; MSU Care on-campus clinic available; travel may be required |
| Population | Vulnerable, rural, and underserved populations named in the program mission |
| Distinctive Coursework | Clinical Epidemiology; Health Policy to Improve Health Disparities; DNP finance and entrepreneurship |
| RN Experience | MSN: one year full-time clinical experience (two preferred) |
| Tuition | $454/credit resident and all online courses; $865/credit non-resident seated courses |
| Accreditation | CCNE (MSN, DNP, post-master’s certificate) |
Master of Science in Nursing, Family Nurse Practitioner Option
The estimated tuition for the MSN Family Nurse Practitioner Option at Missouri State University is approximately $32,146 in-state or $46,120 out-of-state (49 credits at $454/credit, with non-resident seated courses at $865, plus fees). The program can generally be completed in about 3 years on the full-time plan, which runs six fall and spring semesters.
MSN Curriculum
The MSN pairs a 31-credit NP core with an 18-credit FNP sequence of three 6-credit Family Practice courses. The NP core leans toward population health: Clinical Epidemiology, Population Health, and a health policy course built around disparities sit alongside the standard advanced assessment, pharmacology, and pathophysiology courses. The program ends with a 6-credit Advanced Practice Practicum and a 2-credit capstone project.
The billing split shows how the program is delivered. Missouri State’s cost sheet charges 15 credits at the online rate and 34 at the seated rate, so the clinical and FNP specialty courses are the ones that bring you to campus.
- NUR 710 Clinical Epidemiology
- NUR 703 Population Health: A Local to Global Perspective
- NUR 824 Health Policy to Improve Health Disparities
- NUR 761 Advanced Pharmacotherapeutics and Prescriptive Practices
- NUR 734 Advanced Physical Assessment and Clinical Reasoning
- NUR 730, 750, 770 Family Practice I, II, III (6 credits each)
- NUR 790 Advanced Practice Practicum (6 credits)
- NUR 797 Capstone Project
More curriculum details are available here.
You Should Know
- The catalog course list totals 49 credits, and the fall 2026 cost sheet bills 49. The published full-time degree plan (2024-25 catalog) lists 53 credits across six semesters. This profile uses 49.
- The NUR 797 capstone credit (2) is derived from the 31-credit core total.
MSN Clinical Requirements
- Published total: 672 clinical rotation hours (2024-25 degree plan)
- Clinical courses: NUR 730, 750, 770, and 790; per-course hours not published
- Placement: scheduled by the School of Nursing; students are not required to find their own sites
- Site changes are not allowed unless clinical faculty and the Program Director approve
- Preceptors: certified NP or physician with at least one year in the specialty
- Faculty contact preceptors each semester by email, phone, or site visit
- Clinical comprehensive examination required for NP students
At 672 hours, the MSN sits above the 500-hour certification floor and inside the 600 to 700 range common for FNP programs. The placement model matters more than the number. The school decides where you train, weighing clinic volume, patient mix, and geography, and assigned sites are generally final. You give up choice of site in exchange for not cold-calling preceptors.
You Should Know
- The certificate page lists a 750-hour minimum for the same four clinical courses (NUR 730, 750, 770, 790). The current MSN total may be 750; confirm with the program.
- The handbook says site assignments consider geographic location, but the school does not commit to placing students near home.
MSN Admissions
Applicants need at least one year of full-time clinical experience, and a GPA below 3.25 triggers a GRE requirement.
- Apply through NursingCAS
- BSN and RN license
- 3.25 GPA on the last 60 credit hours attempted
- Below 3.25: GRE minimums of 150 Verbal, 145 Quantitative, 3.5 Analytical Writing
- Prerequisites with a C or higher: undergraduate pathophysiology, nursing research, health assessment, healthcare informatics, and graduate inferential statistics
- One year of full-time clinical practice (two or more preferred); exceptions reviewed individually
- Retention: 3.00 GPA, no more than one C, and a pass on every clinical evaluation
BSN to DNP, Family Nurse Practitioner Option
The estimated tuition for the BSN to DNP Family Nurse Practitioner Option at Missouri State University is approximately $48,339 in-state or $62,313 out-of-state (76 credits at $454/credit, with non-resident seated courses at $865, plus fees). The program can generally be completed in about 4 years on the full-time plan of eight fall and spring semesters.
BSN-DNP Curriculum
Core first, clinicals later. The full-time plan spends the first two years on a 42-credit doctoral core, delivered online, plus pharmacology, assessment, and pathophysiology. Family Practice I does not begin until the fifth semester. From there, each FNP course runs alongside one stage of the DNP project, ending with the practicum and Transforming Practice in the final spring.
Disparities focus. The DNP project must address a health or healthcare disparity, and applicants submit an essay proposing a project site and possible preceptor. The core adds finance and entrepreneurship, technology, and population health leadership courses that the MSN does not include.
- NUR 810 Finance Management and Entrepreneurship for Advanced Nursing Roles
- NUR 840 Technology for Transforming Nursing and Healthcare Systems
- NUR 880 Leadership and Innovation in Population Health Nursing
- NUR 800, 830, 860 DNP Leadership I, II, III
- NUR 730, 750, 770 Family Practice I, II, III (6 credits each)
- NUR 790 Advanced Practice Practicum (6 credits)
- NUR 993 Transforming Practice
More curriculum details are available here.
You Should Know
- The catalog requires 76 credits (42 core plus 34 FNP), and the fall 2026 cost sheet bills 76. The 2024-25 plan of study states 80 credits. Its semester totals for terms one and four exceed the courses listed by 4 credits combined.
BSN-DNP Clinical Requirements
- Published total: 1,200 clinical rotation hours (2024-25 plan of study)
- Breakdown between FNP clinical and DNP project hours: not clearly stated
- Placement: individually arranged with qualified preceptors; all sites need FNP Program Coordinator approval and a signed contract
- Local sites are allowed if approved, but students should plan to travel outside their community
- MSU Care, an on-campus primary care clinic, is available for clinical rotations
- Campus: seated classes at least one day a week, with possible extra days
At 1,200 hours, the BSN-DNP doubles the 500-hour floor. If the FNP courses carry the same 750 hours as the certificate, about 450 hours go to the DNP project. Weekly campus attendance plus clinical days means a full-time student should expect two or more fixed weekdays each week during the clinical years.
You Should Know
- The 450-hour DNP project figure is derived (1,200 minus the certificate’s 750), not published.
- The DNP pages say clinicals are “individually arranged,” while the MSN page says the school schedules placement. The handbook describes faculty-made site assignments for graduate students, which supports school scheduling for both.
BSN-DNP Admissions
Applicants propose a DNP project site and preceptor in their application essay, so a working connection to a health system helps.
- Apply through NursingCAS
- BSN from an accredited program; international or non-accredited graduates reviewed individually
- Prerequisites: healthcare informatics, undergraduate pathophysiology, and advanced statistics
- Essay identifying a proposed project site, intervention, supporting evidence, and possible preceptor
You Should Know
- The BSN-DNP admissions page did not fully load; GPA, GRE, and RN experience requirements are not clearly stated for this track.
Family Nurse Practitioner Graduate Certificate
The estimated tuition for the Family Nurse Practitioner Graduate Certificate at Missouri State University is approximately $16,666 in-state or $26,530 out-of-state (24 credits at $454/credit resident or $865/credit non-resident, plus fees). The program can generally be completed in about 2 years, based on the school’s published four semesters.
Certificate Curriculum
The certificate is the MSN’s four-course clinical spine with nothing else attached. Every credit is a 6-credit Family Practice or practicum course, all billed at the seated rate. Applicants must already hold graduate pharmacology with prescriptive practices, pathophysiology, and health assessment.
- NUR 730 Family Practice I
- NUR 750 Family Practice II
- NUR 770 Family Practice III
- NUR 790 Advanced Practice Practicum
More curriculum details are available here.
Certificate Clinical Requirements
- Minimum 750 clinical hours across the four courses
- About 188 hours per semester, or 12 to 13 hours a week over a 15-week term (derived)
- Placement and preceptor rules follow the graduate handbook: school-assigned sites
Seven hundred fifty hours is well above the 500-hour floor and above the 600 to 700 range common for FNP programs. Spread over four semesters, the weekly load is manageable for a nurse working part-time.
Certificate Admissions
An interview with a departmental selection committee is required.
- Apply through NursingCAS
- MSN from a nationally accredited program
- 3.25 cumulative GPA
- Completed graduate advanced pharmacology (with prescriptive practices), advanced pathophysiology, and advanced physical/health assessment
- Interview
You Should Know
- The program description and handbook also admit a master’s in “another acceptable discipline,” but the application checklist requires an MSN. Confirm eligibility before applying with a non-nursing master’s.
- APRN certification is not required, so MSN-prepared educators and leaders can use this route to become FNPs.
Tuition
Missouri State charges $454 per credit for residents and for all online courses regardless of residency. Non-residents pay $865 per credit for seated courses. These rates come from Missouri State’s fall 2026 estimated cost sheets and reconcile exactly to the published totals.
| Item | MSN | BSN-DNP | Certificate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Online credits at $454 | 15 ($6,810) | 42 ($19,068) | 0 |
| Seated credits, resident at $454 | 34 ($15,436) | 34 ($15,436) | 24 ($10,896) |
| Seated credits, non-resident at $865 | 34 ($29,410) | 34 ($29,410) | 24 ($20,760) |
| Program fee | $3,500 | $5,000 | $2,000 |
| Student service fee | $5,225 | $7,660 | $2,820 |
| Clinical course fees | $1,125 | $1,125 | $900 |
| Application fee | $50 | $50 | $50 |
| Total, in-state | $32,146 | $48,339 | $16,666 |
| Total, out-of-state | $46,120 | $62,313 | $26,530 |
Fees add about $202 per credit to the MSN, $182 to the BSN-DNP, and $240 to the certificate. All-in, residents pay about $656 per credit for the MSN, $636 for the BSN-DNP, and $694 for the certificate (derived).
- Program fees of $2,000 to $5,000 are charged on top of tuition
- Student service fees of $2,820 to $7,660
- Clinical course fees of $900 to $1,125
- Clinical tracking fee: $100
- Background check and drug screen: $84.50
- Document management fee: $33
- Parking: $145 per year
Be aware that:
- The student service fee depends on how many on-campus credits and semesters you take, so it can differ from the estimate.
- The certificate rate rose from $434 to $454 per credit between fall 2025 and fall 2026; non-resident seated tuition rose from $826 to $865.
- Residents of participating states may qualify for reduced tuition through the Midwest Student Exchange Program, and the MOGO Scholarship may also apply. Eligibility terms are on Missouri State’s financial aid pages.
- Professional liability insurance ($1 million per incident, $3 million aggregate), health insurance, and BLS certification are required at your own cost.
- Textbooks are estimated at $450 per semester, and travel to Springfield and assigned clinical sites is not included.
The online-rate rule changes the math for non-residents. All 42 extra DNP credits are online, so the BSN-DNP costs $16,193 more than the MSN for residents and non-residents alike. Out-of-state students pay a $13,974 premium on either degree, all from the 34 seated FNP credits. Full rates are on Missouri State’s detailed tuition and fees page.
Why Choose This FNP Program?
A strong fit for nurses in southwest Missouri who want the school to handle clinical placement and can commit to regular in-person classes.
No preceptor search. Missouri State assigns clinical sites and preceptors, and faculty stay in contact with every preceptor each semester. For nurses who lack a network of NP contacts, this removes the most common cause of delayed FNP graduations.
Three routes from one clinical sequence. All three credentials run the same Family Practice I to III and practicum courses. A BSN holder chooses between a 49-credit MSN and a 76-credit DNP that adds $16,193 and a year. An MSN-prepared nurse without NP certification can add FNP through the 24-credit certificate.
Location decides the fit. Seated FNP courses and weekly DNP campus days make this impractical for nurses who live far from Springfield. Assigned sites may also require travel, and students cannot swap a placement they dislike. Nurses who need a fully remote program or want to train at their own employer should look elsewhere.
Accreditation
The Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE) accredits Missouri State’s MSN, DNP, and post-master’s certificate programs. That scope covers all three FNP tracks on this page.
Missouri State University is institutionally accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. Institutional accreditation supports federal financial aid eligibility and the transfer of graduate credit.
The Missouri State Board of Nursing approves the university’s BSN program. Graduates who plan to practice in Missouri apply separately for APRN recognition, which the school lists at $150.
Graduates of all three tracks are eligible for the national FNP certification exam (AANP or ANCC).
More FNP Programs in Missouri
- Barnes-Jewish College Goldfarb School of Nursing - St. Louis
- Maryville University. - St. Louis
- Missouri Baptist University - St. Louis
- Missouri Valley University - Marshall
- Rockhurst University - Kansas City
- Saint Louis University - St. Louis
- Southeast Missouri State University - Cape Girardeau
- University of Central Missouri - Lee's Summit
- University of Missouri - Columbia
- University of Missouri-Kansas City - Kansas City
- University of Missouri-St. Louis - St. Louis