Murray State University FNP Programs

School of Nursing • Murray, KY • Mostly Online • $618.50–$671/credit

Murray State University offers a BSN-DNP Family Nurse Practitioner track.

Program Tracks Overview

ProgramEst. TuitionEst. DurationCredit Hours
BSN-DNP$63.0K–$66.0K3 years (8 semesters)78

Tuition estimates use Murray State’s 2025–26 published doctoral per-credit rates for 78 credits plus the $1,362-per-semester DNP program fee across eight semesters.

Murray State offers its FNP only as a three-year, full-time DNP. There is no MSN exit, no part-time plan, and one application deadline a year. Every student pays the Kentucky rate regardless of home state, and the program publishes 855 nurse practitioner clinical hours, well above the 600 to 700 common among FNP programs.

The trade-off is cost structure and rigidity. A $1,362 program fee charged every term adds about $140 per credit to the advertised rate, students must secure their own preceptor contracts, and one nursing course grade below a C ends enrollment with no readmission.

Quick Facts

FeatureDetails
Program TypesBSN-DNP (FNP specialization)
FormatMostly Online: year one online plus a campus workshop; brief Murray campus periods in years two and three
Clinical Hours855 NP clinical hours (945 including the assessment course)
Clinical PlacementStudent-arranged at home site; preceptor contract required
PopulationFamily/individual across the lifespan
Distinctive CourseworkStandalone Diagnostic Tests and Procedures course; 225-hour final primary care practicum
Start TermFall only; March 1 application deadline
Enrollment RestrictionsDoes not meet licensure requirements in NH, OR, PR, or U.S. Virgin Islands
Tuition$671/credit regular, $618.50 online (+$50 fee); $1,362/semester program fee
AccreditationCCNE

BSN to DNP, Family Nurse Practitioner

The estimated tuition for the Family Nurse Practitioner Doctor of Nursing Practice at Murray State University is approximately $63,039 to $66,014 (78 credits at $618.50–$671/credit plus course and program fees). The program can generally be completed in about 36 months, or eight consecutive terms including two summers.

BSN-DNP Curriculum

Year one front-loads the clinical sciences. Students take advanced assessment, pathophysiology, pharmacology, research, biostatistics, and diagnostics in the first two semesters, almost entirely online. The DNP core (ethics, informatics, population health, leadership, policy) fills the first summer and runs alongside the specialty courses after that.

The FNP sequence starts in year two. Introduction to Primary Care opens the specialty in the fall of year two. Three Primary Care of the Family courses follow, each paired with a 180-hour clinical, and the program closes with a 225-hour Advanced Primary Care Practicum. The DNP project runs across the final four terms in three parts.

Diagnostics gets its own course. NUR 928 Diagnostic Tests and Procedures is a 4-credit course with a lab component, taken before any primary care clinical. Many FNP programs fold this content into assessment or management courses.

  • NUR 916 Advanced Nursing Assessment (4 credits, 90 lab/clinical hours)
  • NUR 928 Diagnostic Tests and Procedures (4 credits)
  • NUR 929 Introduction to Primary Care (4 credits, 90 clinical hours)
  • NUR 931/932 Primary Care of the Family I and Clinical I (7 credits, 180 hours)
  • NUR 933/934 Primary Care of the Family II and Clinical II (7 credits, 180 hours)
  • NUR 936/937 Primary Care of the Family III and Clinical III (7 credits, 180 hours)
  • NUR 938 Advanced Primary Care Practicum (5 credits, 225 hours)
  • NUR 966 Professional Aspects of the Family Nurse Practitioner (2 credits)
  • NUR 913–915 DNP Project I–III (7 credits)

More curriculum details are available here.

You Should Know
  • The graduate catalog totals 79 credits (78 minimum) while the program’s sample schedule totals 78. The catalog also assigns different credits to the final courses (NUR 936 at 6 credits, NUR 938 at 4) than the schedule (NUR 936 at 3, NUR 938 at 5). Confirm your plan of study with an advisor.
  • The sample schedule lists NUR 934 at 7 credits, but its own term total (7) and the catalog both put it at 4 credits.
  • Murray State requires a cumulative 3.0 GPA, with probation and then dismissal if it is not restored. A grade below C in any one nursing course means dismissal with no readmission, and a clinical failure results in an E that cannot be withdrawn.

BSN-DNP Clinical Requirements

  • Published total: 855 clinical hours
  • Course-level hours: 90 (NUR 929) + 180 (NUR 932) + 180 (NUR 934) + 180 (NUR 937) + 225 (NUR 938) = 855
  • NUR 916 Advanced Nursing Assessment adds 90 more hours in year one, which are not counted in the 855 (945 total)
  • Each clinical course carries 45 hours per credit
  • Clinicals can be completed at the student’s home site, but the student must obtain the preceptor contract
  • Clinical courses run in five consecutive terms, from fall of year two through spring of year three, including a summer

855 hours is well above the 500-hour certification floor and the 600 to 700 hours common among FNP programs. Across 16-week semesters, the 180-hour clinicals work out to roughly 11 to 12 hours a week, and the 225-hour final practicum to about 14 (derived). The 180-hour summer clinical will run heavier per week if the summer term is shorter. Because placement is student-arranged and the clinical terms run back to back, a lost preceptor can stall progression in a lockstep schedule.

You Should Know
  • Murray State does not publish the number, length, or timing of the campus periods in years two and three. Ask how many trips to Murray to expect before committing.
  • Murray State does not publish whether it assists with preceptor searches, whether sites need faculty approval, or how far ahead contracts must be finalized.
  • Murray State’s licensure disclosure warns that moving to another state mid-program may affect licensure, practicum access, and financial aid. Contact the program before relocating.

BSN-DNP Admissions

Admission is selective and once a year: one March 1 deadline, an interview for selected applicants, and a fall start.

  • Apply to Murray State graduate admission and pay the associated fees
  • Apply to the DNP program through NursingCAS (NursingCAS fee applies; no added Murray State fee there)
  • Send official transcripts from all schools to NursingCAS
  • Formal interview if selected
  • Undergraduate statistics course completed before STA 660 Biostatistics
  • Application deadline: March 1 each year (the 2026 deadline has passed; the next cycle is March 1, 2027)
You Should Know
  • The FNP page does not publish a minimum GPA, required RN experience, or reference requirements. A 2019 program application form asks for three professional references (an RN supervisor, BSN faculty, and an RN peer), RN license, BLS, and RN employment history. Confirm current requirements with the program.
  • The program does not meet licensure educational requirements in New Hampshire, Oregon, Puerto Rico, or the U.S. Virgin Islands. It meets them in Kentucky and the other states listed on Murray State’s disclosure page.
  • Most states also require an unencumbered RN license in the state of practice, and some add requirements beyond the degree. Check with your board before enrolling.

Tuition

Murray State charges $671 per credit for regular courses and $618.50 per credit for online courses in the Doctor of Nursing Practice, Family Nurse Practitioner (2025–26 published doctoral rates). Every student pays these rates regardless of state of residence. Online courses add a $50-per-credit fee, which brings them to $668.50.

ComponentAll-Online ScenarioAll-Regular Scenario
Tuition (78 credits)$48,243 ($618.50)$52,338 ($671)
Per-credit course fees$3,900 ($50 online fee)$780 ($10 asset preservation)
Per-semester course fees (8 terms)$0$2,000 ($100 technology + $150 Racer Experience)
DNP program fee (8 terms × $1,362)$10,896$10,896
Estimated total (derived)$63,039$66,014
Effective all-in rate per creditAbout $808About $846

The real total will fall between these two scenarios, depending on how each course is coded. Official rates are on Murray State’s doctoral tuition page.

  • Regular doctoral tuition: $671 per credit
  • Online doctoral tuition: $618.50 per credit, plus a $50-per-credit online course fee
  • DNP program fee: $1,362 per semester, charged fall, spring, and summer
  • Non-online courses: $10-per-credit asset preservation fee (capped at 15 credits), plus $100 technology and $150 Racer Experience fees per semester at 5 or more credits
  • Same rates for Kentucky residents and out-of-state students

Be aware that:

  • Murray State’s doctoral tuition page still lists Fall 2025 through Summer 2026 as current. The 2026–27 doctoral rates were not posted at the time of writing. Rates rose about 3% in 2024–25 and about 4% in 2025–26, so expect a similar increase.
  • The $631 rate on Murray State’s 2026–27 graduate tuition page covers master’s programs, not the DNP. Doctoral programs are billed from the separate doctoral table.
  • Murray State does not publish which FNP courses are billed as online and which as regular. That split determines where your cost lands in the range above.
  • The doctoral cost-of-attendance table shows a $2,840 annual program fee for nursing doctoral students, which does not match two terms at $1,362 ($2,724). Confirm the per-term fee with the bursar.
  • Travel and lodging for campus periods in Murray are not included.

The program fee is the number to plan around. It adds about $10,900 over eight terms, raising the effective rate from $618.50–$671 to roughly $808–$846 per credit. Because the fee is charged every term, including summers, a full-time lockstep schedule keeps it from growing, while any delay that adds a term adds $1,362.

Why Choose This FNP Program?

Best suited for BSN-prepared nurses who can commit to three years of full-time doctoral study, can secure their own preceptors, and want substantial clinical volume at the same rate wherever they live.

Clinical depth on a fixed path. 855 NP clinical hours, plus 90 in advanced assessment, give graduates more supervised practice than many FNP programs require. The schedule is mapped term by term, so students know from day one when each clinical falls. The price of that structure is little room to slow down: there is no part-time plan, and the dismissal policy leaves no margin for a failed nursing course.

Residency-blind pricing with a fee stack. Out-of-state students pay the same per-credit rate as Kentucky residents. The per-term program fee and course fees bring the all-in cost to about $63,000 to $66,000 at 2025–26 rates, so compare programs on total cost rather than the advertised per-credit number.

Screening questions before you apply. Can you secure a preceptor contract in your area for five consecutive clinical terms? Can you travel to Murray for the year-one workshop and the unscheduled campus periods in years two and three? Do you live outside New Hampshire, Oregon, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands? If any answer is no, this program will be hard to complete. If all are yes, Murray State offers a doctoral FNP with a strong clinical load and a predictable timeline.

Accreditation

The Doctor of Nursing Practice program at Murray State University, including the Family Nurse Practitioner specialization, is accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE). CCNE also accredits the university’s baccalaureate nursing program.

Murray State’s nursing programs are approved by the Kentucky Board of Nursing. The university is institutionally accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC), which supports credit transfer and federal financial aid eligibility.

Graduates are eligible to sit for the national FNP certification exam (AANP or ANCC). Murray State reports that 85% of its 2025 FNP graduates passed on the first attempt.

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