SUNY Brockport FNP Programs

School of Nursing • Brockport, NY • Mostly Online • $471/credit

SUNY Brockport offers 2 Family Nurse Practitioner Tracks:

  • MSN
  • Certificate of Advanced Study

Program Tracks Overview

ProgramEst. TuitionEst. DurationCredit Hours
MSN$22.5K 2 years (5 semesters) full-time; 3 years (7 semesters) part-time42
Certificate$9.1K About 1 year (3 semesters)About 16

Tuition estimates use Brockport’s 2026-27 graduate per-credit rates (in-state / out-of-state) plus broad-based fees and published FNP course fees.

Nine weekends on campus, three 200-hour practica, and a placement backstop that works exactly once. SUNY Brockport runs its FNP as an “executive model”: coursework is online, and in-person time is concentrated into Friday-evening and Saturday sessions in Brockport, where students also complete practicum test-outs with standardized patients.

The trade-off is geography. The program meets licensure requirements only in New York, requires a New York RN license, and places students who cannot find their own preceptor within 75 miles of campus. It suits nurses in the Rochester and western New York region far better than anyone planning to commute from downstate.

Quick Facts

FeatureDetails
Program TypesMSN (full-time or part-time); post-master’s Certificate of Advanced Study
FormatMostly Online: online coursework plus nine Friday-evening/Saturday campus weekends across the MSN
Clinical HoursMSN: 600 direct care (3 × 200) plus 100 lab hours; Certificate: about 300
Clinical PlacementStudent-led with coordinator; school backup placement within 75 miles, one offer only
Distinctive CourseworkAdvanced Diagnostics and Procedures with on-campus skills weekend
RN License RequirementsUnencumbered New York RN license
Start TermMSN: fall only; application window February 1 to April 1
Admission GatesMSN: 3.3 GPA; full-time track closed to nurses working full-time
Tuition$471/credit in-state; $565/credit out-of-state (2025-26 rate)
AccreditationCCNE (MSN and Certificate); Middle States (institution)

MSN, Family Nurse Practitioner

The estimated tuition for the Family Nurse Practitioner (MS) at SUNY Brockport is approximately $19,782 (42 credits at $471/credit), or about $22,486 with fees. The program can generally be completed in about 2 years full-time (5 semesters, including one summer) or 3 years part-time (7 semesters, including one summer).

MSN Curriculum

The 42 credits are 13 required courses with no electives or concentrations. Every student takes the same sequence, cohort-style, entering in fall.

How the in-person time is distributed. Only five courses carry campus time. Health Assessment (NUR 545) has three weekends, FNP Practicum I has two, and Advanced Diagnostics and Procedures, Practicum II, and Practicum III have one each. Pathophysiology and Pharmacology share one in-person Saturday. Everything else is fully online. Weekends run Friday 3 to 9 pm and Saturday 9 am to 5 pm.

Where the practica fall. Clinical work starts early. Full-time students begin Practicum I in their second semester, right after Health Assessment. Part-time students front-load the didactic core and start practicum in year two. In both plans, one practicum runs in each of the final three semesters.

  • NUR 545 Health Assessment for Advanced Practice Nursing (3 credits, 50 lab hours)
  • NUR 510 Pathophysiology for Advanced Practice Nursing (3)
  • NUR 521 Pharmacology for Advanced Practice Nursing (3)
  • NUR 699 Advanced Diagnostics and Procedures (3 credits, 50 lab hours)
  • NUR 500, 550, 600 FNP Clinical Practicum I, II, III (4 credits each)
  • NUR 518 Using Information Systems and Analytical Methods (3)
  • NUR 655 Ethical and Legal Issues for Advanced Practice Nursing (3, summer)
  • NUR 771 Health Promotion and Disease Prevention in Diverse Populations (3)

More curriculum details are available here.

You Should Know
  • The marketing page says “up to three” campus Fridays and Saturdays per semester. The full-time plan places NUR 545 (three weekends) and the Pathophysiology/Pharmacology Saturday in the same first fall, which is four campus events that term.
  • Full-time loads are 9 to 10 credits per semester. That is below Brockport’s 12-credit full-time billing threshold, so tuition is charged per credit.
  • Up to 9 transfer credits are considered, for non-clinical courses only.

MSN Clinical Requirements

  • 600 direct patient care hours: NUR 500, 550, and 600 at 200 hours each
  • 100 additional lab hours: 50 in NUR 545 and 50 in NUR 699 (the published plans total 700 hours)
  • Practicum test-outs are completed in person on campus, with standardized patients
  • Sites: primary care, non-acute (family practice, clinics, pediatric offices, internal medicine, women’s health), anywhere in New York
  • Preceptors: NPs, PAs, or physicians with at least one year of clinical experience
  • Site and contract deadlines: October 15 for spring practica, March 15 for fall practica
  • Backup placement: if a student has no approved site one month before the deadline, the clinical coordinator will secure one within 75 miles of campus

At 600 direct care hours, Brockport 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. Each 200-hour practicum works out to about 13 hours a week over a 15-week semester. The placement model is shared: students are expected to find sites, and the school steps in only as a backup. That backup is real, but it is limited to one site within a 75-mile radius of Brockport.

You Should Know
  • If the coordinator secures a site and the student declines it over commute or hours, no second site is arranged. A student who then cannot find an alternative fails the course.
  • Most sites operate 8 am to 6 pm on weekdays, and evening or weekend sites are rare. Working nurses must free up weekday time for three consecutive semesters.
  • Students who cannot meet a site’s vaccination requirements must find their own replacement site and may bear added costs, including extra faculty supervision.

MSN Admissions

Brockport admits one fall cohort per year, and the application window is short and strictly enforced.

  • BSN from an accredited nursing program (international equivalent accepted with a WES-type evaluation)
  • Overall GPA of 3.3 in all prior undergraduate and graduate work
  • Unencumbered New York RN license and current registration
  • Recent RN experience preferred at admission and required before graduation (1 to 2 years encouraged)
  • CV, two recommendation letters (academic and professional), and written responses to prompts
  • GRE optional
  • Application window: February 1 to April 1 for fall entry; only complete files are reviewed, and offers go out by the end of April
You Should Know
  • Nurses who plan to work full-time must apply to the part-time track. Brockport does not admit full-time workers to the full-time plan.
  • Applicants with a 3.0 to 3.3 GPA are directed to Brockport’s AGPCNP program instead. The marketing page lists the FNP threshold as “above 3.3,” while the catalog says 3.3. Applicants at exactly 3.3 should confirm eligibility.
  • Applicants with no RN experience are encouraged to work 1 to 2 years first. Applicants who left another graduate nursing program are rarely admitted without strong extenuating circumstances.
  • Nurses with an MSN in education or leadership, and clinical nurse specialists, enter this MSN rather than the certificate, with up to 9 credits evaluated for transfer.

Certificate of Advanced Study, Family Nurse Practitioner

The estimated tuition for the Family Nurse Practitioner (CAS) at SUNY Brockport is approximately $7,536 (about 16 credits at $471/credit), or about $9,056 with fees. The program can generally be completed in about 1 year (3 semesters, derived from the one-practicum-per-semester sequence), though Brockport does not publish a duration.

Certificate Curriculum

The certificate is built from a gap analysis. After admission, the program director reviews each transcript and work history and sets the required coursework. Most nurse practitioners need about 16 credits. The course pool is the MSN’s own clinical core, so certificate students share the same practica, campus weekends, and test-outs as MSN students.

  • NUR 545 Health Assessment for Advanced Practice Nursing
  • NUR 510 Pathophysiology for Advanced Practice Nursing
  • NUR 521 Pharmacology for Advanced Practice Nursing
  • NUR 699 Advanced Diagnostics and Procedures
  • NUR 500, 550, 600 FNP Clinical Practicum I, II, III (hours set by gap analysis)

More curriculum details are available here.

Certificate Clinical Requirements

  • About 300 clinical hours for most students; the catalog description also states a 300 to 450 hour range
  • Hours are set individually by the gap analysis
  • Same site rules, preceptor rules, placement deadlines, and 75-mile backup as the MSN
  • Clinical courses include Friday-evening and Saturday sessions on the Brockport campus

A 300-hour total is well below the 500-hour floor that applies to FNP programs as a whole. The gap analysis assumes prior NP clinical hours carry part of the load. For an adult-gerontology NP, that is a reasonable assumption. For a nurse-midwife or nurse anesthetist, who may have little pediatric or chronic primary care exposure, the practica will likely sit toward the top of the range.

You Should Know
  • The catalog gives two figures for most students: 300 to 450 hours in one place and about 300 in another. Ask for your individual gap analysis before assuming the lower number.
  • Confirm with the certification body you plan to test with how your prior clinical hours are credited toward FNP eligibility.

Certificate Admissions

Admission is rolling, and the certificate is open to more than nurse practitioners.

  • MSN from an accredited nursing program
  • Board certification as an advanced practice provider: NP (AGNP, PNP, PMHNP, ACNP, NNP), certified nurse-midwife, or nurse anesthetist
  • Graduate GPA of 3.0 or higher
  • At least one year of recent APRN experience (two preferred)
  • Unencumbered New York RN license and current registration
  • CV, two recommendation letters, and written responses to prompts
  • Applicants should email fnp@brockport.edu after applying to trigger review
You Should Know
  • The program page says national NP certification is “preferred.” The catalog says board certification as an NP, CNM, or CRNA is required. The catalog is more specific; confirm with the program director.
  • Nurse educators and clinical nurse specialists are not eligible for the certificate and must apply to the MSN.
  • The program meets licensure requirements only in New York. Nurses planning to hold FNP authorization in another state should check that board’s rules for adding a second population focus.

Tuition

SUNY Brockport charges $471 per credit for New York residents in 2026-27. Brockport’s out-of-state graduate rate is $565 per credit (2025-26 figure). Because FNP semester loads stay below 12 credits, both tracks are billed per credit rather than at the flat full-time rate.

Cost ComponentMSN (42 credits)Certificate (about 16 credits)
Tuition, in-state ($471/credit)$19,782$7,536
Tuition, out-of-state ($565/credit)$23,730$9,040
Broad-based fees (derived, about $45.56/credit)$1,913$729
FNP course fees$791Up to $791
Total, in-state$22,486$9,056
Total, out-of-state$26,434$10,560

The fee rate is derived from Brockport’s 2026-27 graduate cost estimate ($820 in fees for 18 credits a year). Totals are estimates, not published program prices.

Confirmed costs:

  • Resident graduate tuition: $471/credit (2026-27; $8,478 for 18 credits)
  • Clinical liability insurance: $21 each for NUR 500, 550, and 600
  • Clinical placement and compliance fee: $23 each for NUR 500, 550, and 600
  • NUR 500 lab and standardized-patient fee: $235
  • NUR 550 and NUR 600 standardized-patient test-out fees: $93 each
  • NUR 699 lab fee: $238 (financial hardship waiver available)

Be aware that:

  • Brockport’s nursing FAQ puts fees at $700 to $1,100 per semester, well above the $410 per semester implied by the 2026-27 cost estimate. At the FAQ’s range, fees over five full-time MSN semesters would run roughly $3,500 to $5,500.
  • One Brockport billing page describes $565 as the rate for non-residents in 100%-online programs, and this FNP is not fully online. Out-of-state applicants should confirm whether $565 or a higher non-resident rate applies.
  • The certificate’s credits and course fees depend on the gap analysis, so its total is an estimate.
  • Travel to nine campus weekends is not included. Students outside the Rochester area should budget for lodging.
  • Students replacing a clinical site declined over vaccination status may pay for extra faculty supervision.

For New York residents, the MSN’s all-in cost works out to about $535 per credit. That is SUNY pricing on a program whose clinical training and test-outs are run in person by Brockport faculty. The real variable is fees, which could add roughly $1,600 to $3,600 if the FAQ range holds. See Brockport’s tuition and cost page.

Why Choose This FNP Program?

Best suited for New York RNs within driving range of Rochester who want SUNY pricing, in-person skills training on a predictable weekend schedule, and a school backstop if their own preceptor search stalls.

Predictable campus time. Nine weekends across the whole MSN is a known quantity. A nurse can map every campus trip before starting. The weekends carry the hands-on content (assessment, procedures, and graded standardized-patient test-outs), so the in-person time is tied to specific skills rather than general orientation.

A placement safety net with limits. Brockport does not place every student, but it does commit to finding a site within 75 miles for students who come up short. That is more than a student-find-your-own model offers. The one-offer rule means students should treat the coordinator’s site as final.

Two routes for existing APRNs, plus a DNP path. The certificate accepts NPs, nurse-midwives, and nurse anesthetists, and sizes the coursework to each person’s gaps. MSN and certificate students can take one DNP course at the master’s rate in their final semester and qualify for expedited DNP admission.

Honest drawbacks. One fall intake with a two-month window. A 3.3 GPA floor. No full-time track for full-time workers. Weekday clinical hours for three straight semesters. Licensure alignment in New York only. And clinical volume at 600 hours, adequate but not above the common range.

The commute decides it. For a nurse in Monroe, Genesee, Orleans, or neighboring counties, the nine weekends and the 75-mile backup radius are easy to live with. For a nurse in the Hudson Valley or New York City, each weekend means travel and lodging, and the backup placement would not be within reach. Map the distance before you apply.

Accreditation

The master’s program and the Certificate of Advanced Study in nursing at SUNY Brockport are accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE). CCNE accreditation covers both FNP tracks on this page.

SUNY Brockport is institutionally accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, which reaffirmed its accreditation in 2022 for eight years. Institutional accreditation supports federal financial aid eligibility and the transfer of graduate credit, including into a later DNP.

The program is registered by the New York State Education Department, and graduates are eligible for New York nurse practitioner certification in the family population.

Graduates of both the MSN and the certificate are eligible to sit for the national FNP certification exam (AANP or ANCC).

More FNP Programs in New York