University of Detroit Mercy FNP Programs

McAuley School of Nursing • Detroit, MI • Mostly Online • $998/credit

University of Detroit Mercy offers 2 Family Nurse Practitioner Tracks:

  • BSN-DNP (MSN Exit)
  • Post-Master’s Certificate

Program Tracks Overview

ProgramEst. TuitionEst. DurationCredit Hours
MSN Exit$46.9K2 to 3 years (5 to 8 semesters)47
BSN-DNP$70.9K3 to 4 years (9 to 12 semesters)71
Certificate$28.9K2 years (4 semesters)29

Tuition estimates use Detroit Mercy’s 2026–27 graduate nursing rate of $998 per credit; the university lists no mandatory per-term fees.

Detroit Mercy’s defining advantage is a BSN-to-DNP with a built-in MSN exit: students earn the MSN and become eligible for FNP board certification after 47 credits, then complete the DNP with 24 more. Coursework is online, with two or three short on-campus skills intensives during the clinical sequence.

Quick Facts

FeatureDetails
Program TypesBSN-DNP with MSN conferred at 47 credits; post-master’s certificate
FormatMostly Online: online didactic, two or three on-campus clinical skills intensives of 2 to 3 days
Clinical Hours750 for the MSN and certificate (three 250-hour practica); DNP adds more, total not stated
Clinical PlacementSchool states placements are identified near the student’s home base
PopulationIndividuals, families, and communities across the lifespan, with emphasis on the medically underserved
RN License RequirementsUnencumbered RN license in Michigan or the student’s home state
Start TermFall only; one cohort a year with limited seats
Licensure ScopeCurriculum confirmed to meet requirements in Michigan only; other states under review
Tuition$998 per credit (2026–27), same rate for MSN and DNP courses
AccreditationCCNE (MSN, DNP, and post-graduate APRN certificate)

Post-BSN to DNP with MSN Exit, Family Nurse Practitioner

The estimated tuition for the Family Nurse Practitioner (Post-BSN to DNP) at University of Detroit Mercy is approximately $70,858 (71 credits at $998/credit), including about $46,906 for the 47-credit MSN portion. The program can generally be completed in about 3 years full time (9 semesters) or 4 years part time (12 semesters), with the MSN conferred after about 2 or 3 years respectively.

BSN-DNP Curriculum

Two degrees in one admission. Students are admitted to the BSN-DNP, not to a standalone MSN. The first 47 credits are the full FNP master’s: advanced practice core, FNP specialty courses, and all 750 clinical hours. The MSN is conferred at that point, and graduates can sit for the FNP board exam. The final 24 credits are the DNP core: epidemiology, business management, analytics, ethics, and a three-course doctoral project sequence.

Doctoral courses start in year one. Several MSN-phase courses are taken at the 7000 level (theory, informatics, evidence-based practice, policy, and leadership) so that they count toward the doctorate. That front-loading is what keeps the DNP portion to 24 credits. It also means an MSN-exit student has already completed part of the doctoral foundation.

A three-practicum clinical spine. Clinical work runs in three semesters: common and episodic problems, chronic and complex problems, and psychosocial issues and health integration. Giving psychosocial and behavioral health its own 250-hour practicum is less common in FNP curricula, where mental health is often folded into chronic care. A one-credit procedures and diagnostics workshop runs alongside the second practicum.

  • HLH 5900: Advanced Pathophysiology (3 credits)
  • NUR 5800: Pharmacology for Advanced Practice Nurses (3 credits)
  • NUR 5161: Advanced Health Assessment for the FNP (3 credits, including 1 lab credit)
  • NUR 5250 and NUR 5260: Common and Episodic Problems with Clinical Practicum II (5 credits)
  • NUR 6150 and NUR 6160: Chronic and Complex Problems with Clinical Practicum III (5 credits)
  • NUR 6250 and NUR 6260: Psychosocial Issues and Health Integration with Clinical Practicum IV (5 credits)
  • NUR 6130: Procedures and Diagnostics Workshop for the APN (1 credit)
  • NUR 6030: Professional Role Development and Business Practices (2 credits)
  • NUR 7800, NUR 7900, NUR 7920: DNP project proposal, practicum and implementation, and doctoral project (9 credits)

More curriculum details are available here.

You Should Know
  • The catalog calls the MSN “not a standalone degree” and “an integral step” toward the DNP, while the program page describes an “MSN exit.” Confirm in writing whether you can stop after the MSN without penalty if your plans change.
  • The published durations (“two years” full time, “three years” part time) describe the MSN portion only. Both sample plans continue with four more semesters of DNP coursework.
  • With a single fall cohort and a fixed clinical sequence, a student who falls out of sequence will likely wait a full year to rejoin.

BSN-DNP Clinical Requirements

  • MSN phase: 750 clinical hours (Practicum II, III, and IV at 250 hours each)
  • DNP phase: “additional clinical hours,” not quantified by the school
  • Clinical courses run in three Fall or Winter semesters (Winter of year one, then Fall and Winter of year two on the full-time plan); none in summer
  • Two or three on-campus clinical skills intensives of 2 to 3 days each during the clinical program
  • Graduate nursing materials state placements are “identified near one’s home base”

At 750 hours, Detroit Mercy sits above the 600 to 700 hour range common among FNP programs and 250 hours above the 500-hour certification floor. Spread over a semester of about 15 weeks, each 250-hour practicum works out to roughly 17 hours a week, or about two clinical days. That is workable alongside part-time employment, but hard to combine with full-time shift work, especially in the full-time plan’s second year, when the practicum overlaps DNP-level coursework.

You Should Know
  • The DNP phase’s hours are not published. NUR 7900 carries 2 practicum credits; at the MSN’s own ratio of 125 hours per clinical credit, that would add about 250 hours for roughly 1,000 total. This is an estimate, not a school figure.
  • The placement language appears in general graduate nursing marketing, not in the FNP catalog. It does not say the school guarantees a site or who secures the preceptor, so ask how placements work before accepting a seat.
  • The marketing page calls the program “hybrid,” but the catalog describes online didactic instruction plus a finite number of campus intensives. Confirm the intensive dates early if you live outside Southeast Michigan.

BSN-DNP Admissions

Detroit Mercy admits one FNP cohort each fall on a rolling basis, invites selected applicants to a faculty interview, and closes admission once seats are filled.

  • BSN from a nationally accredited program; RNs with a non-nursing bachelor’s may qualify through an MSN bridge after a gap analysis
  • Minimum cumulative undergraduate GPA of 3.0; GRE may be required below 3.0
  • 2,000 hours of RN experience preferred
  • Unencumbered RN license in Michigan or the state of home residence
  • Three professional recommendations, at least one from a supervisor
  • Resume or CV, autobiographical goals statement, and official transcripts from every institution attended since high school
  • Faculty interview, by invitation
  • Regular admission deadline of May 31, with applications encouraged by December 1
  • Admitted FNP students pay an enrollment deposit through the Admissions Portal
You Should Know
  • Detroit Mercy has confirmed that the FNP curriculum meets licensure requirements in Michigan only and is reviewing other states. Nurses who plan to practice elsewhere should check with their own board of nursing before applying.
  • The graduate nursing overview lists 2,000 RN hours as a minimum, while the FNP page and catalog call it preferred. The FNP-specific pages are more current, but ask admissions how the requirement is applied.
  • Because admission is rolling and seats are limited, a complete file by December 1 carries a real advantage over one submitted near the May 31 deadline.
  • The enrollment deposit amount is not clearly stated.

Post-Master’s Certificate, Family Nurse Practitioner

The estimated tuition for the Family Nurse Practitioner Post-Master’s Certificate at University of Detroit Mercy is approximately $28,942 (29 credits at $998/credit). The program can generally be completed in about 2 years (4 semesters), based on the published sample plan.

Certificate Curriculum

The certificate is the FNP clinical spine of the MSN without the doctoral-level core: pathophysiology, pharmacology, and health assessment in year one alongside the first practicum, then the chronic care and psychosocial practica in year two. Plans are individualized by a gap analysis of prior coursework. The sample plan runs Fall and Winter only, with no summer term.

  • HLH 5900, NUR 5800, NUR 5161: pathophysiology, pharmacology, and FNP health assessment
  • NUR 5150: Health Promotion Across the Lifespan (2 credits)
  • NUR 5250, 6150, 6250 with Clinical Practicum II, III, and IV
  • NUR 6130: Procedures and Diagnostics Workshop (1 credit)
  • NUR 6030: Professional Role Development and Business Practices (2 credits)
You Should Know
  • Clinical courses, clinical theory, and advanced health assessment never transfer in. Only professional role, pathophysiology, and pharmacology can, if equivalent. Transferring all three would reduce the plan to about 21 credits, or roughly $20,958.
  • The certificate does not lead to an academic degree.

Certificate Clinical Requirements

  • 750 clinical hours across three 250-hour practica
  • 500 hours for active certified nurse practitioners in a specialty other than FNP
  • Same campus skills intensives as the degree program

The 500-hour option makes the certificate an efficient route for a certified PMHNP or AGPCNP adding family practice. Nurses adding FNP as a second population focus should confirm their state board accepts the reduced hours.

Certificate Admissions

  • MSN with a major in nursing from an accredited program
  • Transcripts reviewed by the FNP program coordinator for the gap analysis
You Should Know
  • Certificate-specific deadlines and start terms are not clearly stated. The sample plan begins in Fall, matching the degree cohort.

Tuition

Detroit Mercy charges a published $998 per credit for graduate nursing in 2026–27, up from $978 in 2025–26. The same rate applies to MSN-phase and DNP-phase courses and to the certificate, and it does not vary by residency. Detroit Mercy’s tuition page lists no mandatory per-term registration, technology, or program fees for graduate students.

TrackDerivationEstimated Tuition
MSN Exit47 credits × $998$46,906
DNP Phase24 credits × $998$23,952
BSN-DNP Total71 credits × $998$70,858
Certificate29 credits × $998$28,942
  • Rates are from Detroit Mercy’s tuition and fees page for 2026–27
  • All totals are derived (credits × rate); Detroit Mercy does not publish program totals
  • Billing is per credit, so part-time study costs the same in total
  • A $95 graduation application fee applies per degree

Be aware that:

  • The discount claim conflicts with the rate table. The graduate nursing page advertises tuition “at a special discount rate,” but the tuition page footnotes the $998 nursing rate as “not eligible for tuition discounts.” Ask whether $998 is the discounted rate or whether a separate discount applies.
  • Rates rise over a multi-year program. The rate went up about 2% this year. A BSN-DNP student spans three or four academic years, so later credits will likely cost more than $998.
  • The graduation fee may apply twice. BSN-DNP students receive two degrees, the MSN and the DNP.
  • Intensive travel is extra. Two or three 2-to-3-day campus visits mean lodging and travel for students outside Metro Detroit.
  • The enrollment deposit amount is not published.

Because Detroit Mercy charges one private rate regardless of residency and lists no mandatory fees, the posted price is close to the real tuition cost. The practical decision is how far to go: about $46,900 buys a board-eligible FNP master’s with 750 clinical hours, and about $24,000 more converts it into a DNP. The certificate at about $28,900 is the lower-cost route for nurses who already hold an MSN.

Why Choose This FNP Program?

Best suited for nurses who want the option of a doctorate without committing to one on day one, and who can plan around a single fall start and a few short trips to Detroit.

A credential at the midpoint. Wayne State offers the FNP only as a DNP, so the degree arrives at the end. At Detroit Mercy, the MSN is conferred after 47 credits, which means a student can sit for boards and start practicing while finishing the doctorate. If life intervenes, the student leaves with a complete FNP master’s rather than a partial doctorate.

Online coursework with real clinical volume. Didactic courses are online, campus time is limited to two or three skills intensives, and the 750-hour clinical requirement sits above the common range. A dedicated psychosocial practicum is useful for nurses heading into primary care, where behavioral health is a large share of visits. Detroit Mercy reports a 98% FNP certification pass rate and 98% graduate employment, though it publishes no year or cohort size for either figure.

Choosing your pathway. Take the MSN exit if your goal is clinical practice and you want to be board-eligible quickly. Continue to the DNP if you want leadership, quality improvement, or faculty roles, since most of the doctoral foundation is already built into the master’s coursework. Choose the certificate if you already hold an MSN, especially as a certified NP who qualifies for the 500-hour route. The honest drawbacks apply to all three: one fall intake with limited seats, placement language that stops short of a guarantee, and licensure confirmed only for Michigan.

Accreditation

The master’s, Doctor of Nursing Practice, and post-graduate APRN certificate programs at University of Detroit Mercy are accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE). This covers both the MSN and DNP phases of the FNP pathway and names the post-master’s certificate explicitly. Detroit Mercy states that its graduate nursing programs are accredited through Spring 2027.

University of Detroit Mercy is institutionally accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. Institutional accreditation supports federal financial aid eligibility and the transfer of graduate credit to other institutions.

The baccalaureate nursing program is also approved by the Michigan Board of Nursing, which does not affect the graduate FNP credential.

Graduates of the MSN phase and the post-master’s certificate are eligible to sit for the national FNP certification exam (AANP or ANCC).

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