Mar 28, 2024  
2022-2023 Course Catalog 
    
2022-2023 Course Catalog [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

Nursing, Post-Master’s Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner Certificate


A post-master’s psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner certificate is available to RNs who have completed a master’s degree in Nursing from an accredited university. A gap analysis will be performed to determine required courses. Advanced pathophysiology, advanced pharmacology, and advanced physical assessment courses are required for all nurse practitioners. Specific psychiatric mental health courses include assessment and diagnosis of mental health conditions, neuropsychopharmacology, and three clinical courses.

The post-graduate APRN certificate at the University of Saint Joseph is accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE), 655 K Street NW, Suite 750, Washington, DC 20001, 202.887.6791.

IMPORTANT!

Psychiatric Clinical Nurse Specialists or Nurse Practitioners in other specialties who have not completed the courses below, also called the 3Ps, must complete them before taking a clinical course. This will add 10 additional credits to the plan of study.

NURS 507 - Advanced Physical Assessment  (3 credits)

NURS 507L - Advanced Physical Assessment Lab  (1 credit)

NURS 519 - Advanced Pathophysiology  (3 credits)

NURS 535 - Advanced Pharmacology   (3 credits)

Admission Requirements:

  1. Acceptance into this program is highly competitive
  2. Applications are reviewed twice a year. All application materials should be received by the Graduate Admissions Office by October 1 for application review the following spring, and March 1 for application review for admission for the following fall.
  3. Admission application and nonrefundable admission fee
  4. A current resume
  5. A sealed official transcript showing a master’s degree with a GPA of 3.0 or higher from a regionally and nationally accredited Nursing institution, as well as transcripts from all undergraduate coursework
  6. A current Registered Nurse license from the state in which clinical work will be completed and a current APRN license if applicable
  7. Essay: Discuss a practice problem in your field that, in your experience has a broad impact on patient care and outcomes; state professional goals for the next 5-10 years and explain how this certificate will help you reach your goals
  8. Two letters from professionals attesting to the candidate’s intellectual, clinical and leadership abilities to pursue graduate work at the University of Saint Joseph. Letters should be from clinical supervisors or managers, and academic faculty
  9. An interview with the graduate faculty prior to acceptance into the program
  10. All immunization records as required by the University and Department of Nursing
  11. Upon formal admission, a certified background check is required
  12. Malpractice insurance: Students are required to purchase their own malpractice insurance, at the APRN level, prior to the start of clinical coursework

For Current Psychiatric Clinial Nurse Specialists


Requirements (10 credits and 250 clinical hours)


Psychiatric Clinical Nurse Specialists who meet all other curricular requirements toward the Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner certificate must complete these courses:

NURS 521 - Advanced Practice in Psychiatric-Mental Health Nursing III: Capstone  (4 credits)
NURS 530 - Neuropsychopharmacology  (3 credits)
NURS 544 - Assessment, Diagnosis and Treatment of Mental Health Conditions  (3 credits)

Total: 10 credits

Psychiatric clinical nurse specialists must also complete at least 250 faculties to provide clinical hours in the population for which they are not currently certified. This means a psychiatric clinical nurse specialist who is certified in Child and Adolescent will need to complete 250 hours in adult geriatric population. For a psychiatric clinical nurse specialist who is certified in adult geriatrics, they will need to complete their hours in the Child and Adolescent population.

For Current Nurse Practioners in Other Specialties


Requirements (17 credits and 500 clinical hours)


Nurse practitioners certified in other specialties must complete these  courses:

NURS 502 - Advanced Practice in Psychiatric-Mental Health Nursing I  (4 credits)
NURS 504 - Advanced Practice in Psychiatric-Mental Health Nursing II  (4 credits)
NURS 521 - Advanced Practice in Psychiatric-Mental Health Nursing III: Capstone  (4 credits)
NURS 530 - Neuropsychopharmacology  (3 credits)
NURS 544 - Assessment, Diagnosis and Treatment of Mental Health Conditions  (3 credits)

Total: 18 credits

Nurse practitioners in other specialties must complete at least 500 faculty-supervised clinical hours.