Graduate Nursing Overview
Austin Peay State University's Graduate Nursing program offers a supportive, online learning environment for students pursuing advanced practice roles in healthcare. Concentrations include Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP), Nurse Educator (NE), and Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner (PMHNP), catering to RNs at various career stages.
With low student-to-faculty ratios, personal advising, and frequent faculty access, students benefit from a collaborative academic community. FNP and PMHNP students also participate in fun, interactive on-campus intensives to practice hands-on skills, engage in simulations, and network with peers, faculty, and experts.
More information can be found about the Graduate Nursing programs in the APSU Graduate Bulletin.
There are many reasons to consider APSU's Graduate Nursing Program:
- Low Faculty-to-Student Ratio: We get to know students personally, ensuring dedicated support throughout their studies.
- Affordable, High-Quality Education: APSU offers the lowest graduate tuition per credit hour in Tennessee, with in-state students able to earn their MSN for under $21,000 (tuition only), resulting in low debt and strong outcomes.
- No GRE Required for admission.
- Student Involvement: Students can join graduate nursing committees starting in their first semester.
- On-Campus Intensives (OCIs): Hands-on learning in a supportive, engaging environment for advanced skills like assessment and procedures.
- Synchronous Videoconferencing: Real-time participation from any location.
- Asynchronous Classes: Courses are primarily online, allowing students to complete lectures, quizzes, assignments, and discussions at their own pace.
On-Campus Intensives (OCIs) are required visits to APSU's Clarksville, Tennessee, campus for FNP and PMHNP students. These intensives offer a fun, supportive environment for practicing skills learned online, with opportunities to socialize with peers and faculty. Dates are provided well in advance. Nurse Educator Students are not required to attend OCIs.
The MSN program (FNP & PMHNP concentrations) requires two on-campus visits and a virtual clinical intensive.
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Assessment OCI: Held at the end of the Advanced Health Assessment course (NURS 5008), students meet in small groups to practice and refine skills through open labs and check-offs.
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Virtual Clinical Intensive: FNP students engage in an advanced virtual skills session, practicing essential procedures like suturing, biopsies, x-ray interpretation, and wound care. PMHNP students dive into virtual simulations focusing on cognitive behavioral therapy and motivational interviewing, with a reflective discussion on applying these skills to real-world practice.
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Final OCI: This final on-campus session, held during your last semester, is a celebration of your achievements! NP students will demonstrate their mastery of program outcomes, including working with a "live" patient in a simulated clinical environment. It’s the perfect culmination of your hard work and a stepping stone to your future as a practitioner.
APSU offers high-value, low-cost education with the lowest graduate tuition per credit hour in Tennessee. Students can earn their MSN for under $21,000 (in-state, tuition only), graduating with minimal debt and strong outcomes.
The most current graduate tuition and fee information can be found at the Austin Peay State University Student Account Services and Cashier's Office website.
For an estimate of tuition/fees and additional expenses for each semester, students can access APSU's Net Price Calculator
Students can find more information about financial aid options and veteran benefits at the Austin Peay State University Office of Student Financial Aid website.
APSU's Graduate Nursing Program welcomes out-of-state and military-affiliated applicants. Many students complete their clinicals outside Tennessee, but some states restrict clinical placements. As a result, APSU cannot guarantee clinical placements in all 50 states.
If you're an out-of-state applicant, planning to complete clinicals outside Tennessee, or anticipate relocating during the program, please email graduatenursing@apsu.edu to discuss your specific needs.
Licensure and Certification Disclosures
Graduate Nursing Program--Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Each student is assigned a graduate nursing advisor who provides a course plan for each semester.
NE students are not required to attend campus, but FNP and PMHNP students must attend two on-campus intensives (OCIs) during their program. Each OCI lasts 1-2 days, with dates provided well in advance. These fun events offer valuable learning and socialization with peers and faculty.
Many of our students continue to work while in our program; however, each student has varying needs related to study time, work-life balance, and clinical practicum availability.
No. The MSN program accepts applicants with a BSN degree who have passed the NCLEX. While no specific work experience is required, students should consider their readiness to pursue advanced education while starting a new profession.
Nurse Educators find fulfilling careers in teaching or administrative roles at nursing schools and medical facilities. An MSN in Nursing Education allows experienced nurses to blend their clinical expertise with a passion for teaching, making a meaningful impact on the next generation of healthcare professionals.
End of Program Student Learning Outcomes (EPSLOs) define the knowledge, skills, and behaviors students should demonstrate upon program completion. These outcomes align with professional practice standards, program goals, and competencies.
Role-specific Professional Competencies (RCs) outline measurable performance expectations, integrating knowledge, skills, and behaviors for each concentration.
Graduates of the MSN program will be able to:
- Demonstrate advanced role professional behaviors and leadership competencies, including effective communication, coordination, and collaboration with individuals, families, and members of the healthcare team.
- Appraise information and technology to guide advanced nursing practice.
- Analyze theoretical and evidence-based research to guide decisions and quality improvement in the advanced nursing role.
- Demonstrate ethical decision-making in the advanced nursing role.
- Analyze data to modify the determinants of health, promoting improved outcomes for all persons and populations.
- Integrate advocacy principles to influence nursing practice and policies at the systems level.
Graduates of the MSN Nurse Educator (NE) Concentration will also be able to:
- Evaluate the process of implementing, monitoring, and managing curricula using relevant theories, teaching and learning strategies, and technological innovation.
- Appraise various strategies to monitor and evaluate programs, curricula, and mastery of student learning.
- Practice advanced, evidence-based, contemporary, and person-centered nursing care.
Graduates of the MSN Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP) Concentration will also be able to:
- Demonstrate independence and accountability in managing primary healthcare needs, including assessing and identifying differential diagnoses, prioritizing, managing health and illness, and evaluating care for individuals and families across the lifespan.
- Utilize evidence-based practice guidelines to provide safe, compassionate, quality, and personalized care to diverse patients.
- Apply advanced clinical judgment in the management of person-centered care.
Graduates of the MSN Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner (PMHNP) Concentration will also be able to:
- Demonstrate independence and accountability in managing psychiatric and mental health care needs, including assessing and identifying differential diagnoses, prioritizing and managing acute and chronic disorders, and evaluating care for individuals and families across the lifespan.
- Utilize evidence-based practice guidelines to provide safe, compassionate, quality, and personalized care to diverse patients.
- Apply advanced clinical judgment in the management of person-centered care.
NP CERTIFICATION RATES: Certification rates are assessed by calendar year.
- 2023--The annual pass rate for all first-time test-takers for the FNP Certification is 91.4%. There were no test-takers for the PMHNP concentration in 2023.
- 2022--The annual pass rate for all first-time test-takers for the FNP Certification is 91.2%. There were no test-takers for the PMHNP concentration in 2022.
- 2021--The annual pass rate for all first-time test-takers for the FNP Certification is 94.7%. There were no test-takers for the PMHNP concentration in 2021.
COMPLETION RATES: Completion rates are assessed by calendar year and tracked by starting date.
- 2021 Admission Cohort--Aggregate Completion Rate calculated removing work-life-personal
reasons for leaving the program= 90%
- 2021 Admission Cohort--Aggregate 100% on-time completion rate for MSN program= 61%
- 2021 Admission Cohort--100% on-time completion rate for the full-time MSN program option= 66%
- 2021 Admission Cohort--100% on-time completion rate for the part-time MSN program option= 52%
- 2020 Admission Cohort--Aggregate Completion Rate calculated removing work-life-personal
reasons for leaving the program= 94%
- 2020 Admission Cohort--Aggregate 100% on-time completion rate for MSN program= 68%
- 2020 Admission Cohort--100% on-time completion rate for the full-time MSN program option= 62%
- 2020 Admission Cohort--100% on-time completion rate for the part-time MSN program option= 77%
- 2019 Admission Cohort--Aggregate Completion Rate calculated removing work-life-personal
reasons for leaving the program= 93%
- 2019 Admission Cohort--Aggregate 100% on-time completion rate for MSN program= 54%
- 2019 Admission Cohort--100% on-time completion rate for the usual timeframe for the full-time MSN program option= 51%
- 2019 Admission Cohort--100% on-time completion rate for the part-time MSN program option= 61%
APSU Nursing Scholarships: There are several scholarships available to APSU Graduate Nursing students. Applications can be submitted from October 1- February 1. Students must be admitted to APSU in order to apply. Awards are decided each spring for the following academic year starting in fall semesters.
Tennessee Graduate Nursing Loan Forgiveness Program: The Graduate Nursing Loan-Forgiveness Program is designed to encourage Tennessee residents who are registered nurses to become teachers and administrators in Tennessee nursing education programs. For more information, please go directly to the TN website:
Army Nurse Corps Association Scholarships: scholarships to support nursing education for graduate nursing students. For more information, please go directly to the ANCA website:
Veteran's Benefits: Thank you for your service! Please contact the APSU Office of Veteran's Education Benefits directly for information regarding educational benefits and services.
National Graduate Nursing Scholarship Opportunities
- Federal HRSA Scholarship and Loan Repayment Programs provide funding to help students offset the cost of their education. Scholarship programs provide tuition, fees and living stipend assistance to students enrolled in a qualified nursing program. Loan repayment programs provide funding to graduates employed full-time at a critical shortage facility with qualifying educational loans.
- Faculty Loan Repayment Program provides up to $40,000 to health professionals from disadvantaged backgrounds in exchange for two years of service on the faculty at an accredited health professions college or university.
- U.S. Public Health Services’ SRCOSTEP Program provides pay and benefits to selected applicants in the final year of full-time academic study in exchange for work for the sponsoring agency as a Commissioned Corps Officer after graduation. The service obligation is equal to twice the time sponsored; that is, for 9 months of financial support, a SRCOSTEP participant commits to 18 months of employment with the division or organization that provided the support.
- Best Nursing Degree.com--$1,000 Honor's in Nursing scholarships available for BSN or MSN students.
- National Health Service Corps, a division of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, offers a scholarship program to Nurse Practitioners students (post graduate degree with clinical practice focus) at an accredited U.S. school.
- Nurse Practitioner Health Association offers a variety of scholarships ($1,000 to $4,000 awards) to students in Nurse Practitioner graduate programs for outstanding research, leadership and academic achievements.
- GradSchools.com is offering a $2,000 scholarship for minority nurses to help fund their graduate school degree.
- American Assembly for Men in Nursing Foundation is sponsoring a five student scholarships to male students pursuing undergraduate and graduate nursing degrees.
- American Indian Education Fund offers a series of scholarships for eligible American Indian and Alaskan Natives.
- American Red Cross awards the Jane Delano Student Nurse Scholarship to both undergraduate nursing students and graduate nursing students who are a volunteer or employee of the American Red Cross Unit.
- DiversityNursing.com, a niche website for Nurses from student Nurses up to CNO's, is offering a $5,000 Education Award. You must be enrolled as a full-time or part-time student in an accredited School of Nursing in a professional registered nurse program (baccalaureate, graduate, associate degree or diploma) OR work Full-Time, Part-Time or Per Diem as a Registered Nurse, LPN, Nurse Practitioner or Nurse Leader/Administrator at a U.S. based organization.
- ExceptionalNurse.com offers scholarships to both graduate and undergraduate nursing students with disabilities.
- Indian Health Service (IHS) offers scholarships to American Indian and Alaska Native health professions students in both undergraduate and graduate programs.
- National Association of Hispanic Nurses (NAHN) members enrolled in accredited undergraduate and graduate nursing programs are presented scholarships based on their demonstration of professional contributions to the nursing profession and have the potential to be role models to aspiring nursing students.
- NURSE Corps Scholarship Program (NCSP), helps students complete their nursing education by paying tuition, fees, other education costs, while providing a monthly living stipend. The program is open to full-time nursing students accepted or enrolled in diploma, associate, baccalaureate or graduate nursing programs at accredited schools located in the U.S. Upon graduation, scholarship program members fulfill a service commitment at a Critical Shortage Facility.
- Tennessee Nurses Foundation supports the education of nurses who are members of the Tennessee Nurses Association by providing scholarships for those seeking higher education. The Maureen Nalle Memorial Graduate Nursing Scholarship Program offers up to a $5,000 award. Applications are due March 1.