In communities across the country, access to quality care is dependent on a highly skilled, trusted provider: the Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP). Serving patients across the lifespan, FNPs are advanced practice registered nurses who provide comprehensive, patient-centered care to individuals and families.
For health care professionals, becoming an FNP opens the door to a wide range of practice settings, patient populations, and focus areas. FNPs provide ongoing, comprehensive care in primary care clinics and private practices; serve as essential providers in rural and frontier health clinics; and work within hospital and health system settings, including outpatient clinics and collaborative care teams. Many FNPs also practice in community health centers caring for underserved populations; deliver care through telehealth and virtual platforms; and support older adults in assisted living and skilled nursing facilities.
While grounded in primary care, many FNPs pursue specialized areas of interest that allow them to shape their careers around their passions. These areas may include chronic disease management, preventive and wellness care, women’s and men’s health, geriatric care, behavioral and mental health, and population-focused care initiatives. Because of their broad training, FNPs may serve infants, children, adolescents, adults, and older adults, as well as families and multigenerational households.
Whether serving as a primary care provider in a rural clinic, leading a community health initiative, or launching an independent practice, Family Nurse Practitioners play a vital role in improving access to high-quality, patient-centered care.
Frontier Nursing University (FNU) has been at the forefront of family nursing education since introducing the first FNP program in the United States in 1970. The FNP curriculum is built on a strong academic and clinical foundation and is designed to develop not only skilled practitioners, but also healthcare leaders and entrepreneurs.
“Our graduates are well-prepared clinicians who are improving health care across the country,” said Audra Cave, DNP, FNP-BC, Department Chair of Frontier’s Department of Family Nursing. “Frontier students gain firsthand insight into the needs of their communities and learn the skills necessary to start their own practices, if that’s the path they choose.”
FNU’s accredited community-based, distance-learning FNP program offers affordable tuition, flexible online coursework, supportive faculty and staff, and dedicated clinical placement services. Frontier graduates consistently excel on the national certification exams administered by the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners (AANP) and the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC). In 2025, 99% of FNP MSN graduates and 100% of FNP PGC graduates passed the AANP exam, while 100% of both FNP MSN and PGC graduates passed the ANCC exam in 2024 — far surpassing the national pass rate of 83% recorded for both exams in 2024.
Frontier students can enroll full– or part-time and complete 100 percent of their coursework online, with clinical practicums carried out in their own communities. Before diving into didactic and clinical work, students come together for two brief on-campus immersion experiences designed to help them connect with peers and faculty and build a support network that carries them through the program. After earning an MSN, graduates may continue to complete a Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) at FNU with just 30 additional credit hours.
To learn more about FNU’s online FNP program, visit frontier.edu/family-nurse-practitioner.
