Frontier Nursing University offers four specialty tracks for nurses

December 6, 2023 By Frontier Nursing University

In the field of healthcare, everyone has their own unique passions and interests. That’s why at Frontier Nursing University (FNU) we offer four specialty tracks with paths for a Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) or Post-Graduate Certificate (PGC), depending on the student’s educational background and career goals. A Post-Master’s Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) is also offered as a degree option for those who have completed the MSN. Our specialty tracks are Nurse-Midwife, Family Nurse Practitioner, Women’s Health Care Nurse Practitioner and Psychiatric-Mental Health Nurse Practitioner. All of our specialties share an emphasis on rural and underserved communities.

What sets FNU apart?

Students can attend full or part-time, while completing 100 percent of coursework online and a clinical practicum in their home community. Students also enjoy one or two brief on-campus immersion experiences where they meet and connect with the FNU community, including faculty, alumni, staff and peers. FNU students earning an MSN can continue on to complete their DNP with 30 additional credit hours.

Four Specialty Tracks for Advanced Nursing Degrees

Let’s take a look at each specialty offered at FNU.

Certified Nurse-Midwife (CNM)

As the university with the oldest and largest continually operating nurse-midwifery education program in the U.S., FNU's alumni population is made up of many passionate Certified Nurse-Midwives (CNM). In fact, FNU graduates more than 40 percent of the nation's nurse-midwives, and more than half of FNU's faculty members are CNMs.

CNMs are advanced practice registered nurses who specialize in the care of women throughout their lives including pregnancy and childbirth. They offer primary care for women throughout their lifespan, including routine gynecological exams, family planning services, and menopause management.

At Frontier Nursing University, our goal is to educate more certified nurse-midwives so that midwifery care is available to all women who seek it. To learn more, visit frontier.edu/nurse-midwife.

Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP)

Home of the nation’s first Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP) program, FNU has been an innovator in family nursing education for over 50 years. With a strong academic and clinical basis, FNU strives to equip students with the tools to be a successful FNP and a leader in healthcare.

An FNP is an advanced practice nurse who manages the healthcare of individuals and their families by providing preventive and primary care, promoting health and wellbeing, and helping their patients manage chronic conditions. FNPs conduct routine checkups and assessments, order and interpret tests, make diagnoses, prescribe medications, and initiate and manage treatment plans for their patients.

To learn more, visit frontier.edu/family-nurse-practitioner.

Women's Health Care Nurse Practitioner (WHNP)

For nurses seeking advanced education in women's health, FNU offers a Women's Health Care Nurse Practitioner (WHNP) program. The program provides students with the tools to holistically address the unique needs of women across their lifespans.

A WHNP is an advanced practice nurse who specializes in continuing and comprehensive health care for women throughout their lives. WHNPs provide well-woman care, reproductive and gynecological care, and prenatal and postpartum care. Additionally, WHNPs focus on health promotion, disease prevention, health education, and helping patients make smart lifestyle choices.

To learn more, visit frontier.edu/womens-health-care-nurse-practitioner.

Psychiatric-Mental Health Nurse Practitioner (PMHNP)

FNU added a Psychiatric-Mental Health Nurse Practitioner (PMHNP) specialty track and began accepting students in 2017 for nurses who wish to serve the mental health needs of their communities. According to the Centers for Disease Control, mental illnesses are among the most common health conditions in the United States.

A PMHNP is an advanced practice nurse who seeks to improve mental health care and the overall health status of communities. With a focus on lifetime care for individuals, PMHNPs are committed to promoting mental health through assessment, diagnosis and treatment of behavioral problems, mental disorders and comorbid conditions.

To learn more, visit frontier.edu/psych-mental-health-nurse-practitioner.

A leader in distance education

FNU has been a leader in distance education since 1989. We have thousands of alumni who have completed advanced nursing degrees from their home communities. If this sounds like the right path for you, trust that we will be here to support you every step of the way.

Learn more about advanced nursing degrees and specialties at Frontier Nursing University. Subscribe to our blog for the latest news, events and inspiring stories from our alumni, students, faculty, preceptors and staff! If you’re ready to apply, click here.

Alumni Spotlight: Lisa Kiser focuses on community response to migration in the Borderlands

September 2, 2022 By Frontier Nursing University

At the heart of Frontier Nursing University is a talented and diverse community of students, alumni, faculty, staff, Couriers and preceptors. Spotlight blogs feature members of our FNU community that are focused on the mission of educating nurse-midwives and nurse practitioners to deliver quality health care to underserved and rural populations.

Frontier Nursing University (FNU) alumni Lisa Kiser, CNM, WHNP, DNP, holds a Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) degree in both Nurse-Midwifery and Women’s Health Care and a Post-Master’s Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP). All three degrees were earned at FNU.

“I knew that Frontier had the educational philosophy to support me to be successful in all three of my degrees,” she said.

A resident of Tucson, Arizona, Kiser currently serves as an Assistant Clinical Professor at the University of Arizona College of Nursing. She teaches three days a week in the DNP program, where she specializes in teaching women’s health. She also works as a women’s health nurse practitioner at United Community Health Center two days a week. She is very excited to be part of the team that is starting a nurse-midwifery program at the University of Arizona. The program is focused on increasing the diversity of midwives practicing and teaching in the state.

“I knew that Frontier had the educational philosophy to support me to be successful in all three of my degrees…and its philosophy of education and service has continued to shape my work.”
– Lisa Kiser, CNM, WHNP, DNP

In addition, Kiser also uses her experience as a healthcare provider in the Borderlands in her community service work. She volunteers with Clinica Amistad, a nonprofit free clinic, and Casa Alitas, a migrant welcome center, both of which are based in Tucson.

Casa Alitas has provided food, health care, short-term housing, clean clothing, and travel support for migrants since 2014.

“I am part of a community response team to help welcome 100 to 300 people who are migrating a day to our community,” Kiser said. “Our work is to assess the guests arriving each day, address any immediate health needs, and connect people to services in their receiving communities.”

Throughout her time as a healthcare professional in Tucson, Kiser has worked to develop partnerships with colleges of nursing in Mexico. As a native of Tucson, Kiser said she has a deep appreciation for and commitment to the Borderlands.

“The work I want to focus on is our community response to migration in the Borderlands,” she said. Kiser has helped to create binational, service-learning opportunities where students can work together in interprofessional teams to address health issues specific to the border.

Kiser has received several accolades throughout her career, including the Women’s Health Award for 2021 by the March of Dimes Arizona.

Throughout her many endeavors, Kiser said she has worked with several FNU graduates who have shared her philosophy and approach to care and education.

“Frontier was the perfect place for me to receive all three of my degrees, and its philosophy of education and service has continued to shape my work,” she said. “I am deeply grateful.”

Thank you, Lisa, for your commitment to your community, your commitment to nursing education, and for your commitment to FNU over the years.

Learn more about FNU’s Nurse-Midwifery program, Women’s Health Care Nurse Practitioner program and the Post-Master’s Doctor of Nursing Practice.

Frontier Nursing University Named A “2021 Great College to Work For”

September 13, 2021 By Frontier Nursing University

Frontier Nursing University (FNU) is one of the best colleges in the nation to work for, according to a new survey by the Great Colleges to Work For® program.

The results, released on September 13, 2021, in a special insert of The Chronicle of Higher Education, are based on a survey of 196 colleges and universities. In all, 70 of the 196 institutions achieved “Great College to Work For” recognition for specific best practices and policies. Results are reported for small, medium, and large institutions, with FNU and its enrollment of 2,500 students included among the small universities (500 to 2,999 students).

Frontier won honors in 10 categories this year:

Job Satisfaction & Support
Compensation & Benefits
Professional Development
Mission & Pride
Supervisor/Department Chair Effectiveness
Confidence in Senior Leadership
Faculty & Staff Well-being
Shared Governance
Faculty Experience
Diversity, Inclusion & Belonging

Frontier, which has 256 employees, was also named to the Great Colleges Honor Roll, a status granted to only 42 colleges each year who are highlighted most across the recognition categories.

“We are incredibly honored to be recognized as a Great College to Work For and to be named to the Great Colleges Honor Roll,” said FNU President Dr. Susan Stone. “This is a reflection of our commitment to value the needs and contributions of every individual at Frontier. It is a great place to work because we have outstanding people who are fully committed to our students and our mission.”

The survey results are based on a two-part assessment process: an institution questionnaire that captured employment data and workplace policies from each institution, and a survey administered to faculty, administrators, and professional support staff. The primary factor in deciding whether an institution received recognition was the employee feedback.

The employee survey underwent a number of changes this year, including the addition of 11 new survey statements, some of which are related to new survey themes around diversity, inclusion, and belonging, as well as faculty and staff well-being. New survey demographics related to gender identity and remote work were also included this year.

In accordance with the survey changes, the recognition categories for the program were also updated this year to better reflect current patterns and methodologies in employee engagement in higher education.

The Great Colleges to Work For® program is one of the largest and most respected workplace-recognition programs in the country. For more information and to view all current and previous recognized institutions, visit the Great Colleges program website at GreatCollegesProgram.com and GreatCollegesList.com. ModernThink, a strategic human capital consulting firm, administered the survey and analyzed the results.

About Frontier Nursing University:

The mission of FNU is to provide accessible nurse-midwifery and nurse practitioner education to prepare competent, entrepreneurial, ethical, and compassionate leaders in primary care to serve all individuals with an emphasis on women and families in diverse, rural, and underserved populations. FNU offers graduate Nurse-Midwifery and Nurse-Practitioner distance education programs that can be pursued full- or part-time with the student’s home community serving as the classroom. Degrees and options offered include Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP), Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) or Post-Graduate Certificates. To learn more about FNU and the programs and degrees offered, please visit Frontier.edu.

Student Spotlight: Rachel Featherstone- Filling the Gap of Post-Birth Care

May 21, 2021 By Frontier Nursing University

Frontier Nursing University (FNU) Student Rachel Featherstone, WHNP-BC, MSN, PMH-C, has spent their career finding problems in the world around them and looking for ways to meet those needs. Originally a member of the United States Army, Featherstone began to think about switching their career path after having a challenging birthing experience within an Army hospital.

“I felt disrespected by a lot of the hospital staff and had a very emotionally draining delivery,” Featherstone said. “I walked away from that experience thinking when I get out of the military, I’m going to make a difference for other people in this position and become a midwife.”

After finishing their time in the military, Featherstone became certified as a nurse and then moved on to FNU to pursue a Certified Nurse-Midwife degree when they realized that midwifery might not be the best fit for them after all.

“As a single mother who was already sleep-deprived, the schedule of a nurse-midwife simply didn’t seem like one that I would be able to sustain,” Featherstone said. “During that time, I also realized that my favorite part of midwifery wasn’t the births. What I really loved was sitting down and talking to people and building relationships with them as they transitioned into parenthood.”

Following this revelation, Featherstone pivoted to the Women’s Health Care Nurse Practitioner (WHNP) program with the intention of pursuing a Psychiatric-Mental Health Nurse Practitioner (PMHNP) degree following graduation. Featherstone is currently in the clinical portion of earning their PMHNP.

Once Featherstone earned their WHNP, they were given an exciting opportunity to build a cutting edge interventional psychiatry clinic with a physician where they were able to dive into research on neurotransmitters and learn all about mental health on a cellular level. However, they really missed working with pregnant and postpartum families. So, when COVID-19 changed the face of healthcare, Featherstone realized it was time to open their own telehealth practice.

“I knew I wanted to work where the need was the greatest,” Featherstone said. “After significant research, Idaho was the place I chose to open my telehealth clinic.”

Featherstone chose Idaho because every county in the state is underserved in mental health services. Additionally, in 2020, Idaho saw an influx of population as people in California sought a cheaper cost of living. Families from multiple western states fled wildfires and chose to reside in a less volatile area.

“Idaho was in desperate need of mental care before 2020,” Featherstone said, “even though I live in Virginia, I knew this was the community that most needed my services.”

In November, Featherstone opened Eucaplytus Health, a private practice focusing on perinatal mental health. Upon opening, Featherstone reached out to the public health department, the doula community, and Idaho pediatricians to build a network that could best connect them to new patients who could be screen and treated early.

One of Featherstone’s mottos for Eucaplytus Health is “bringing the heart of midwifery to mental health.” Featherstone chose this because although they transitioned away from midwifery, they still feel very connected to the mission of building relationships, sharing helpful information, and honoring the decisions of their patients.

“Perinatal health is so misunderstood by healthcare providers for how common these issues are,” Featherstone said.

Between 1 in 5 and 1 in 7 birth parents experience a mood disorder. Yet, many parents are afraid to take drugs for their mental health because they are scared of the effects on the baby. However, most of what these parents have heard is misinformation. The reality is that the risks are much higher for a new parent experiencing mental distress than for a fetus or baby whose parent is stable on psychiatric medication.

“I believe it is important to prepare birthing parents for the emotions they may face and inform them that medication is better for them and their baby than suffering,” Featherstone said.

“It is the 6-9 month postpartum period where we see the highest rates of suicides and overdoses following a pregnancy,” Featherstone said. “This is due to several factors. At this time, it is common for parents to have returned to work, be caring for multiple children, and have an expectation of feeling ‘normal’ again, when, instead, the family is constantly evolving and there is usually a lot of chronic sleep deprivation. Unfortunately, the combination of these factors can lead to a breaking point.”

“I truly believe that the most important part of my job is listening,” Featherstone said. “So many women simply need someone to genuinely ask them how they are feeling, how their body is doing, and what struggles they are facing. OBGYNs and psychiatrists both do great work, but they are often overwhelmed by the unique needs of these patients. We need more people specifically trained and dedicated to helping parents in these transitional stages.”

Featherstone is committed to reaching as many parents as possible with their services and has partnered with every form of willing insurance. Eucalyptus Health accepts Medicaid, Medicare, Tricare, and many commercial plans, with sliding scale also offered.

“I struggled to find the right help when I needed it; I want to make sure that as many people as possible know that there are options,” Featherstone said. “Reaching underserved populations is what brought me to healthcare, and that is why I feel so aligned with Frontier.”

“I have also been very pleased with the way FNU has addressed racial disparities in the history of the university, as well as how they have respected my requests and concerns as a non-binary provider. I am proud to be part of such an inclusive community that I see continuously working to do better to understand and support marginalized people.”

Thank you, Featherstone, for your dedication to caring for underserved communities and bridging the gap between birth and psychiatric care. We cannot wait to watch the ripples of your work extend across the country as more providers become aware of this need.

Click the links to learn more about Frontier’s Women’s Health Care Nurse Practitioner Program, Psychiatric-Mental Health Nurse Practitioner Program, and our growing Diversity Inclusion Program.

FNU Offers New Course Focused on Providing Culturally Competent and Safe Care

May 13, 2021 By Frontier Nursing University

In alignment with the school’s mission of providing accessible nurse-midwifery and nurse practitioner education to prepare competent, entrepreneurial, ethical, and compassionate leaders in primary care to serve all individuals with an emphasis on women and families in diverse, rural, and underserved populations, Frontier Nursing University (FNU) is excited to offer its new course, “Introduction to Cultural Safety.”

As our country continues to face racism and discrimination, FNU remains committed to taking a stand for diversity, equity, inclusion (DEI), and antiracism for marginalized populations. To meet this time of crisis, FNU is taking a systemic approach to thread DEI and anti-racism throughout the university. This course is only a small part of the work being done to actively expand institutional capacity for DEI and anti-racism work.

“The focus of the Introduction to Cultural Safety is on Native Americans, but the tenets can be applied to all populations,” Dr. Erin Tenney, the creator of the course, said. “In this course, we introduce the concept of cultural safety by centering on the Indigenous patient experience and learning to listen as the patient defines what safe care is.”

By the end of the Introduction to Cultural Safety, learners will be able to:

Define cultural safety
Identify the three key tenets of cultural safety
Explain the impacts of colonization on Indigenous people in the U.S.
Describe what culturally safe vs. culturally unsafe care may look like
Discuss personal and systems change strategies for improving the cultural safety of care

Dr. Tenney leads the course with guest instructor Dorene Waubanewquay Day. Day is an accomplished educator, midwife, activist, singer, and artist who consults with and works within many Indigenous and other communities and organizations to help restore and design culturally safe practices. In 2020, she was selected as a Luce Indigenous Fellow.

In addition to being clinical faculty at FNU, Dr. Tenney is a certified nurse-midwife and women’s health nurse practitioner, Doulas of North America (DONA) International birth doula trainer, writer, and photographer who has worked within Indigenous health centers and communities throughout her nursing career of almost 20 years.

Dr. Tenney credits Day with being her teacher and mentor, “particularly about women’s health and traditional lifeways, birth and parenting, life, death, grief, healing and more.” Together, they have traveled to Native communities in the U.S. and Canada, providing birth and women’s health training. They also offer culturally-based doula and midwifery teachings, in addition to cultural safety training for health providers in the U.S.

Those interested in the Introduction to Cultural Safety can enroll in the course at https://ceu.catalog.instructure.com/courses/introduction2cultural-safety.

This activity is approved for 3.0 contact hour(s) of continuing education by the American Association of Nurse Practitioners. Activity ID# 21034781. This activity was planned in accordance with AANP Accreditation Standards and Policies

This course and the many other diversity programs at the core of FNU have been essential as Frontier works to ensure sustainability, growth, and equitable services for our students, faculty, and staff. Even more importantly, this sort of work is essential in order for the university to truly fulfill its mission, achieve the goal of a diverse nursing and midwifery workforce, and improve health outcomes, especially for Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC). Although we have made notable progress, it is imperative that our DEI and anti-racism work continue to evolve and persist in order for us to serve our communities successfully.

To find out more about FNU’s efforts to increase diversity and improve cultural knowledge, visit our Diversity Impact Program page. FNU’s Diversity Impact Program has been active for over ten years. The program was designed to promote an inclusive learning and workforce environment at FNU, with the goal of increasing diversity in the nursing and midwifery professions by recruiting and retaining underrepresented students and employees.

Editor’s Note: This program is supported by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) as part of an award totaling $2,065,200. The contents are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official views of, nor an endorsement, by HRSA, HHS, or the U.S. Government.

FNU Virtual Event to Focus on Anxiety in Children, Telehealth and Implicit Bias in Healthcare

October 26, 2020 By Frontier Nursing University

This year, National Nurse Practitioner Week will take place November 8-14, and Frontier Nursing University (FNU) is celebrating by hosting its fifth annual virtual event dedicated to nurse practitioners. This year’s theme is Empower 2020: Year of the Nurse and the Midwife.

Over the course of the week, Empower 2020: Year of the Nurse and the Midwife will explore the experiences of nurse practitioners who are committed to better care for families, women and underserved populations. Throughout the virtual event, anyone is welcome to log onto the Empower website to hear from outstanding speakers and participate in a FREE pharmacology CE session on anxiety in children and adolescents. Frontier faculty, staff and students have put a lot of thought and energy into this week and they can’t wait to share it with the healthcare community.

Here is a look at Frontier’s schedule for this exciting event:

Empower will begin at 6:30 p.m. EST on Monday, Nov. 9, with Becoming a Nurse Practitioner: A Journey in Distance Education. Designed for current nurse practitioner students and those interested in becoming a nurse practitioner, this session will give prospective students a glimpse into the FNU distance education journey as current students discuss their experiences. The session will be led by Dr. Paula Alexander-Delpech and FNU Chair for the Department of Family Nursing Dr. Lisa Chappell. Attendees will get the inside scoop from a panel composed of current students from three specialty tracks, including family nurse practitioner, psychiatric-mental health nurse practitioner and women’s health care nurse practitioner. Panelists will be taking questions before or during this live session.

On Tuesday, Nov. 10, at 5 p.m. EST Billinda Tebbenhoff, DNP, PMHNP-BC, PMHCNS-BC will take to the virtual stage to present Pharmacology CE – Anxiety in Children and Adolescents: Trends in Treatment. This educational opportunity will focus on the approximately 4.4 million children and adolescents in the United States (CDC, 2020) who meet diagnostic criteria for an anxiety disorder and the many more individuals who remain undiagnosed.

Though anxiety and stress are an expected part of the human experience, consistently elevated anxiety can interfere with a child’s sense of self and impact the entire family. The implications of the current pandemic related to child and adolescent anxiety are beginning to emerge and depend on the child’s stage of development and pre-pandemic functioning. Dr. Tebbenhoff will discuss predictive trends and guidance regarding helping children, families and communities during the pandemic. Following this session, viewers will have the opportunity to complete the post-test and evaluation to earn 1.5 contact hours of continuing education through the American Association of Nurse Practitioners.

On Wednesday, Nov. 11, at 6:30 p.m. EST a live panel will lead a session titled Nurse Practitioners Leading Care Through Telehealth. Panel members will include FNU Nurse Practitioner Faculty Members Dr. Jess Calohan, Martha Harvey, Dr. Rachel Mack and Dr. Vicky Stone-Gale. The team will discuss a brief history of telehealth use in their respective specialties, including family nursing, psychiatric-mental health, nurse-midwifery and women’s health. They will also share current telehealth trends and their professional experiences using telehealth as a patient care delivery model.

This enlightening week will wrap up with Dismantling Implicit Bias to Promote Optimal Health Outcomes on Thursday, Nov. 12, at 5 p.m. EST. Presented by FNU Faculty Members Dr. Katheryn Arterberry, Dr. Diane John and Dr. Lisa Chappell, the session will focus on the negative impact of implicit bias on optimizing health outcomes. Advanced practice nurses will begin to identify a process for changing attitudes and behaviors which contribute to health disparities. Participants can expect to engage in a reflective and introspective approach while developing a plan to minimize personal biases.

It will be an unforgettable week learning about and celebrating exceptional health care providers and practices. Visit the Empower 2020: Year of the Nurse and the Midwife website to register for these free sessions, and tune in on Nov. 9 for a powerful week of speakers and inspiration. See FNU’s full lineup of virtual events here.

Featured Preceptor: Cohava Kasaev-Chanimov

September 23, 2020 By Frontier Nursing University

Frontier Nursing University (FNU) preceptor Cohava Kasaev-Chanimov, is being honored as FNU’s Featured Preceptor for the 2020 summer term due to her outstanding dedication to healthcare, service and building up new nurse-midwives and nurse practitioners.

Cohava is a certified nurse-midwife and is a member of the American College of Nurse-Midwives. Cohava opened a private midwifery practice, Attentive Midwifery, in the Bronx in January of 2018 with the intention of providing comprehensive and compassionate care to those in her community who need it most.

Cohava is committed to supporting people of any gender, age and nationality through exceptional, non-judgmental, sexual and reproductive healthcare. The Attentive Midwifery clinic provides walk-in GYN care as well as scheduled appointments and is dedicated to treating patients from all walks of life with kindness and respect. Cohava’s practice also prioritizes couples controlling their birth story and offers a variety of birthing options from “Home Birth” style care to gentle cesarean deliveries.

Although Cohava has spent the past two years opening Attentive Midwifery, where she is the sole-provider for patients and is always on-call for expecting mothers, she never hesitated to partner with FNU to positively impact the future of nursing and midwifery care. Since 2018, Cohava has generously precepted twelve FNU students with wisdom and grace making her a true preceptor superstar!

Sunoz Soroosh, CNEP Class 172, one of FNU the students who studied under Cohava had this to say about her experience:

“Cohava is a compassionate and caring preceptor. She took her time with me to make sure I learned and gained the necessary skills, even when I was so anxious and nervous when I first started! She runs her own midwifery practice with hospital privileges and taught me a lot about that as well, especially about the benefits of providing continuity of care. I am so lucky to have had her as my preceptor.”

By empowering students from various nursing fields, including Women’s Health Care Nurse Practitioner, Nurse-midwifery, and Family Nurse Practitioner, Cohava is leaving a remarkable impression across the nursing community, and we are so grateful to have her on our team.

Thank you, Cohava, for your continued work in advancing nursing and midwifery education and assisting FNU in reaching underserved populations through a Culture of Caring.

To read about previously recognized preceptors or to nominate a preceptor, click here.

Interested in becoming a Frontier preceptor? Learn more here.

Graduate Nursing School: What Degrees Does FNU Offer?

July 16, 2020 By frontieredu

At Frontier Nursing University (FNU), it is our goal to inspire prospective nurse-midwives and nurse practitioners in need of a flexible schedule to complete their educational goals. Our specialty lies in giving our students the opportunity to work in their home and local community through web-based, distance learning. We offer a variety of programs to help you further your career to the highest level, including a Master of Science in Nursing program, a Doctor of Nursing Practice program, and Post-Graduate Certificates. As you search for a school to continue your education, be assured that our programs meet you where you are, and provide quality support throughout your healthcare education journey.

With FNU’s Master of Science Nursing (MSN) program, students have the option of becoming a Certified Nurse-Midwife, Family Nurse Practitioner, Women’s Health Care Nurse Practitioner, or Psychiatric-Mental Health Nurse Practitioner. The programs usually begin with an on-campus experience called Frontier Bound; these sessions are currently being held virtually due to the COVID-crisis. However, we have been pleased to find our students report that they are staying connected and inspired through these virtual events and online coursework. Coursework consists of approximately 30 hours per week for part-time students, and about 40 hours per week for full-time students. Students complete the majority of the didactic courses over one to one and one-years and then become eligible for the second on-site session, Clinical Bound. Clinical Bound is a clinical skills intensive that will prepare you for the clinical practicum. Clinical Bound sessions are currently being held virtually due to the COVID-crisis.

After Clinical Bound, students begin their clinical practicum. During this time, they provide nurse practitioner or nurse-midwifery services in their home community for four to 10 months under the guidance of a master clinician preceptor. FNU students benefit greatly from having these advanced practice nurses as role models during the clinical experience. Required clinicals assist students in developing necessary skills for future success.

Once students complete all coursework, at least 675 hours of clinical work, and the final comprehensive preparatory course, they officially have an MSN in their chosen field. Additionally, for students who complete their MSN at FNU, we provide the option to expand their studies and earn a Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) through successful completion of 21 additional doctoral-level credits and 360 additional clinical hours.

Recent Frontier grads have a head start, but the DNP program was not designed with only Frontier grads in mind. We provide a fully comprehensive community-based online program to pursue a Post-Master’s DNP. Earning your DNP at FNU will begin with attending DNP Bound. You can opt to complete our DNP program in either 15 or 18 months. This program consists of 30 credit hours in which you will lead a rapid cycle quality improvement initiative. These are small scope initiatives aimed to meet a need within your clinical site while acting as a service-learning opportunity. The initiative provides you with a chance to look at a community-level problem and make a change.

We are dedicated to making our DNP program one of the best of its kind. Following the American Association of Colleges of Nursing’s DNP Essentials foundational competencies, and drawing on the diverse experience of our faculty, we feel that we have developed an all-inclusive program that will leave you confident and competent as a clinical practice leader.

FNU also offers several different Post-Graduate Certificates, meant for students who have completed their MSN and are already a Certified Nurse-Midwife or a Nurse Practitioner, but would like to add a specialization as a Nurse-Midwife, Family Nurse Practitioner, Women’s Health Care Nurse Practitioner, or a Psychiatric-Mental Health Nurse Practitioner. These programs will leave you prepared to pass your national certification exam in your chosen field and, similar to our MSN programs, completing these certifications will give you the opportunity to continue into the post-masters DNP.

FNU is committed to providing in-demand programs in an obtainable way so that you can expand the care available in your community with knowledge and confidence. If you have any questions or would like more information about any of our degrees or certifications, please visit our admissions page – we would love to talk to you!

More Topics Related to Graduate Nursing School:

Why Should I Become a Nurse-Midwife?

Should I Consider a DNP?