Frontier’s programs rank among the top in the country, and our tuition ranks among the most affordable. Support is also available to many students through student financial aid, veterans benefits and scholarship opportunities. All programs, including graduate, non-matriculating, and refresher courses, are charged tuition on a per credit hour basis.
Tuition for each term is the cost per credit hour multiplied by the number of credits registered. Tuition costs vary based on the scope and content of each program.
- $726 per credit hour
- DNP and MSN or PGC specialties: Family Nurse Practitioner, Nurse-Midwife, and Women’s Health Nurse Practitioner
- Non-Matriculating Courses
- Refresher Program
- $778 per credit hour
- MSN or PGC specialty: Psychiatric-Mental Health Nurse Practitioner
PROGRAM COSTS
(effective July 2026)
| PROGRAM/SPECIALTY | # OF CREDITS | TOTAL TUITION COST |
|---|---|---|
| Nurse-Midwifery | ||
| MSN | 55 | $39,930 |
| Post-Graduate Certificate | 42 | $30,492 |
| Family Nurse Practitioner | ||
| MSN | 52 | $37,752 |
| Post-Graduate Certificate | 39 | $28,314 |
| Women’s Health Nurse Practitioner | ||
| MSN | 49 | $35,574 |
| Post-Graduate Certificate | 36 | $26,136 |
| Psychiatric-Mental Health Nurse Practitioner | ||
| MSN | 48 | $37,344 |
| Post-Graduate Certificate | 35 | $27,230 |
| Doctor of Nursing Practice | ||
| Post-Master’s DNP | 30 | $21,780 |
| Companion DNP (available to eligible FNU graduates only) | 21 | $15,246 |
| MANDATORY FEES | |
|---|---|
| Application Fee | $50 |
| Enrollment Acceptance Fee (non-refundable and non-transferrable) (MSN, PGC, and DNP admits) | $200 |
| Course Transfer Review Fee (if needed) | $100/course |
| Banyan Tree 101 (BT101) Course (Non-matriculating, or Nurse-Midwifery and Women’s Health Nurse Practitioner Refresher admits) | $100 |
| Matriculation Fee* (MSN, PGC, DNP, and MSN Completion admits) | $475 |
| Clinical Bound Facility Fee* | $420 |
| Clinical Bound Lab Fee* | $200 |
| Graduation Fee* | $150 |
| Student Resource Fee* | $150/term |
| Technology Fee* | $300/term |
*These fees can be paid with financial aid funds.
| ESTIMATED INDIRECT COSTS** | |
|---|---|
| Computer and software (total estimate per degree/program) | $2,000 |
| Internet access | $70/month |
| Textbooks (didactic terms) | $500/term |
| Travel (Frontier Bound and Clinical Bound) | $600/trip |
**Indirect costs cannot be paid with financial aid funds.
Tuition costs are based on a student beginning coursework in July 2026. Please note that tuition rates and/or programs of study may change, and therefore, total costs are estimated. Tuition costs vary based on the scope and content of each program.
Click the arrows before each question to expand and view the answer.
How is tuition charged at Frontier Nursing University?
All programs at FNU, including graduate, non-matriculating, and refresher courses, charge tuition on a per-credit-hour basis. Your tuition for each term is simply the cost per credit hour multiplied by the number of credits you take.
Frontier Tip: This per-credit pricing structure allows you to accurately forecast your term-by-term costs depending on whether you enroll full-time or part-time.
What degree tracks What is the current cost per credit hour at FNU?are available for the FNP program?
The cost is $726 per credit hour for most programs, including the Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP), Nurse-Midwifery, Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP), and Women’s Health Nurse Practitioner (WHNP) tracks. The Psychiatric-Mental Health Nurse Practitioner (PMHNP) specialty is charged at $778 per credit hour.
Frontier Tip: Non-matriculating courses and the Refresher Program also utilize the standard $726 per credit hour rate.
Are there recurring mandatory fees each term?
Yes, students are charged two recurring fees each term: a $300 Technology Fee and a $150 Student Resource Fee. These help maintain the robust digital infrastructure required for our distance education model and fund the support services and resources that are essential to student success.
Frontier Tip: Because FNU’s fees are transparently listed, you don’t have to worry about hidden athletic or out-of-state residency charges.
Can I pay for university fees using financial aid?
Yes, many of FNU’s mandatory fees can be paid using your financial aid funds. This includes the $475 Matriculation fee, the $150 Graduation fee, and the recurring term fees.
Frontier Tip: Utilizing financial aid to cover these direct costs helps reduce your out-of-pocket expenses at the start of your program.
Are travel and textbooks covered by financial aid?
No, estimated indirect costs cannot be paid directly with your financial aid funds. You should budget independently for items like internet access, textbooks ($500/term), and travel to campus ($600/trip).
Frontier Tip: Budgeting early for your travel to Frontier Bound and Clinical Bound ensures you are fully prepared for these essential on-campus immersion experiences.
What kind of financial support is available for tuition?
FNU is consistently ranked among the most affordable programs in the country. To assist with tuition, support is readily available through student financial aid, veterans benefits, and various scholarship opportunities.
Frontier Tip: Exploring all three of these funding avenues early in the admissions process can drastically reduce the overall cost of your graduate degree.
Are there specific fees for the Clinical Bound immersion?
Yes. When you attend Clinical Bound on the Versailles, Kentucky campus, you will have a $420 Facility Fee and a $200 Lab Fee to cover the use of our state-of-the-art training spaces.
Frontier Tip: The good news is that both the Clinical Bound Facility Fee and the Lab Fee are eligible to be paid using your student financial aid funds.
What is the total estimated tuition for the MSN programs?
Effective July 2026, estimated total MSN tuition is $39,930 for Nurse-Midwifery, $37,752 for FNP, $37,344 for PMHNP, and $35,574 for WHNP. These variations are based on the required credit hours for each specific specialty.
Frontier Tip: Because FNU charges flat per-credit rates rather than flat-rate semesters, you only pay for the exact credits required for your chosen specialty.
Does FNU help with clinical placements?
While you complete your 750 clinical hours in your home community, Frontier Nursing University provides dedicated Clinical Placement Services to support you.
Frontier Tip: At FNU, you will be a part of an extensive nationwide community of alumni, students, and preceptors.
Carrie Belin is an experienced board-certified Family Nurse Practitioner and a graduate of the Johns Hopkins DNP program, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Georgetown University School of Nursing, and Johns Hopkins School of Nursing. She has also completed fellowships at Georgetown and the University of California Irvine.
Angie has been a full-scope midwife since 2009. She has experience in various birth settings including home, hospital, and birth centers. She is committed to integrating the midwifery model of care in the US. She completed her master’s degree in nurse-midwifery at Frontier Nursing University (FNU) and her Doctorate at Johns Hopkins University. She currently serves as the midwifery clinical faculty at FNU. Angie is motivated by the desire to improve the quality of healthcare and has led quality improvement projects on skin-to-skin implementation, labor induction, and improving transfer of care practices between hospital and community midwives. In 2017, she created a short film on skin-to-skin called 
Justin C. Daily, BSN, RN, has ten years of experience in nursing. At the start of his nursing career, Justin worked as a floor nurse on the oncology floor at St. Francis. He then spent two years as the Director of Nursing in a small rural Kansas hospital before returning to St. Francis and the oncology unit. He has been in his current position as the Chemo Nurse Educator for the past four years. He earned an Associate in Nurse from Hutchinson Community College and a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Bethel College.
Brandy Jackson serves as the Director of Undergraduate Nursing Programs and Assistant Educator at Wichita State University and Co-Director of Access in Nursing. Brandy is a seasoned educator with over 15 years of experience. Before entering academia, Brandy served in Hospital-based leadership and Critical Care Staff nurse roles. Brandy is passionate about equity in nursing education with a focus on individuals with disabilities. Her current research interests include accommodations of nursing students with disabilities in clinical learning environments and breaking down barriers for historically unrepresented individuals to enter the nursing profession. Brandy is also actively engaged in Interprofessional Education development, creating IPE opportunities for faculty and students at Wichita State. Brandy is an active member of Wichita Women for Good and Soroptimist, with the goal to empower women and girls. Brandy is a TeamSTEPPS master trainer. She received the DASIY Award for Extraordinary Nursing Faculty in 2019 at Wichita State University. 
Dr. Sabrina Ali Jamal-Eddine is an Arab-disabled queer woman of color with a PhD in Nursing and an interdisciplinary certificate in Disability Ethics from the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC). Dr. Jamal-Eddine’s doctoral research explored spoken word poetry as a form of critical narrative pedagogy to educate nursing students about disability, ableism, and disability justice. Dr. Jamal-Eddine now serves as a Postdoctoral Research Associate in UIC’s Department of Disability and Human Development and serves on the Board of Directors of the National Organization of Nurses with Disabilities (NOND). During her doctoral program, Sabrina served as a Summer Fellow at a residential National Endowment of the Humanities (NEH) Summer Institute at Arizona State University (2023), a summer fellow at Andrew W. Mellon’s National Humanities Without Walls program at University of Michigan (2022), a Summer Research Fellow at UC Berkeley’s Othering & Belonging Institute (2021), and an Illinois Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental and related Disabilities (LEND) trainee (2019-2020).
Vanessa Cameron works for Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nursing Education & Professional Development. She is also attending George Washington University and progressing towards a PhD in Nursing with an emphasis on ableism in nursing. After becoming disabled in April 2021, Vanessa’s worldview and perspective changed, and a recognition of the ableism present within healthcare and within the culture of nursing was apparent. She has been working since that time to provide educational foundations for nurses about disability and ableism, provide support for fellow disabled nursing colleagues, and advocate for the disabled community within healthcare settings to reduce disparities.
Dr. Lucinda Canty is a certified nurse-midwife, Associate Professor of Nursing, and Director of the Seedworks Health Equity in Nursing Program at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. She earned a bachelor’s degree in nursing from Columbia University, a master’s degree from Yale University, specializing in nurse-midwifery, and a PhD from the University of Connecticut. Dr. Canty has provided reproductive health care for over 29 years. Her research interests include the prevention of maternal mortality and severe maternal morbidity, reducing racial and ethnic health disparities in reproductive health, promoting diversity in nursing, and eliminating racism in nursing and midwifery.
Dr. Lisa Meeks is a distinguished scholar and leader whose unwavering commitment to inclusivity and excellence has significantly influenced the landscape of health professions education and accessibility. She is the founder and executive director of the DocsWithDisabilities Initiative and holds appointments as an Associate Professor in the Departments of Learning Health Sciences and Family Medicine at the University of Michigan.
Dr. Nikia Grayson, DNP, MSN, MPH, MA, CNM, FNP-C, FACNM (she/her) is a trailblazing force in reproductive justice, blending her expertise as a public health activist, anthropologist, and family nurse-midwife to champion the rights and health of underserved communities. Graduating with distinction from Howard University, Nikia holds a bachelor’s degree in communications and a master’s degree in public health. Her academic journey also led her to the University of Memphis, where she earned a master’s in medical anthropology, and the University of Tennessee, where she achieved both a master’s in nursing and a doctorate in nursing practice. Complementing her extensive education, she completed a post-master’s certificate in midwifery at Frontier Nursing University.
Dr. Tia Brown McNair is the Vice President in the Office of Diversity, Equity, and Student Success and Executive Director for the Truth, Racial Healing, and Transformation (TRHT) Campus Centers at the American Association of Colleges and Universities (AAC&U) in Washington, DC. She oversees both funded projects and AAC&U’s continuing programs on equity, inclusive excellence, high-impact practices, and student success. McNair directs AAC&U’s Summer Institutes on High-Impact Practices and Student Success, and TRHT Campus Centers and serves as the project director for several AAC&U initiatives, including the development of a TRHT-focused campus climate toolkit. She is the lead author of From Equity Talk to Equity Walk: Expanding Practitioner Knowledge for Racial Justice in Higher Education (January 2020) and Becoming a Student-Ready College: A New Culture of Leadership for Student Success (July 2016 and August 2022 Second edition).