Master of Science in Nursing: Concentration in Family Nurse Practitioner
The School of Nursing provides master’s level educational opportunities for registered nurses with a bachelor’s degree in nursing who wish to enter the profession or pursue an advanced practice nursing degree. Through advanced education and clinical training with this emphasis, students are prepared for both California NP license and national board certification (American Academy of Nurse Practitioners & American Nurses Credentialing Center). Nurse Practitioners (NPs) are licensed to practice autonomously and in collaboration with other health care professionals to assess, diagnose, treat, and manage the health needs of patients of all ages. NPs can also serve as health care researchers, interdisciplinary consultants, and patient advocates.
Registered nurses with bachelor’s degrees in nursing can enter the master’s program by demonstrating they have met nursing content comparable to that in the SF State baccalaureate program.
Admission/Application Information
For all applicants:
- Visit the School of Nursing website for specific application dates.
- Meet general requirements for admission to graduate study at SF State and submit a separate application to the Division of Graduate Studies.
- Complete the School of Nursing supplemental application process.
- Include a written goal statement.
- Students whose native language is not English and whose preparatory education was principally in a language other than English must demonstrate competence in English. More information by visiting Graduate Admissions.
- Three references from work colleagues, supervisors, or educators.
- Provide a resume or curriculum vitae.
- Must have a minimum of one year or 2,000 clinical hours of RN experience.
Written English Proficiency Requirement
The University has a requirement for graduate written English proficiency that is to be assessed at two different points (Levels) in the student’s program.
Level One (prior to admission)
Personal Statement
Level Two
Demonstration of English proficiency on the final paper for NURS 794.
Program Learning Outcomes
Students completing the Master’s program will achieve the School of Nursing’s MSN Expected Student Learning Outcomes as outlined below:
- Applies and integrates broad organizational, client-centered, and culturally appropriate concepts in the planning, delivery, management, and evaluation of evidence-based clinical prevention and population care and services.
- Demonstrates nursing and inter-professional collaboration that facilitates open communication, mutual respect, and shared decision-making to achieve quality patient care.
- Creates collaborative programs and educational approaches that address health promotion and disease prevention needs of culturally-ethnically diverse individuals and populations.
- Demonstrates a professional leadership role to promote quality and safe clinical patient care that incorporates ethical and critical decision-making approaches, fiscal accountability, effective working relationships, and systems perspectives.
- Assimilates nursing knowledge and expertise through research utilization, informatics literacy, and generates educational, leadership, or clinical approaches to advance professional nursing practice.
- Utilizes information technology to communicate effectively, manage knowledge, mitigate error, and to support decision-making.
- Designs evaluation strategies for nursing care outcomes to assess, manage, and determine resource allocation for evaluation of nursing care outcomes.
- Evaluate methods, tools, performance measures, and standards related to quality improvement within a healthcare organization.
- Applies research outcomes within the practice setting to resolve identified practice problems.
- Organizes interventions at the health care system level utilizing policy development processes, economic principles, and employing advocacy strategies to influence health and health care services for individuals.
Advancement to Candidacy
The Advancement to Candidacy form should be completed and filed in the Division of Graduate Studies after the student has completed 24 units. The Proposal for Culminating Experience form must be completed and filed before they enroll in the culminating experience course, either NURS 895 or NURS 898. See the Graduate Division website for more details https://grad.sfsu.edu/.
Master of Science in Nursing: Family Nurse Practitioner – 55 units
The Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP) concentration requires 55 units and a total of 600 clinical hours. The FNP concentration is designed to prepare FNPs for primary care practice.
Core Courses (36 units)
| Code | Title | Units |
|---|---|---|
| NURS 702 | Health Systems Management | 3 |
| NURS 703 | Education, Informatics, and eTechnology in Advanced Nursing Practice | 3 |
| NURS 706 | Health Care Policy and Nursing Leadership | 3 |
| NURS 711 | Advanced Physical Assessment Across the Life Span | 3 |
| NURS 715 | Pharmacological Principles Across the Life Span | 3 |
| NURS 716 | Advanced Pathophysiology and Diagnostic Reasoning I | 3 |
| NURS 717 | Advanced Pathophysiology and Diagnostic Reasoning II | 3 |
| NURS 720 | Epidemiology and Biostatistics in Advanced Practice Nursing | 3 |
| NURS 721 | Program Planning and Financial Management in Nursing Practice | 3 |
| NURS 732 | Ethics in Advanced Nursing Practice | 3 |
| NURS 794 | Research and Evidence-Based Practice in Nursing | 3 |
| Select One: | 3 | |
| Applied Research in Nursing | ||
| Master's Thesis | ||
Concentration Courses (19 units)
| Code | Title | Units |
|---|---|---|
| NURS 708 | Diagnosis and Management in Primary Care | 4 |
| NURS 804 | Professional Issues and Nurse Practitioner Skills | 3 |
| NURS 810 | Family Nursing Practitioner Practicum I | 4 |
| NURS 811 | Family Nursing Practitioner Practicum II | 4 |
| NURS 812 | Family Nursing Practitioner Practicum III | 4 |