Interested in getting an NP

No, the DNP is not required right now and it will probably be slowly phased in as schools stop offering master programs. There are still NPs practicing with certificates, so I can't imagine a state requiring existing licensed NPs to get their DNP. Probably not a bad idea if you're going to have a long career ahead of you.

Your program needs to be accredited and have appropriate classes, namely the three Ps, patho, pharm, and physical assessment- that is done across the lifespan per the Consensus Model guidelines. Any program worth its salt will have this. A couple of states adopted the guidelines early and so some folks had to re-take some classes if they weren't "across the lifespan" i.e. some PNPs took pediatric pharm instead of pharm for all ages as per their program and had to take another class to get licensed.

I don't know about any but you'd probably have to call up individual hospital systems. My experience has been is that you're usually an employee of the hospital and get some tuition reimbursement through that.

The pay varies widely across regions and by specialty, not to mention your RN experience. When I worked on the east coast, some of my RN colleagues made $110k + simply because they had 20+ years experience. That's starting salary or a bit higher for a NP usually in many places. There's a salary thread in the NP main forum that could give you a better idea.

Great questions! I've been wondering about #1 a lot myself. I will be following in hopes that others w/ knowledge of possible changes in the field will chime in.