Post-Masters Certification vs Advance Practice Nursing

Nursing Students Post Graduate

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I am a BSN graduate and was thinking of becoming a psych NP. The school I went to for my BSN (Cal State San Marcos) offers two different programs for MSN...Advance Practice Nursing and Post Masters Certification. The hospital I work for (Kaiser) pays 100% for MSN degrees from Capella or Colorado Technical University however the specialty would be Nursing Administration, Nursing Education, Care Coordination, or Nursing Informatics. I'm curious if it may be beneficial for me to do the MSN through Capella or CTU and have it paid for 100% then do the post masters certification in Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner at Cal State San Marcos? Or should I just do the Advance Practice Nursing route with a concentration on PMHNP from the start? Obviously the cost would be about 2x as much going that route and it wouldn't be paid for by my employer.

Curious if there are pros/cons to getting the post masters certificate after getting a non NP MSN?

Specializes in Peri-op, ER, Cardiac Rehab.
On 3/3/2019 at 12:01 PM, JENFKB said:

I am kind of in the same boat. My employer pays for the same concentrations - education, informatics, leadership etc. They will not pay for NP, however. I went ahead and obtained my MSN in Informatics through Capella University while working full time. It was very doable and I enjoyed the program. The cost covered by my employer was roughly 20k. Now, I am considering going back for a post-masters PMHNP, which will cost me about 10-12k. This includes taking the 3 P's, which was not included in my Informatics program (pharm, patho, advanced health assessment). I think it makes perfect sense to have your employer pay for your MSN, then go back for PMHNP. You will save money and have an additional concentration in leadership/informatics/education, or whichever specialty you choose. Best of luck!

Hi, I am currently debating if I should attend Capella MSN informatics program. Any information would be greatly appreciated. How long do it take you to complete?

Specializes in Nursing Informatics, Home Health, Telehealth.
On 2/4/2020 at 9:23 PM, MALR said:

Hi, I am currently debating if I should attend Capella MSN informatics program. Any information would be greatly appreciated. How long do it take you to complete?

Hi MALR, I really enjoyed the program! The best part is that you can do all the assignments ahead of time. I wound do most of the work the first 2-3 weeks and then cruise the rest of the quarter. Staff were always available and navigating the online courses was easy. I also really love the quarter credit system vs semester credits. I will say, I have not found a job in Informatics, however I am limited because I would like to stick with the VA. Good luck!

1 Votes
Specializes in Medical-Surgical.

Hi,

I also have a WGE MSN in Man. & Leadership. After taking the post certification program at UTA are then allowed to sit for the licensing test? Anywhere in the US?

On 4/30/2019 at 4:47 AM, babatee said:

Post-masters is designed for any nurse that already has a MSN , be it admin, education or NP. I graduated from WGU with a MSN- leadership & admin and is currently enrolled in a post-masters cert program with UTA

Specializes in Neurology.
On 4/23/2019 at 8:11 PM, Takethatfordata said:

Washburn University, very excited/nervous!

Have you started your program? I'm considering the post-grad certificate psychiatric program at Washburn.

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