Best Route to Psych NP?

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I live in Manhattan and I'm a licensed Mental Health Counselor (MSED) with a masters degree. I want to become a psychiatric nurse practitioner so I can prescribe medication in my practice. I'm in my 40's and work full time. What is the EASIEST and FASTEST route/track/school to doing this please??

To become a Nurse Practitioner you must be a nurse first. Then, most NP programs require a few years of experience therafter before getting accepted. I hate to say it, but I would think it would be at least 1 year to get your BSN, then 3 to get your NP...That's how it works in Texas at least :) good luck!

Actually a program in TN has you doing one year after your BA and you can earn you BSN and then another year and you earn your NP. So there are way faster tracks. Anyone else know of something like this in NYC or surrounding states?

Because you already have a graduate degree, I would recommend looking into direct-entry NP programs in which you take accelerated nursing courses and sit for the NCLEX after about 2 years and then get your Master's/prep for NP certification after another 2 years, totaling four years. I'm not familiar with Texas so I don't know if any schools there offer that kind of program.

Because you already have a graduate degree, I would recommend looking into direct-entry NP programs in which you take accelerated nursing courses and sit for the NCLEX after about 2 years and then get your Master's/prep for NP certification after another 2 years, totaling four years. I'm not familiar with Texas so I don't know if any schools there offer that kind of program.

Sorry, Just realizing that I misread your original post, you are in NY not TX, so I believe there are a good amount of direct entry programs in the northeast area.

Specializes in Critical Care, Education.

Be sure to check the hiring situation for NPs with no experience. In my neck of the woods, it's not very good. Experience as a counselor is not relevant to the medical skill set needed to safely and effectively manage medications.

Well like others have said, you need to be a RN first, and that's when you will do a lot of base learning as far as 'how' to be a nurse. THEN you can go onward to the NP route. There are some options for that, and direct entry is just one. There are also post graduate certificates but I believe that in all of the programs I'm familiar with, you have to be post MSN. I agree with the above poster who said to investigate what the market looks like for entry level PMHNPs in your area. In my geographic area, some MH practices are hiring FNPs or APRNs with generalized experience before they are hiring a PMHNP that's brand new, but in my area FNPs can still take psych jobs (I believe that in some states this is not the case).

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