Within selected advanced practice specialties, students may focus on the nurse practitioner or clinical nurse specialist role.
Some specialties have course requirements over and above the minimum requirements for the degree.
Applicants are advised to attend an Admission Counseling Session prior to applying, in order to select the specialty and role most appropriate to career goals and to meet requirements for acceptance into the particular area of concentration. Students in a nurse practitioner specialty may complete the Neuropsychiatric subspecialty. All specialty programs meet the state and federal guidelines for nurse practitioner preparation. In addition, all graduates of the M.S.N. program are qualified to take national certification examinations in their specialty. The goal of the acute care specialty is to prepare nurses to assume an advanced practice role as nurse practitioners or clinical nurse specialists in the care of adults who are identified as ill and who have high intensity nursing and medical needs.