Dedicated support to assist you from application to graduation
Expert faculty to guide students through their studies
Walsh University is a CCNE-Accredited Master's Nursing Degree Program
Fill the Mental Healthcare Gap as a PMHNP
Help make meaningful, long-lasting change in your community through Walsh University's online Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner Post-Master’s Certificate (PMHNP PMC) program. This program will equip you with the experience and competencies to provide mental and behavioral health care to individuals, families and groups throughout their lifespan in a variety of settings.
With an affordable, flexible curriculum, this online PMHNP Post-Master’s Certificate program will see you work alongside experienced faculty as you gain the skills needed to expand your scope of practice. Through didactic and clinical experiences, you will focus on the mental health care needs of patients as you advocate for their well-being. You can complete the program in as few as two years full-time, so you can continue to care for patients.
This program will equip you with the core and advanced competencies to allow you to thrive in your career and will help you:
- Prepare for certification as a PMHNP
- Expand your scope of practice
- Promote health, rehabilitation and improve quality of life for patients of all ages
Online PMHNP Fast Facts
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Develop advanced clinical skills and expand care in your community as a psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner.
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Develop advanced clinical skills and expand care in your community as a psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner.
Online PMHNP Post-Master’s Certificate Program Curriculum
Walsh’s contemporary curriculum ensures students are equipped with the core competencies required to prepare for their board certification. Students will complete 24-33 credit hours and 600 clinical hours in as few as two years of study. Below is a sample list of courses you will take while enrolled in the PMHNP Post-Master’s Certificate program. For a full list, please download a brochure.
This course will provide students with a comprehensive overview of the major principles of assessment and intervention related to psychiatric diagnoses across the lifespan. The course will place emphasis on the acquisition, use and interpretation of assessment data. Interviewing techniques commonly used will be explored. The course will also address risk assessment, ethical and diversity issues including cultural bias and fairness.
This course provides learners with advanced knowledge of individual and group therapeutic modalities needed to provide support to clients experiencing psychiatric and mental health disorders across the lifespan. Emphasis is on modalities used in preventative, acute and long-term care situations. The practitioner’s ability to recognize and address dysfunctional interpersonal patterns through effective and adaptive communication, including the importance of the therapeutic use of self in engaging the client(s) will be explored. Learners will be expected to critically examine various psychotherapeutic techniques and theoretical orientations while developing a working framework for future practice rooted in a growing professional identity.
This course is designed to address common mental health disorders encountered in outpatient mental health settings. The course will focus on the development of knowledge and skills of the PMHNP student in the management of various mental health diagnoses in the outpatient setting. Emphasis will be placed on knowledge and skills needed for health history taking, mental health assessment and disease management of patients across the lifespan.
This course is designed to address the management of psychiatric patients in crisis across the lifespan. The course will improve the knowledge, competence and skills of the PMHNP student in addressing various mental health diagnoses in the acute psychiatric setting. The course emphasizes the development of knowledge and skills in mental health assessment and disease management of patients in crisis across the lifespan.
This course serves as the capstone experience for the PMHNP student and synthesizes all material from previous PMHNP courses. In addition, this course will explore legal and governing issues that impact advanced practice. Didactic content promotes transition into practice.
Get more information
Submit your information to instantly access a digital program brochure.
Applications are currently being accepted for next intake
Clinical Placement Support
We know finding preceptors for clinical rotations can be one of the most challenging and stressful parts of any Post-Master’s program. As a Walsh PMHNP student, you’ll be paired with a clinical placement coordinator who will collaborate with you to secure clinical sites and preceptors for your clinical courses.
Our goal is to facilitate a streamlined, high-quality clinical placement experience to help you apply newly gained knowledge, values, and skills from the classroom to the clinical area. By assisting in the management of placement logistics, we hope you’ll be free to focus your efforts where they’re needed most—on coursework and developing competencies.
We collaborate with students to source and vet placement sites for all our online PMHNP students.
We assist in the heavy lifting to confirm your placement site meets all of the necessary clearances.
We’ll be readily available to answer any logistical questions you have about the placement process.
Online PMHNP Program Eligible States
Currently the Walsh PMHNP Post-Master’s Certificate program is available in the following states. Visit our State Authorization page for more information.
- Colorado
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- Hawaii
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Kansas
- Kentucky
- Maine
- Maryland
- Massachusetts
- Michigan
- New Mexico
- New Jersey
- North Carolina
- Ohio
- Pennsylvania
- Texas
- Vermont
- Virginia
- West Virginia
Online PMC-FNP Program Careers and Outcomes
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there were more than 220,300 licensed nurse practitioners in the United States in 2020. That number is projected to increase by a massive 52% from 2020-2030. By comparison, the number of positions for registered nurses is expected to grow by 9% in the same time period, while the total number of jobs for all professions is projected to increase by 4%.
Family Nurse Practitioners work in a variety of environments, including:
- Primary care settings
- Ambulatory care centers
- Clinics
Along with appealing job opportunities, nurse practitioners also enjoy far above-average compensation, with median wages of $109,820 in 2019. This compares to median wages of $73,300 for registered nurses in 2019 and median annual wages of $39,810 for all occupations.
$109,820
Media Annual Salary
*(U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics)
Areas for Clinical Practice:
- Primary care settings
- Ambulatory care centers
- Clinics
- Hospitals
An FNP Nurse Fills a Growing Demand for Primary Care Providers
Family Nurse Practitioners, or FNPs, are highly educated advanced practice registered nurses who work autonomously or in collaboration with other healthcare professionals to deliver primary care to patients. An online PMC-FNP program covers a curriculum that prepares a qualified nurse to take the FNP National Certification exam. FNP nurses care for individuals and families throughout each stage of their lives, providing treatment for a range of medical problems and non-life-threatening acute conditions in outpatient settings, medical clinics and other healthcare environments.
An FNP nurse who graduates from an online MSN program or FNP Certificate program is increasingly being called upon to fulfill the essential need for primary healthcare. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the number of physician office visits tops 1 billion in the U.S. today. More than 50% of those visits are made to primary care providers. Couple that with the fact that today, a smaller percentage of physicians are entering the field than are practicing, suggests that shortages will worsen over time. Due to the dwindling number of primary care physicians, an FNP nurse is perfectly positioned to help fill the gap for primary care providers.
With a focus on preventative care, health care policy, health promotion, clinical assessment and management, Walsh University’s PMC-FNP online program can help you prepare to become a confident family nurse practitioner who’s ready to make a difference in the lives of patients and entire communities as a primary care provider. An online FNP Certificate program can provide a nurse with the family care skills that healthcare organizations and clinics need.
Frequently Asked Questions
All entering students must have:
- Current, unencumbered Registered Nurse (RN) license
- Completion of an undergraduate or graduate-level statistics course
- Official transcripts from all academic institutions attended
- Two letters of reference
For those applying for the BSN-DNP program, a BSN degree from an accredited school of nursing is required.
For those applying for the MSN-DNP program, the following is required:
- MSN degree from an accredited school of nursing
- Confirmation from school of clinical hours completed in the master's program
All DNP students are required to submit 2 letters of recommendation as well as a personal statement. Standardized tests (GRE/GMAT) are not required.
The online BSN to DNP program can be completed in as little as three years. Part-time and full-time options are available to accommodate students’ work schedules.
The online MSN to DNP program can be completed in as few as 5 semesters (1 year and 8 months) for full-time students, or 8 semesters (2 years and 8 months) for part-time students. However, the length of time to complete the program can vary, based personal time management and prior clinical experience.
DNP-PMHNP: This program contains a total of 67 credit hours and can be completed in as little as three years. Part-time and full-time options are available to accommodate students’ work schedules.
MSN to DNP: This program can be completed in as few as 5 semesters (1 year and 8 months) for full-time students, or 8 semesters (2 years and 8 months) for part-time students. However, the length of time to complete the program can vary from student to student; examples include personal time management and individual DNP project progression to completion.
The clinical portion of this program will see you develop leadership skills and practical, hands-on competencies. As a Walsh nursing student, you’ll be paired with a dedicated clinical placement coordinator who will collaborate with you to secure clinical sites and preceptors for your clinical courses. Learn more about our clinical placement support services here.
The number of clinical hours required varies by program:
- BSN to DNP (Family Nurse Practitioner): 1,250 hours
- MSN to DNP: 500-1,000 hours, depending on prior clinical experiences
Walsh University collaborates with our nursing students to find suitable clinical placements. You are encouraged to network with potential preceptors and work closely with the placement coordinator to secure your placements.
Walsh University’s Financial Services department is committed to working with you to guide you to the assistance needed in order to pursue your studies. There are a variety of financial aid options available to students, including private scholarships, federal loans and federal direct plus loans. Learn more about the tuition and financial aid options available here.
As part of the online BSN-DNP PMHNP program, you’ll participate in one on-campus skills day (intensive).
Students undertake a systematic investigation of a clinical or administration-based problem selected by the student and supported by faculty. The student will identify the problem to be addressed, review and critique pertinent literature, and implement and evaluate the project. The designed and approved project will be implemented and within a mentored and supervised clinical immersion experience. The project uses an evidence-based practice model and is systematically developed in consultation with the student’s Doctor of Nursing Practice and scholarly project chair who evaluates each step of the process (200 clinical hours).
Students are encouraged to look at their own practice or a health system to determine any gaps in care, steps to improve the patient experience or patient outcomes, patient education, staff education, etc. Often, students collaborate with a health system on the needs already identified by the system. In fact, that is sometimes a very good DNP project because the health facility already recognizes the need so solve the identified problem/issue.
While it might be helpful to have ideas in mind for the project, it is not required. Topics are typically something you are passionate about and may have experienced firsthand, perhaps a quality control such as preventing readmissions, reducing no shows for appointments, improving compliance with plan of care, and bringing measures of chronic illness into control.
This will depend on your schedule and if you are a full-time or part-time student. Adjustments to your work schedule may be required to accommodate the clinical practice hours and project hours requirements. Please note, weekend and evening hours cannot be guaranteed and many mentors you may work with such as hospital administrators often work more traditional 9-5 hours.
A student may transfer up to 9 credits toward their DNP program, subject to approval post acceptance.
The Walsh online MSN to DNP program is designed to provide students with 500 practice hours toward their DNP. All students are expected to complete a minimum of 1,000 post-baccalaureate advanced nursing practice hours to earn their DNP. Advanced Practice Registered Nurses (APRNs) typically accrue at least 500 hours in their master’s program. The applicant will need to have these prior hours verified by the university that conferred their MSN. Coursework is available to students who enter the DNP program with less than 500 clinical hours to help meet the minimum 1,000 clinical practicum hours mandated by the AACN for a DNP degree. It is recommended that any additional hours required be completed early in the program.
Walsh ensures students are adequately prepared throughout the placement process, understanding the required direct and indirect clinical hours necessary for graduation and certification. Due to the nature of the hours, DNP students must be highly involved in the process. Clinical placements and DNP project hours may be completed in your current place of employment; however, they must be outside of your current scope of work. Placements are centered around leadership, providing exposure to the delivery and improvement of quality outcomes within health systems and organizations. The clinical placement coordinators will collaborate with you to plan and source your clinical experiences.
Victoria B., MSN FNP program
Teresa Rufo, School Counseling Program
Chelsea Wilson, MSN FNP program
The master’s degree program in nursing and doctor of nursing practice program at Walsh University are accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (http://www.ccneaccreditation.org).
