Post-Master's Credentials

Credential Requirements

Adult Clinical Nurse Specialist (CNS)

Students must be admitted into the university before registering for this program. The Adult Clinical Nurse Specialist Credential is designed as a nondegree course credit option for nurses with a master’s degree in nursing.* This program provides theory and clinical experiences to prepare the nurse for certification by the state of California and for national certification as an adult clinical nurse specialist.

Program Distinctives

• Clinical experiences include hospital care services for diverse cultural/ethnic groups, the poor, the underserved, and the homeless.
• Accredited by WASC and CCNE
• Approved by the California Board of Registered Nursing
• Graduates may apply for national certification through examination by ANCC.

Program Benefits

• The Adult CNS is designed for the working professional, offering part-time class schedules, evening courses, and customized clinical hours.
• Clinical placement is arranged by faculty.
• Students receive personalized attention in a supportive Christian environment.
• Clinical faculty are experienced as clinical nurse specialists or nurse practitioners in a variety of settings.
• Students may receive traineeships (partial tuition reimbursement) when available through a federal grant.
• Financial aid is available through scholarships and loans.

Program Requirements

*Students may be given transfer credits for previous content completed in a master’s degree program.
**This requirement is waived for APU master’s graduates between the years of 1992-93 to 1995-96, as the content was integrated in the clinical courses.

Adult Nurse Practitioner (ANP)

Students must be admitted into the university before registering for this program. This credential prepares registered nurses with master’s degrees in nursing to be nurse practitioners with adults in primary healthcare settings. It is designed as a nondegree course credit option for nurses with a master’s degree in nursing.* The credential is designed so graduates can be licensed by the state of California and can also take the Adult Nurse Practitioner National Certification Examination. This advanced clinical practice specialty includes direct client assessment; diagnosis, management, and treatment; client advocacy; client/family education; consultation; program planning; implementation; evaluation; and research.

Program Distinctives

• Clinical experiences include primary healthcare services for diverse cultural/ethnic groups, the poor, the underserved, and the homeless.
• Accredited by WASC and CCNE
• Approved by the California Board of Registered Nursing
• Graduates may apply for national certification through examination by ANCC.

Program Benefits

• The ANP is designed for the working professional, offering part-time class schedules, evening courses, and customized clinical hours.
• Clinical placement is arranged by faculty.
• Students receive personalized attention in a supportive Christian environment.
• Clinical faculty are experienced as nurse practitioners in a variety of settings.
• Students may receive traineeships (partial tuition reimbursement) when available through a federal grant.
• Financial aid is available through scholarships and loans.

Program Requirements

Units shown in parentheses are theory units/clinical units.

*Students may be given transfer credits for previous content completed in a master’s degree program. Students who hold current California certification as a nurse practitioner or nurse midwife, and students who hold a master’s degree in nursing and/or national certification as a clinical nurse specialist (CNS) may challenge or request waiver of the coursework required for the Adult Nurse Practitioner, as appropriate to the student’s current specialty. Petitions for challenge or waiver of courses must be initiated upon admission and approved through the School of Nursing Graduate Council. Students must show proof of current nurse practitioner, nurse midwife, or clinical nurse specialist certification.
**This requirement is waived for APU master’s graduates between the years of 1992-93 to 1995-96, as the content was integrated in the clinical courses.

Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP)

Students must be admitted into the university before registering for this program. The Family Nurse Practitioner Credential is designed as a nondegree course credit option for nurses with a master’s degree in nursing.* This program promotes primary healthcare skills through didactic education and clinical supervision, which prepares the nurse for licensure by the state of California and for national certification as a family nurse practitioner.

Program Distinctives

• Approved by the California Board of Registered Nursing (BRN)
• Graduates are eligible for the Nurse Practitioner Certification in California and qualified to sit for FNP national certifying examinations.
• Clinical experiences include primary healthcare of diverse cultural/ethnic groups, the poor, the underserved, and the homeless.
• Accredited by WASC and CCNE
• Approved by the California Board of Registered Nursing

Program Benefits

• The FNP is designed for the working profession, offering part-time class schedules, evening courses, and customized clinical hours.
• Students receive personalized attention in a supportive Christian environment.
• Clinical faculty are experienced as nurse practitioners in a variety of settings.
• Students may receive traineeships (partial tuition reimbursement) when available through a federal grant.
• Financial aid is available through scholarships and loans.

Program Requirements

*Students may be given transfer credits for previous content completed in a master’s degree program. Students who hold current California certification as a nurse practitioner or nurse midwife, and students who hold a master’s degree in nursing and/or national certification as a clinical nurse specialist (CNS) may challenge or request waiver of the coursework required for the Family Nurse Practitioner, as appropriate to the student’s current specialty. Petitions for challenge or waiver of courses must be initiated upon admission and approved through the School of Nursing Graduate Council. Students must show proof of current nurse practitioner, nurse midwife, or clinical nurse specialist certification.
**This requirement is waived for APU master’s graduates between the years of 1992-93 to 1995-96, as the content was integrated in the clinical courses.

Debbie Tracy ’06 FNP Parent-Child CNS ’00 Cardiothoracic surgery CNS Citrus Valley Medical Center, Covina, CA

“Consistent with my own philosophy, APU’s School of Nursing promotes an ongoing holistic approach to healthcare. They understand the spiritual dimension of the patient that transcends anything physical. In the field, I hear people compare Azusa Pacific University to UCLA, and the edge often goes to APU because of the Christian perspective. Nurses can gain clinical skills almost anywhere, but it is the spiritual aspect, investing personally in the patient, that builds trust and promotes healing.”

Nursing Administration

Students must be admitted into the university before registering for this program. The Nursing Administration Post-Master’s Credential prepares students for administration of nursing service in a variety of health care settings. Coursework focuses on combining the resources of nursing, organizational development, and business management. This credential builds on skills and knowledge obtained in a master’s of science in nursing program.

Nursing Education

Students must be admitted into the university before registering for this program. The Nursing Education Post-Master’s Credential prepares nurses for teaching roles in various clinical and/or academic settings. This credential builds on skills and knowledge obtained in a master’s of science in nursing program.

Parent-Child Clinical Nurse Specialist (CNS)

Students must be admitted into the university before registering for this program. The Parent-Child Clinical Nurse Specialist Credential is designed as a nondegree course credit option for nurses with a master’s degree in nursing.* This program provides theory and clinical experiences to prepare the nurse for certification by the state of California and for national certification as a parent/child clinical nurse specialist (CNS).

Program Distinctives

• Clinical experiences include hospital care services for diverse cultural/ethnic groups, the poor, the underserved, and the homeless.
• Accredited by WASC and CCNE
• Approved by the California Board of Registered Nursing
• Graduates with pediatric focus may apply for national certification through examination by ANCC.

Program Benefits

• The Parent-Child CNS is designed for the working professional, offering part-time class schedules, evening courses, and customized clinical hours.
• Clinical placement is arranged by faculty.
• Students receive personalized attention in a supportive Christian environment.
• Clinical faculty are experienced as clinical nurse specialists or nurse practitioners in a variety of settings.
• Students may receive traineeships (partial tuition reimbursement) when available through a federal grant.
• Financial aid is available through scholarships and loans.

Program Requirements

* Students may be given transfer credits for previous content completed in a master’ s degree program.
**This requirement is waived for APU master’s graduates between the years of 1992-93 to 1995-96, as the content was integrated in the clinical courses.
***Students who want a pediatric focus take GNRS 511; those who want a perinatal focus take GNRS 512.

Parish Nursing (PN)

Parish nursing is an interdisciplinary program that prepares nurses to serve within churches or other religiously based settings as nurse specialists in spiritual aspects of patient care.

The parish nurse serves as a church staff associate to the minister (clergy) for health ministry and spiritual care. This program integrates formal theological knowledge and methodology, professional ministry skills, and advanced nursing practice to address the bioethical, health, and spiritual concerns of a faith-based community, its members, and its neighbors. That is, both a ministry of health and faith integration, health maintenance, and health promotion for the prayer community itself, and mission outreach for health advocacy and social ethics are encompassed within this specialization. The uniqueness of this program resides in the depth of theological knowledge and ministry skill that is required to be integrated into advanced nursing practice. A post-master’s nursing credential is also available.

This specialty is also open to ministry students, who are ordained clergy or who are seeking ordination to professional ministry, and who wish an interdisciplinary emphasis on the integration of health and spirituality, health maintenance, and health promotion within congregations and faith traditions/denominations. For ministry students, a health ministries focus is individually designed to meet the specific ministry needs of the student (e.g., family health ministries, older adult-enablement health ministries, youth and child health ministries, women’s health ministries, etc.).

Note: The Parish Nursing Credential is an interdisciplinary nondegree program. Students may take the theology courses at a denominational seminary. Coursework in theology from this program may be applied toward a degree in theology at APU.

*Parish nursing students must take the constructive theology course series as offered by APU’s C.P. Haggard Graduate School of Theology, however that series may be constituted.

Pediatric Nurse Practitioner (PNP)

Students must be admitted into the university before registering for this program. The Pediatric Nurse Practitioner Credential is designed as a nondegree course credit option for nurses with a master’s degree in nursing.* This credential promotes primary health care skills through didactic education and clinical supervision, which prepares the nurse for licensure by the state of California and for national certification as a pediatric nurse practitioner.

Program Distinctives

• Clinical experiences include primary healthcare services for diverse cultural/ethnic groups, the poor, the underserved, and the homeless.
• Accredited by WASC and CCNE
• Approved by the California Board of Registered Nursing

Program Benefits

• The PNP is designed for the working professional, offering part-time class schedules, evening courses, and customized clinical hours.
• Clinical placement is arranged by faculty.
• Students receive personalized attention in a supportive Christian environment.
• Clinical faculty are experienced as nurse practitioners in a variety of settings.
• Students may receive traineeships (partial tuition reimbursement) when available through a federal grant.
• Financial aid is available through scholarships and loans.

Program Requirements

*Students may be given transfer credits for previous content completed in a master’s degree program. Students who hold current California certification as a nurse practitioner or nurse midwife, and students who hold a master’s degree in nursing and/or national certification as a clinical nurse specialist (CNS) may challenge or request waiver of the coursework required for the Pediatric Nurse Practitioner, as appropriate to the student’s current specialty. Petitions for challenge or waiver of courses must be initiated upon admission and approved through the School of Nursing Graduate Council. Students must show proof of current nurse practitioner, nurse midwife, or clinical nurse specialist certification.
**This requirement is waived for APU master’s graduates between the years of 1992-93 to 1995-96, as the content was integrated in the clinical courses.

Lori Lion ’09 PNP Pediatric Hematology and Oncology Nurse City of Hope, Duarte, CA

“For me, learning the art and science of nursing without a Christian perspective would be empty. APU understands that healthcare and spiritual care go hand in hand, that a patient is more than a case, but a person with a soul. I see this exemplary level of care modeled in the classroom as professors integrate Christian faith into every aspect of the program. They take a personal interest in individual students, promoting an atmosphere of genuine compassion. The relationships and bonds forged during my time at APU spill over into my career and translate into more complete, compassionate care for my patients.”

Note: All stated academic information is subject to change. Please refer to the current Graduate Catalog for the most current and controlling information.