Master's of Science, Concentration in Family Nurse Practitioner

We accept applications to the Family Nurse Practitioner program for each Fall Semester. Applicants must meet all SJSU graduate admission requirements and applicants must have:

 - A baccalaureate degree in nursing
 - An active, unencumbered California RN license, held at the time of application and maintained throughout the program
 - An undergraduate grade point average of 3.0 (B) or higher
 - A minimum of 3 years of full-time direct patient care experience as a registered nurse is required; 5+ years preferred.

Application Materials (NOTE: These requirements are currently under review and may differ from what appears in the application. We advise applicants to wait to apply until requirements are finalized. This page will be updated at that time.)
 - Written essay.
 - Two letters of recommendation.
 - Applicants may be invited to interview as part of the admission process.

How to Apply
 - Start an application on Cal State Apply.
 - When selecting a program, search under Extended Studies to find the SJSU Family Nurse Practitioner program.
 - Upload the application materials listed above.
 - Pay the non-refundable application processing fee.
 - Submit transcripts as directed. See Have Applied and Next Steps for details.
For help completing the application, contact the Cal State Apply help desk at 857-304-2087.

Application Deadline
 - Applications for Fall admission are accepted October 1 through April 1.  We do not have rolling admissions; all applications are reviewed after the April 1st deadline.

Admission Notification
 - Applicants can generally expect an admission decision by July 1st

After Admission
 - Admitted students must complete additional clearance requirements, including immunization titers, a background check, drug screening, and malpractice insurance. These are managed through a third-party document tracking system.

The program follows a full-time cohort model over 5 semesters. Courses are offered in a hybrid format that combines asynchronous online coursework with synchronous class sessions held live via Zoom on Tuesdays from 4:00 to 9:00 PM. Clinical practicum courses require additional days at assigned clinical sites. Clinical schedules are determined by preceptor and clinic availability. 

Certain courses, such as advanced health assessment, and program activities, such as orientation, simulation, and hands-on clinical skills workshops, require in-person attendance on the SJSU campus. Some activities, including simulation and skills workshops, may be scheduled on weekends. Dates for on-campus activities will be provided at the beginning of each semester. 

Due to the rigor of the didactic and clinical coursework, students are discouraged from working full-time during the program. Students who choose to work full-time are expected to meet all course, clinical, and on-campus requirements, and work schedules cannot be accommodated in clinical placements or program scheduling.

Visit the SJSU Catalog for full breakdown of the FNP program.

See FNP Curriculum Roadmap.

The goal of the MS FNP program is to provide educational excellence in the science and art of professional nursing to empower our graduates to be responsible and knowledgeable clinicians, leaders, and scholars who strive to meet changing global healthcare needs. 

PLOs have been identified as preparing the graduate to:

1. Integrate knowledge for advanced nursing practice along with knowledge from other disciplines, including a foundation in liberal arts, natural sciences, and social sciences, to form the basis for clinical judgment and innovation.

2. Employ holistic person-centered care including effective communication with clients, families/caregivers to provide respectful, coordinated, and compassionate care that is developmentally appropriate across the lifespan.

3. Promote overall population health by promotion and disease prevention while taking into consideration health policy and the social determinants of health to provide diverse, equitable, and inclusive health outcomes.

4. Practice advanced scholarship for the nursing discipline by the generation, synthesis, translation, application, and dissemination of nursing knowledge to transform healthcare through evidence-based practice.

5. Demonstrate quality and safety in implementation and improvement science required in advanced nursing practice.

6. Foster interprofessional partnerships required in advanced nursing practice to optimize intentional multidisciplinary collaboration to strengthen healthcare outcomes.

7. Adopt systems-based practice to proactively coordinate resources to provide equitable care in advanced nursing practice to diverse populations.

8. Utilize informatics and healthcare technologies to evaluate and improve health care delivery and outcomes in advanced nursing practice.

9. Represent professionalism by incorporating advanced practice standards, policy and procedures, the American Nurses Association (ANA) Code of Ethics for Nurses, legal mandates, and high-quality care.

10. Embody personal, professional, and leadership development techniques that contribute to lifelong learning, support the acquisition of advanced nursing expertise, and sustain strong leadership.