The Role of the Accelerated MSN Educated RN
The role of the MSN-educated RN is as a provider, leader, and steward of health. Master’s educated nurses are important to the nursing profession because they demonstrate strong leadership roles for nurses.
Master’s educated nurses choose a specialty that determines their role in nursing. These specialties are:
- Clinical Nurse Specialist (CNS)
- Nurse Anesthetist (NA)
- Nurse-Midwife (NMW)
- Nurse Practitioner (NP)
- Psychiatric/Mental Health Nurse (PMH)
- Public Health Nurse (PHN)
- Nurse Educator
What's a Direct Entry MSN Program Like?
If you already hold a bachelor’s degree in a non-nursing subject and know you want to enter advanced nursing practice, enrolling in an Accelerated MSN program is a streamlined way to get to where you want to go. If you know you want to enter a niche specialization, the similar Master’s Entry to Nursing Practice (MENP) program may also be a good option. Keep in mind that Accelerated MSN programs require a full-time commitment to intensive study, and are best suited for highly motivated students. Other names for AMSN but may have different applications include:
- AMSN or Accelerated MSN
- Direct Entry MSN or DEMSN
- Entry Level MSN or ELMSN
Tuition
Tuition can range from $70,000 to $120,000. However, the first year of this program for many schools is considered the “non-licensed” year and after completion, the student is eligible to take the NCLEX-RN exam and technically can begin working as an RN. But, working during any accelerated program is not recommended and many schools strictly do not allow it.
Fees to consider which may not be included in tuition include:
- Uniforms
- Stethoscope
- Penlight
- Medical scissors
- White shoes
- School and clinical location parking passes
- Meals
- Gas or transit costs
Program Length
The Accelerated MSN program may take up to 3 years to complete, though some can be much shorter. Clinical hours or a preceptorship are required. Usually, these programs are structured as an accelerated BSN followed immediately by two years of graduate school.
Accelerated MSN Admission Requirements
Admission criteria for the Accelerated MSN program generally include:
- Bachelor’s degree in a non-nursing major from an accredited college or university
- GPA of at least 3.0
- Letters of reference, usually 2 academic and 1 professional
- Graduate Record Examination (GRE) within 5 years of application
- Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) if English is not the student’s primary language
The AACN has developedThe Essentials of Master’s Education in Nursing which outlines 9 areas of the core curriculum which must be covered in Master’s-level education. These core curricula are:
- Background for Practice from Sciences and Humanities
- Organizational and Systems Leadership
- Quality Improvement and Safety
- Translating and Integrating Scholarship into Practice
- Informatics and Healthcare Technologies
- Health Policy and Advocacy
- Interprofessional Collaboration for Improving Patient and Population Health Outcomes
- Clinical Prevention and Population Health for Improving Health
- Master’s-Level Nursing Practice
Exam and Licensing
Examinations vary because different specializations exist for the MSN degree. But for all Advanced Practice degrees, each state’s board of nursing will issue and maintain licensure. The state usually requires the applicant to have an RN license.
All state boards of nursing require the Advanced Practice RN to register and receive a state license to practice. However, only the Nurse Practitioner and Clinical Nurse Specialist specialties require an examination. These are national exams and are available through the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC).
Nurse Practitioner Examination
To take an NP exam through the ANCC to become certified as a Nurse Practitioner, the applicant must meet these requirements:
- Currently, hold an RN license
- Be a graduate of a nurse practitioner program who is accredited through the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE) or the Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing (ACEN) (formerly NLNAC, National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission)
- Completed a minimum of 500 faculty-supervised clinical hours
Have completed these courses:
- Advanced physiology/pathophysiology, including general principles that apply across the life span
- Advanced health assessment, which includes assessment of all human systems, advanced assessment techniques, concepts, and approaches
- Advanced pharmacology, which includes pharmacodynamics, pharmaco*kinetics, and pharmacotherapeutics of all broad categories of agents
Clinical Nurse Specialist (CNS) Examination
To take the CNS examination through the ANCC the applicant must meet these requirements:
- Currently, hold an RN license
- Be a graduate of a nurse practitioner program who is accredited through the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE) or the Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing (ACEN) (formerly NLNAC, National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission)
- Completed a minimum of 500 faculty-supervised clinical hours
Have completed these courses:
- Advanced physical/health assessment
- Advanced Pharmacology
- Advanced pathophysiology
Once the graduate passes the examination he or she is eligible to be working as an advanced practice RN.
List of All Accelerated MSN Programs
See a full list of accelerated MSN programs by State.
Jump to Your State Listings
Alabama
University of Alabama at Birmingham
Programs
School of Nursing
1720 Second Avenue South, NB 204
Birmingham, AL 35294-1210
(205) 934-5360
University of South Alabama
Programs
College of Nursing
HAHN 3071, 5721 USA Drive North
Mobile, AL 36688-0002
(251) 445-9400
Arizona
University of Arizona
Programs
College of Nursing
1305 N Martin Ave
Tucson, AZ 85721
(520) 626-6152
California
California Baptist University
Programs
School of Nursing
8432 Magnolia Avenue, Lambeth House, Room 7
Riverside, CA 92504-3297
(951) 343-4700
Charles Drew University
Programs
- Accelerated MSN Campus
Mervyn M. Dymally School of Nursing
1748 East 118th Street
Los Angeles, CA 90059
(323) 568-3304
San Francisco State University
Programs
- Accelerated MSN Campus
School of Nursing
1600 Holloway Avenue, Burk Hall 371 B
San Francisco, CA 94132
(415) 338-6850
University of California, Irvine
Programs
- Accelerated MSN Campus
252 Berk Hall
Irvine, CA 92697
(949) 824-5011
University of California, Los Angeles
Programs
- Accelerated MSN Campus
School of Nursing
700 Tiverton Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90095
(310) 825-8690
University of California, San Francisco
Programs
- Accelerated MSN Campus
School of Nursing
505 Parnassus Ave
San Francisco, CA 94143
(415) 476-3105
University of San Diego
Programs
Hahn School of Nursing and Health Science
5998 Alcala Park
San Diego, CA 92110
(619) 260-4548
University of San Francisco
Programs
School of Nursing & Health Professions
2130 Fulton Street, Cowell 102
San Francisco, CA 94117-1080
(415) 422-2959
Western University of Health Sciences
Programs
College of Graduate Nursing
309 East Second Street, College Plaza
Pomona, CA 91766-1854
(909) 469-5523
Connecticut
Yale University
Programs
School of Nursing
Yale University West Campus P.O. Box 27399
Orange, CT 06516
(203) 785-2393
Georgia
Emory University
Programs
- Accelerated MSN Campus
Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing
1520 Clifton Rd.
Atlanta, GA 30322
(404) 727-7980
Hawaii
University of Hawaii at Manoa
Programs
School of Nursing and Dental Hygiene
2528 McCarty Mall, Webster Hall 402
Honolulu, HI 96822
(808) 956-8522
Illinois
DePaul University
Programs
School of Nursing, College of Science and Health
990 West Fullerton Avenue, Suite 3000
Chicago, IL 60614-2458
(773) 325-1887
Elmhurst College
Programs
Deicke Center for Nursing Education
190 Prospect Avenue
Elmhurst, IL 60126-3296
(630) 617-3314
Millikin University
Programs
School of Nursing
1184 West Main Street
Decatur, IL 62522-2084
(217) 424-6366
Rush University
Programs
College of Nursing
600 South Paulina Street, Suite 1080 Aca. Fac.
Chicago, IL 60612-3873
(312) 942-2308
University of Illinois at Chicago
Programs
College of Nursing
845 South Damen Avenue, Suite 118, M/C 802
Chicago, IL 60612-7350
(312) 996-7808
Kentucky
University of Louisville
Programs
School of Nursing
555 South Floyd Street
Louisville, KY 40202
(502) 852-8300
Maryland
Johns Hopkins University
Programs
- Accelerated MSN Campus
School of Nursing
3101 Wyman Park Drive
Baltimore, MD 21218
(410) 955-4766
University of Maryland
Programs
School of Nursing
655 West Lombard Street, Suite 505
Baltimore, MD 21201-1579
(410) 706-6741
Massachusetts
Boston College
Programs
William F. Connell School of Nursing
Cushing Hall, 140 Commonwealth Avenue
Chestnut Hill, MA 02467
(617) 552-1710
MGH Institute of Health Professions
Programs
School of Nursing
36 First Avenue, Charlestown Navy Yard
Boston, MA 02129-4557
(617) 726-4547
Northeastern University
Programs
School of Nursing
360 Huntington Avenue, 102 Robinson Hall
Boston, MA 02115-5096
(617) 373-3649
Regis College
Programs
- Accelerated MSN Campus
School of Nursing
235 Wellesley St
Weston, MA 02493
(781) 768-7091
Salem State University
Programs
School of Nursing
352 Lafayette Street, South Campus
Salem, MA 01970
(978) 542-7149
Simmons University
Programs
- Accelerated MSN Campus
School of Nursing and Health Sciences
300 The Fenway
Boston, MA 02115
(617) 521-2139
University of Massachusetts Medical School
Programs
- Accelerated MSN Campus
Graduate School of Nursing
55 Lake Avenue North (F1-853)
Worcester, MA 01655-0115
(508) 856-5081
Minnesota
Metropolitan State University
Programs
College of Nursing and Health Sciences
700 East Seventh Street
Saint Paul, MN 55106-5000
(651) 793-1368
St. Catherine University - St. Paul
Programs
- Accelerated MSN Campus
Henrietta Schmoll School of Health
2004 Randolph Ave
St. Paul, MN 55105
(651) 690-6000
Missouri
St. Louis University
Programs
- Accelerated MSN Campus
School of Nursing
3525 Caroline Mall
Saint Louis, MO 63104
(314) 977-8909
New Hampshire
Southern New Hampshire University
Programs
- Accelerated MSN Online
2500 N River Rd.
Manchester, NH 03106
(888) 387-0861
University of New Hampshire
Programs
School of Nursing
105 Main St
Durham, NH 03824
(603) 862-2285
New Jersey
Seton Hall University
Programs
College of Nursing
400 South Orange Avenue
South Orange, NJ 07079-2693
(973) 761-9282
New York
Columbia University
Programs
School of Nursing
116th St & Broadway
New York, NY 10027
(212) 305-3582
Ohio
Case Western Reserve University
Programs
Frances Payne Bolton School of Nursing
10900 Euclid Avenue
Cleveland, OH 44106-4904
(216) 368-2545
Mount St. Joseph University
Programs
- Accelerated MSN Campus
Department of Nursing
5701 Delhi Ave
Cincinnati, OH 45233
(513) 244-4325
Ohio State University
Programs
College of Nursing
1585 Neil Avenue
Columbus, OH 43210-1289
(614) 292-8900
University of Cincinnati
Programs
- Accelerated MSN Campus
College of Nursing
2600 Clifton Ave.
Cincinnati, OH 45220
(513) 558-5500
University of Toledo
Programs
College of Nursing
3000 Arlington Avenue, M.S. 1026
Toledo, OH 43614-5803
(419) 383-5858
Xavier University
Programs
- Accelerated MSN Campus
Graduate School of Nursing
3800 Victory Parkway
Cincinnati, OH 45207-7351
(513) 745-3815
Oklahoma
Oklahoma City University
Programs
Kramer School of Nursing
2501 N Blackwelder Ave
Oklahoma City, OK 73106
(405) 208-5904
Oregon
Northwest Christian University
Programs
- Accelerated MSN Online
828 E. 11th Ave.
Eugene, OR 97401
(154) 134-3164 x1
Tennessee
Southern Adventist University
Programs
- Accelerated MSN Campus
School of Nursing
4881 Taylor Cir
Collegedale, TN 37315
(423) 236-2942
Vanderbilt University
Programs
School of Nursing
461 21st Avenue South, 111 Godchaux Hall
Nashville, TN 37240-0008
(615) 343-8876
Texas
University of Texas - Austin
Programs
- Accelerated MSN Campus
School of Nursing
110 Inner Campus Drive
Austin, TX 78705
(512) 471-4100
Utah
Joyce University of Nursing & Health Sciences
Programs
- Accelerated MSN Hybrid
12257 Business Park Drive
Draper, UT 84020
(801) 816-1444
Vermont
University of Vermont
Programs
- Accelerated MSN Campus
School of Nursing
194 South Prospect Street
Burlington, VT 05401-3596
(802) 656-3131
Virginia
Virginia Commonwealth University
Programs
School of Nursing
907 Floyd Ave
Richmond, VA 23284
(804) 828-5174
Washington
Pacific Lutheran University
Programs
School of Nursing
12180 Park Avenue South
Tacoma, WA 98447-0029
(253) 535-7672
Wisconsin
Marquette University
Programs
- Accelerated MSN Campus
College of Nursing
530 North 16th Street, Clark Hall, PO Box 1881
Milwaukee, WI 53233
(414) 288-3812
University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee
Programs
- Accelerated MSN Campus
College of Nursing
3253 N Downer Ave
Milwaukee, WI 53211
(414) 229-4173