Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner (Graduate Certificate)
ASU Health - Clinical, Cert, Child, Mental Health, Practitioner, Psychiatric, family, nursing
Help lead the future of mental health care at the highest level of nursing practice. You'll be prepared to diagnose, treat and support patients with complex psychiatric needs while advancing innovative care models through clinical expertise and leadership.
The certificate program for the psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner specialty is an advanced nursing practice program. It prepares you to provide holistic, client-centered mental health care to individuals of all ages within traditional, nontraditional and culturally diverse families. If you are a board-certified nurse in a different advanced practice registered nurse specialty area who seeks additional certification as a psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner, or a doctorate-level nurse who seeks to become a psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner, this program is for you. It emphasizes the assessment, diagnosis and evidence-based management of common and complex mental health disorders across the life span.
All programs are offered in a hybrid format requiring you to travel to an ASU campus for up to one week for orientation at the beginning of the program and two to three times per semester.
Core courses include pharmacology, advanced pathophysiology and advanced health assessment. Any deficiency courses determined by your unique gap analysis must have been completed in the past five years to be eligible for credit.
The program highlights valid and reliable tools for screening and identification of mental health disorders, as well as early interventions for these problems. Content for each disorder includes epidemiology, incidence, early signs and symptoms, differential diagnosis, and sociocultural variations in evidence-based management and treatment. Management includes psychopharmacologic and therapeutic skills building that are based in motivational interviewing, mindfulness, cognitive behavioral therapy and dialectical behavior therapy. Individual, group and family therapy techniques are emphasized.
Focused clinical experiences are arranged for you if you're residing in Maricopa County, Arizona. You should expect to travel throughout Maricopa County and, in some cases, throughout Arizona to complete your assigned clinical placement.
If you're residing outside of Maricopa County, you are responsible for identifying the required number of clinical sites in your area of residence and for identifying preceptors and sites willing to accommodate clinical rotations. Edson College of Nursing and Health Innovation must approve these sites before you start any clinical experience; the doctoral program office does not guarantee a clinical placement site if you are outside of Maricopa County. If, during the program, the faculty determines that you need additional supervision for clinical progress in the program, you must complete clinical experiences in the Phoenix area.
The program offers practicum experiences (clinical rotations) in health profession shortage areas throughout the state, in both urban underserved and rural areas, which provide you with multicultural experiences to enhance professional development.
As a participating National Council for State Authorization Reciprocity Agreements member, ASU is authorized to offer distance education to persons located in individual state authorization reciprocity agreement member states in accordance with the council's established policies and standards. California is not a state authorization reciprocity agreement member, and the California Bureau of Private Postsecondary Education does not regulate out-of-state public institutions. ASU may offer educational activities in California. There are some exceptions for specific programs at Edson College of Nursing and Health Innovation; these are noted on the ASU state authorization website.
- College/school:
Edson College of Nursing and Health Innovation
- Location: Downtown Phoenix
- STEM-OPT extension eligible: No
29 credit hours
Required Core (29 credit hours) Additional Curriculum Information
DNP 660 Advanced Neuropsychopathology Lifespan (2)
DNP 671 Advanced Mental Health Assessment Across the Lifespan (2)
DNP 672 Psychopharmacology Across the Lifespan (3)
DNP 673 Mental Health Promotion Across the Lifespan (3)
DNP 674 Mental Health Promotion Across the Lifespan Practicum (3)
DNP 675 Management of Common Mental Health Disorders Across the Lifespan (3)
DNP 676 Management of Common Mental Health Disorders Across the Lifespan Practicum (5)
DNP 677 Management of Complex and Chronic Mental Health Disorders Across the Lifespan (3)
DNP 678 Management of Complex and Chronic MH Disorders Across the Lifespan Practicum (5)
Nurses who complete this certificate program meet the eligibility requirements to take a national psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner certification examination. In addition to completing didactic courses, students complete 13 credit hours (585 clock hours) of psychiatric mental health practicum experiences in a community setting.
General university admission requirements:
All students are required to meet general
university admission requirements.
U.S.
applicants | International
applicants | English
proficiency
Applicants must fulfill the requirements of both the Graduate College and the Edson College of Nursing and Health Innovation.
Applicants must have earned a bachelor's and master's degree in nursing from a nationally recognized, regionally accredited academic institution.
Applicants must have a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.00 (scale is 4.00 = "A") in the last 60 hours of their first bachelor's degree program or a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.00 (scale is 4.00 = "A") in an applicable master's degree program.
All applicants must submit:
- graduate admission application and application fee
- official transcripts
- proof of a current unencumbered RN license
- three professional letters of recommendation
- resume
- goal statement
- admission essay
- health and safety requirements (submitted after admission)
- proof of English proficiency
Additional Application Information
An applicant whose native language is not English must provide proof of English proficiency regardless of their current residency.
International students who need an F-1 or J-1 visa need to apply to and be accepted into a graduate degree program before being considered for the certificate program. International students residing in the U.S. on other types of visas must adhere to all Graduate College policies and procedures regarding admission to be considered for admission to this certificate program.
A current unencumbered RN license in the state in which the student plans to do clinical practicums is required. All students are also required to have an unencumbered Arizona RN license or an unencumbered compact state RN license as mandated by the Arizona State Board of Nursing. The RN license must remain unencumbered throughout enrollment in any nursing program.
Applicants must be board certified in a different Advanced Practice Registered Nurses specialty.
One year of clinical experience working within the specialty population is preferred.
Applicants offered admission must meet health and safety requirements, which include a passing disposition on a background clearance, satisfactory completion of a substance screen, and required health and safety documents. Students offered admission must complete health and safety requirements by the provided deadlines or their offer of admission is withdrawn.
An interview with program faculty is required.
An admission examination is not required.
Applicants requesting review of previously completed courses must have a gap analysis review. Applicants must submit primary source documents (i.e., syllabi) for faculty review to demonstrate advanced physiology or pathophysiology, advanced health assessment, advanced pharmacology, and advanced role courses. Depending on the courses completed in the master's degree program, additional courses may be required to complete this specialty. Courses must have been completed within the past five years to be eligible or actively board certified and practicing.
Applications are reviewed on a space-available basis after the priority deadline.
| Session | Modality | Deadline | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Session A/C | In Person | 12/15 | Priority |
Program learning outcomes identify what a student will learn or be able to do upon completion of their program. This program’s learning outcomes include the following:
- Integrate evidence-based guidelines to support advanced clinical judgment in the assessment, diagnosis, and management of acute and common health conditions in populations experiencing mental health disorders across the lifespan.
- Synthesize evidence-based guidelines to support advanced clinical judgment in the assessment, diagnosis, and management of complex and chronic health conditions in populations experiencing mental health disorders across the lifespan.
The Edson College of Nursing and Health Innovation prepares graduates for excellence upon entering the workplace. Graduates of the psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner certificate program have the knowledge and training to provide health care for patients across the life span in a wide variety of settings.
Career examples include:
- business owner
- community advocate
- nurse practitioner
- professor
ASU programs that may lead to professional licensure or certification are intended to prepare students for potential licensure or certification in Arizona. Completion of an ASU program may not meet educational requirements for licensure or certification in another state. For more information, students should visit the ASU professional licensure webpage.
Edson College of Nursing and Health Innovation
|
HLTHN 301
nursingandhealth@asu.edu
602-496-0937
Program term definitions
Accelerated programs allow students the opportunity to expedite the completion of their degree.
Accelerated master's
These programs allow students to accelerate their studies to earn a bachelor's plus a master's degree in as few as five years (for some programs).
Each program has requirements students must meet to be eligible for consideration. Students typically receive approval to pursue the accelerated master's during the junior year of their bachelor's degree program. Interested students can learn about eligibility requirements and how to apply.
Concurrent degrees allow students to pursue their own personal or professional interests, earn two distinct degrees and receive two diplomas. To add a concurrent degree to your existing degree, work with your academic advisor.
Joint programs, or jointly conferred degrees, are offered by more than one college and provide opportunities for students to take advantage of the academic strengths of two academic units. Upon graduation, students are awarded one degree and one diploma conferred by two colleges.
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ASU Online offers programs in an entirely online format with multiple enrollment sessions throughout the year. See https://asuonline.asu.edu/ for more information.
The Western Regional Graduate Program (WRGP) provides a reduced tuition rate to non-resident graduate students who qualify. Visit the WRGP/WICHE webpage for more information: https://graduate.asu.edu/wiche.
