Nurse practitioners are required to have additional education and licensure than a registered nurse. To become a nurse practitioner, you'll need to graduate from a nurse practitioner program.
Keep reading to learn more about nurse practitioners and the requirements and prerequisites for nurse practitioner school.
What Does a Nurse Practitioner Do?
An advanced practice registered nurse (APRN), more often known as a nurse practitioner, is a nurse with education and licensing above what's required of a standard registered nurse (RN).
The privileges of a nurse practitioner can vary by state. In states where nurse practitioners can practice fully, they don't have to work under the supervision of a licensed physician.
Their job duties may include:
- assessing patients and performing physical exams
- creating patient care plans
- diagnosing patients
- ordering, performing, and interpreting diagnostic tests
- prescribing medication
- referring patients to specialists
Nurse practitioners specialize in a particular field or segment of the population. This may include:
- adult/geriatric care (acute or primary care)
- emergency care
- family primary care
- mental health care
- neonatal care
- pediatrics (acute or primary care)
- women's/gender-based care
Many nurse practitioners work as primary care providers, meaning they're your go-to provider for your basic medical needs like checkups and medication adjustments.
However, not all states allow nurse practitioners to be primary care providers. They can only work in acute care, which is essentially short-term or emergency care.
Requirements and Prerequisites for Nurse Practitioner School
Nurse practitioner programs are offered at both the master's and doctoral levels.
While many nurse practitioners start with a master's degree, a Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) degree may soon be a standard requirement.
Each nursing practice degree program will have specific requirements. Below, we've listed the basic prerequisites for most nurse practitioner programs.
Step 1: Earn an Undergraduate Degree in Nursing
To become an advanced practice registered nurse, you first need to be a registered nurse. To do that, you need to earn an undergraduate degree in nursing.
Nursing degrees are offered through two-year associate degrees or four-year bachelor's degrees.
Most nurse practitioner schools require at least a bachelor's degree in nursing, but some offer bridge programs for those with just an associate degree.
Some students choose to earn an associate degree in nursing, obtain their RN license, then go back to school to earn their bachelor's degree through an RN to Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) program.
This allows students to start working as RNs faster. Because some RN to BSN programs take as little as a year, they may earn their bachelor's degree in less time as well.
You can find accredited nursing degree programs through the Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing (ACEN) or the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE).
Step 2: Become a Licensed Registered Nurse
Licensing requirements vary between states, but all require that you have graduated from an accredited nursing program and have passed the National Council Licensure Examination for Registered Nurses (NCLEX-RN).
The NCLEX-RN is a standardized exam designed and distributed by the National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN).
The questions in the test are organized into four major client needs categories. These are:
- safe and effective care environment, with two subcategories: management of care and safety and infection control
- health promotion and maintenance
- psychosocial integrity
- psychological integrity, with four subcategories: basic care and comfort, pharmacological and parenteral therapies, reduction of risk potential, and physiological adaptation
Throughout these categories, there will be questions involving integrated processes that are fundamental to the practice of nursing as well as questions that test your clinical judgment.
States may have other requirements for licensure as well, such as passing a background check. Your license will need to be in good standing for you to be accepted into a nursing practice program.
Step 3: Earn a Master's Degree
If you've chosen to earn a doctorate in nursing practice, a master's degree may not be necessary.
While some programs require a master's, some DNP programs will allow students with a BSN to jump right into the nursing practice program.
Others offer a bridge program, where students complete a few courses to earn their master's, then move smoothly into the doctoral program.
In some cases, a DNP program may require either a master's degree in nursing or a certain amount of experience as a registered nurse.
If you hold an associate degree in nursing but not a bachelor's, you can look for RN to Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) programs to bridge that gap before beginning a doctorate program.
Another reason students may choose to earn a master's before they earn their doctorate in nursing is that they hold a bachelor's degree in an unrelated field and don't yet have their RN license.
In this case, they can earn their master's degree in nursing, obtain their nursing license, then go on to earn their doctoral degree.
Some students may also choose to become a nurse practitioner through a master's program, then return to school to obtain their doctorate degree.
Step 4: Gain Experience
Depending on the nurse practitioner school you choose, you may be required to obtain a certain amount of experience before you can start your program.
This may be specific to certain specialties as well. For example, a degree program for emergency nursing practice may require that you have RN experience working in the emergency room.
Experience requirements are very program dependent, so check what your chosen school requires so you know what to accomplish.
Become a Nurse Practitioner
To be admitted to nurse practitioner school, you will likely need a bachelor's degree as well as a valid RN license. Check out the prerequisites above to start your journey toward becoming a nurse practitioner today.
