Family Nurse Practitioner
Certificate Program

Program Description

The Family Nurse Practitioner University Statutory Certificate Program is designed to prepare nurses to deliver primary health care to families in a variety of settings. Students follow patients through the life cycle utilizing obstetric, pediatric, gynecologic, as well as adult and geriatric primary care diagnostic and management skills.

The scope of practice of the family nurse practitioner (FNP) is based on a team approach. An interdependent member of the health care team, the FNP provides primary care through the following means:

Documentation of individual and family health history
Physical assessment
Diagnostic, therapeutic, and educational care plans
Collaboration with physicians and other health care professionals
Referral to appropriate health care providers Coordination of health care

Graduates are eligible for certification as a nurse practitioner in all states in which certification is required. Graduates are also eligible to take the certification examination offered by the American Nurses Association and the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners.

Admission

Please contact the Office of Admissions for details regarding admission and financial aid packages. Faculty review applications on a rolling basis so that students may begin this program in the fall semester. Please note, applications for the Family NP Certificate Program can only be submitted online.

Admission criteria include:

Current New York State nursing license or eligibility
Master's degree in nursing from an NLN or CCNE accredited program
Minimum of one year clinical experience
Satisfactory score on the Graduate Record Exam (GRE)
Personal interview with the program director
Three references attesting to applicant's academic ability and potential
Personal goal statement that is congruent with program goals (two pages, double-spaced, 12 pt. font)
Resume or Curriculum Vitae

Students must secure a site and preceptor for primary care student practice that is acceptable to the program director.

Curriculum

Courses	Credits
Advanced Clinical Assessment	3
Advanced Assessment Practicum	2
Family Primary Care Nursing I	2
Diagnosis and Management of Illness: Family I	4
Family Primary Care Practicum II	4
Family Primary Care Nursing II	1
Family Primary Care Practicum III	4
Family Primary Care Nursing III	1
Diagnosis and Management of Illness: Family II	3
Family Theory	3
Intensives	2
Total Credits	29

The above listing represents the basic post-master's statutory certificate in this major. Individual students may need additional course work, depending on previous study and experience. Students may receive advanced standing or exemption, based on standard School policy.

School of Nursing

The School of Nursing has paved the way for professional nursing since 1892 and continues to lead the field as the foremost institution for advanced practice nursing.

The School of Nursing is a designated World Health Organization Collaborating Center for International Nursing Development in Advanced Practice. With urban clinical sites, expert faculty practitioners, cutting edge research, and the strength of the Columbia name and reputation, the School of Nursing produces graduates who possess the skills necessary to bring advanced practice nursing into the new millennium. As medical advances offer a cascade of new and useful therapies, the need for more health care providers will increase exponentially. Our country will face many health care challenges in the next 20 years, and nurse practitioners are essential to providing access to quality primary care.

Founded in 1892 as Presbyterian Hospital School of Nursing, the School became part of Columbia University in 1937 and began offering the baccalaureate degree. It is one of the oldest schools of nursing in the US. In 1956, it became the first nursing program in the country to awards a master’s degree in a clinical nursing specialty. In 1999, the School granted its first doctoral degree. More than 9,000 nurses have graduated since the School opened.

The School shares the Columbia University Health Sciences Campus with the School of Public Health, the School of Dental and Oral Surgery, and the College of Physicians and Surgeons. Each of these schools adds to the richness and diversity of the educational experience of students and faculty.

School of Nursing faculty have substantial experience in curriculum, instructional design, and research. They maintain expertise in their areas of teaching responsibility through participation at local, regional, and national conferences, involvement in scholarly presentations and publications, and faculty practice.

Columbia University School of Nursing is distinguished by the clinical excellence of its programs and graduates. Columbia nurses are making crucial contributions and improving the health of individuals wherever they practice.