- ACNP (Acute Care Nurse Practitioner),
- Adult Nurse Practitioner, Advanced Practice Registered Nurse (APRN),
- ARNP Specialist (Advanced Registered Nurse Practitioner Specialist)
Admission Requirements
In addition to the general admission requirements and procedures, applicants wishing to be considered for admission to the Adult Gerontology-Acute Care Nurse Practitioner Post-Master’s Certificate program must:
- Hold an earned Master of Science in Nursing degree from an accredited institution recognized by the United States Department of Education or a foreign master’s degree evaluated by an approved agency indicating equivalency to a Master of Science Degree in Nursing earned at an accredited institution in the U.S. (official university transcript or evaluation must be received before the end of the first term)
- Be eligible to meet externship/preceptorship requirements
- Have an active Registered Nurse license
- Provide 3 reference letters (2 professional)
- Provide current resume
- Interview with program director/lead faculty
- Complete a gap analysis for degree plan evaluation if applicable
- Successful completion of the Ethics, Information Literacy, and Professional Writing Seminar, along with attending the programmatic orientation
- Provide proof of liability insurance as an Adult Gerontology-Acute Care Nurse Practitioner student prior to the first clinical.
- Have completed the following courses at an institution that satisfies requirement 1, above, and the university’s transfer credit policies prior to enrollment in the program: Advanced pathophysiology, Advanced pharmacology, Advanced health/physical assessment.
Professional Licensure Disclosure for Out-of-State Students: If you are considering an academic program that leads to a professional license in your state, it is highly recommended that you first seek guidance from the appropriate licensing agency in your home state before beginning the academic program.
Intensive Care or Emergency/Trauma Nursing Services- Minimum 1 year experience required
End of Program Student Learning Outcomes
- Integrate nursing and related sciences into the delivery of care to clients across diverse healthcare settings.
- Create effective interdisciplinary organizational and systems leadership in caring for clients in diverse healthcare settings.
- Analyze quality initiatives to improve health outcomes across the continuum of care.
- Apply practice guidelines to improve practice and health outcomes.
- Relate information and communication technologies in order to document and improve health outcomes.
- Examine the effect of legal, ethical, and regulatory processes on healthcare delivery, practice, and health outcomes.
- Employ collaborative interprofessional strategies for improving client and population health outcomes.
- Evaluate the effectiveness of clinical prevention interventions that affect individual and population-based health outcomes, perform risk assessments, and design plans or programs of care.
- Relate knowledge of illness and disease management to providing evidence-based care to clients, communities, and vulnerable populations in an evolving healthcare delivery system.
By achieving its comprehensive program learning outcomes, Ember University’s Adult Gerontology-Acute Care Nurse Practitioner program is dedicated to cultivating advanced practice nurses who demonstrate both exceptional skill and profound compassion. This program equips graduates to make significant and transformative contributions to the evolving field of acute care.
Program Outline:
Course Description:
Prerequisites Required: None
Co-requisites: None
Course Description: This graduate-level course builds on foundational pharmacology to prepare Adult-Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner (AG-ACNP) students for prescriptive authority in high-acuity settings. Emphasis is placed on advanced pharmacotherapeutic principles, pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics, and pharmacogenomics as applied to critically ill adult and older adult patients across the wellness-illness continuum. Students will critically evaluate evidence-based pharmacologic interventions for complex, life-threatening conditions commonly encountered in intensive care units, emergency departments, and specialty acute care services. Through case-based analysis and interdisciplinary collaboration, learners will develop competency in designing, implementing, and monitoring individualized, safe, and cost-effective pharmacotherapy plans while addressing polypharmacy, antimicrobial stewardship, medication safety, and patient-specific variables in acute care environments.
Prerequisites Required: None
Co-requisites: None
Course Description: This graduate-level course equips Adult-Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner (AG-ACNP) students with advanced diagnostic reasoning and collaborative management skills essential for high-acuity practice. Building prior assessment knowledge, students refine their ability to formulate focused differential diagnoses for complex, time-sensitive presentations across adult and older adult populations in intensive care units, emergency departments, trauma centers, and specialty acute care services. Emphasis is placed on the selection, interpretation, and clinical application of diagnostic modalities (laboratory, imaging, point-of-care ultrasound, and procedural techniques) while integrating cultural humility, social determinants of health, and ethical considerations.
Prerequisites Required: MSN5040, MSN5041, MSN5041-L
Co-requisites: None
Course Description: This first of three didactic courses with integrated clinical hours addresses the core competencies (knowledge, skills, and professional behaviors) required to deliver comprehensive, holistic care to a culturally diverse, acutely ill adult-gerontology population (young adult to frail elderly). Emphasis is placed on clinical manifestations, patient responses, and advanced physical assessment findings to formulate accurate differential diagnoses, plan evidence-based interventions, and promote health maintenance. Students engage in quality improvement and patient-safety initiatives, interdisciplinary collaboration, and systems-based practice through lectures, web-based simulation, and 225 supervised clinical hours in acute settings, establishing the foundation for progressive mastery in acute care management and safe transition to full clinical immersion.
Prerequisites Required: MSN5040, MSN5041, MSN5041-L, MSN5051, MSN5051-C
Co-requisites: None
Course Description: This second of three didactic courses with integrated clinical hours builds foundational competencies to advance proficiency in managing complex, high-acuity conditions in culturally diverse adult-gerontology patients (young adult to frail elderly). Emphasis is placed on independent performance of advanced procedures, real-time interpretation of invasive monitoring, leadership in crisis situations, and integration of palliative and transitional care principles. Students refine diagnostic reasoning, pharmacologic management, and systems leadership through lectures, web-based simulation, and 225 supervised clinical hours in acute settings, progressing toward autonomous AG-ACNP practice.
Prerequisite Required: MSN5040, MSN5041, MSN5041-L, MSN5051, MSN5051-C, MSN 5052, MSN 5052-C
Co-requisites: None
Courses Description: These third of three didactic courses with integrated clinical hours culminate the synthesis of advanced competencies required for autonomous practice as an adult-gerontology acute care nurse practitioner with culturally diverse, acutely and critically ill patients (young adult to frail elderly). Emphasis is placed on independent management of complex, multisystem disorders through expert diagnostic reasoning, advanced procedural intervention, comprehensive pharmacological therapeutics, interdisciplinary consultation/referral, seamless care transitions, and application of research to optimize outcomes. Students demonstrate full-scope leadership in quality improvement, patient-safety systems, crisis resource management, and professional role integration through lectures, web-based simulation, and 315 supervised clinical hours in acute settings, achieving readiness for certification and independent AG-ACNP practice.
Total Credits Hours
30
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