Program Tracks Overview
| Program | Est. Tuition | Est. Duration | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| MS | $46K | 3.5 yrs (part-time) | 49 |
| BSN-DNP | $80K | Not clearly stated | 85 |
| Post-Grad Cert | $23K | 3 yrs (part-time) | 25 |
UND’s defining advantage is access: it’s one of the few PMHNP programs based in the Dakotas–Minnesota region, runs fully online with no campus visits, and charges every student the same rate — there is no out-of-state tuition penalty. A full-time Clinical Placement Team helps students find preceptors, though clinical courses do include weekly live online meetings.
Quick Facts
| Feature | Details |
|---|---|
| Program Types | MS (49 credits), BSN-to-DNP (85 credits), Post-Graduate APRN Certificate (25 credits) |
| Format | Mostly Online — asynchronous coursework, no campus visits; synchronous online meetings during clinical courses |
| Clinical Hours | 600 (certificate: 200/semester × 3); MS and DNP totals not clearly stated |
| Clinical Placement | Full-time Clinical Placement Team assists; students submit top three site choices |
| Population | Lifespan — children, adolescents, and adults with acute/chronic psychiatric illness and substance use disorders |
| Distinctive Coursework | Separate individual-therapy and group/family-therapy courses; two-course psychopathology management sequence |
| Experience Requirement | Psychiatric-setting nursing experience required for both tracks; 1+ year RN experience (MS) |
| RN License Requirements | U.S. unencumbered RN license (APRN + national certification for the certificate); must reside in a UND-authorized state |
| Tuition | $939.66/credit all-in ($862.39 tuition + $77.27 fees) — same rate regardless of residency |
| Accreditation | CCNE (master’s, DNP, and post-graduate APRN certificate, per UND’s accreditation page); HLC institutional; NDBON approved through April 2031 |
MS PMHNP
The estimated tuition for the MS PMHNP at the University of North Dakota is approximately $46,043 (49 credits at $939.66/credit, fees included).
The program can generally be completed in about 3.5 years across 7 part-time semesters — the pacing assumes you’ll keep working, which fits the required psychiatric-experience profile of its admits.
MS Curriculum
Foundation courses. The MSN core covers nursing theory, evidence for practice, health promotion, ethics/policy, and NP role development, alongside the three P’s. Nothing unusual here — the value is in the specialty layer.
PMHNP specialty sequence. Therapy training gets more dedicated space than most MS programs allow: individual therapy and group/family therapies are separate courses rather than a single psychotherapy survey, and they sit alongside psychiatric diagnostic reasoning, psychopharmacology, and a two-course psychopathology management sequence that builds from foundational treatment to complex, co-morbid presentations. Three sequential clinical practicums and an independent study round out the 49 credits.
- Advanced Pathophysiology, Advanced Pharmacology, Advanced Health Assessment
- Psych Diagnostic Reasoning
- Psychopharmacology
- Individual Therapy
- Group and Family Therapies
- Management of Psychopathology I–II
- Advanced Clinical Practicum: PMHNP I–III
More curriculum details are available here.
MS Clinical Requirements
- Three Advanced Clinical Practicum courses totaling 12 credits; a published hour total is not clearly stated
- Precepted experience across individual, family, and group therapy settings, with patients across the lifespan
- Full-time Clinical Placement Coordinator assists with placement; students typically submit their top three site choices
- Weekly synchronous online meetings accompany each clinical course
The placement model is the practical win here: a staffed placement team that works from your site preferences is meaningfully better support than the find-your-own-preceptor norm, especially in rural regions where psychiatric preceptors are scarce. Ask admissions for the MS hour total in writing — the certificate’s identical 12-credit practicum block equals 600 hours, but the MS figure isn’t published. The weekly live meetings are worth planning around too: coursework is otherwise asynchronous, but clinical semesters carry a fixed weekly commitment.
MS Admissions
Two gates shape the applicant pool: psychiatric-setting experience is required — not preferred — and you must live in a state where UND is authorized to deliver the program.
- BSN or higher from an accredited nursing program
- Minimum 3.0 GPA for the last two years of baccalaureate study
- Statistics course (undergraduate or graduate)
- Current U.S. unencumbered RN license (Nursys verification report)
- Minimum 1 year of U.S. RN work experience, with psychiatric-setting experience required
- Residence in a state where UND is approved to deliver the program
- Three letters of recommendation, statement of goals, resume/CV
- Interview may be required (web, phone, or in person); no GRE
- Post-offer: background check, drug screen, health and immunization compliance
BSN-to-DNP PMHNP
The estimated tuition for the BSN-to-DNP PMHNP at the University of North Dakota is approximately $79,871 (85 credits at $939.66/credit, assuming UND’s standard online graduate nursing rate applies — confirm with the Bursar).
A published program length is not clearly stated; confirm the current plan-of-study pacing with the program before comparing timelines.
DNP Curriculum
What the doctorate adds. The 85 credits wrap the complete MS-level PMHNP specialty — diagnostic reasoning, psychopharmacology, the separate individual and group/family therapy courses, and the two-course psychopathology sequence — inside a doctoral layer: population health, evidence-based research, health informatics, health policy, healthcare economics/finance/leadership, integrated DNP leadership concepts, organizational systems practice, a culture-of-safety-and-ethics course, and advanced univariate statistics.
A DNP capstone and project run through the program, concluding with a project paper, an oral presentation and defense, and a scholarly product (abstract, manuscript, or poster) prepared for presentation or publication.
- Full MS-level PMHNP specialty sequence (see MS Curriculum above)
- Population Health; Evidence-Based Research; Health Informatics
- Health Policy; Healthcare Economics, Finance and Leadership
- Integrated Leadership DNP Core; DNP Organizational Systems Focused Practice
- Culture of Safety and Ethics; Advanced Univariate Statistics
- DNP Capstone and Project (paper, oral defense, scholarly product)
DNP Clinical Requirements
- Total clinical hours: not clearly stated; advanced psychiatric clinical practicums (NURS 598, repeatable to 12 credits) carry the specialty hours
- Clinical experiences completed in the student’s local community with Clinical Placement Team support
- Mostly asynchronous coursework with occasional synchronous (live) meetings for discussions and presentations
- DNP project completion requires satisfactory clinical hours, the project paper, and an oral presentation and defense
One requirement needs clarifying before you commit: UND’s program page states the online PMHNP DNP “never requires a campus visit,” while the catalog’s DNP requirements list an on-campus oral presentation and defense of the DNP Project. ⚠️ That catalog language may be boilerplate shared across DNP tracks (including campus-based nurse anesthesia), but a nurse choosing UND specifically for zero travel should get the defense format confirmed in writing.
DNP Admissions
The DNP gate differs from the MS in three ways worth noting: a faculty interview is required rather than optional, the 3.0 GPA is a hard floor (“applications will not be considered” below it), and psychiatric-setting experience isn’t listed among the published requirements — only one year of general RN experience.
- BSN or higher from an accredited nursing program
- Minimum 3.0 undergraduate nursing GPA — applications below 3.0 are not considered
- Current U.S. unencumbered RN license (Nursys verification report)
- Minimum 1 year of RN work experience in the U.S., its territories, or a U.S. military hospital
- Completed statistics course (undergraduate or graduate)
- Typed personal statement (2 pages max) addressing why the PMHNP specialization and why UND
- Three letters of recommendation (manager/supervisor, healthcare provider, or nursing faculty)
- Required interview with program faculty; $35 application fee
- Residence in a UND-authorized state throughout the program; letter of good standing if previously enrolled in a graduate nursing program
- Post-offer: background check, drug screen, health and immunization compliance
Post-Graduate APRN Certificate PMHNP
The estimated tuition for the Post-Graduate APRN PMHNP Certificate at the University of North Dakota is approximately $23,492 (25 credits at $939.66/credit, fees included).
The program can generally be completed in about 3 years across 6 part-time semesters and is built for certified FNPs, adult/adult-gerontology NPs, and AG clinical nurse specialists adding the psychiatric population.
Certificate Curriculum
The 25 credits skip the APRN core you’ve already completed and deliver the six-course psychiatric specialty — diagnostic reasoning, psychopharmacology, both therapy courses, and the two-course psychopathology sequence — plus 12 credits of clinical practicum.
A personalized course of study builds on prior education, and UND requires documented graduate-level lifespan coursework in the three P’s, health promotion, and NP role before enrollment. (The published course list labels the practicum block “Advanced Clinical Practicum: FNP” — a labeling error worth confirming with the program; the MS track’s parallel courses are PMHNP practicums.)
- Psych Diagnostic Reasoning; Psychopharmacology
- Individual Therapy; Group and Family Therapies
- Management of Psychopathology I–II
- Advanced Clinical Practicum (12 credits)
Certificate Clinical Requirements
- 600 total clinical hours: 200 per semester across three clinical semesters
- Populations include children, adolescents, and adults with acute and chronic psychiatric illness and substance use disorders
- Clinical Placement Team support and weekly synchronous meetings apply as in the MS
- UND may not accommodate clinical experiences in some states — contact your state board of nursing before applying
At 600 hours, this certificate asks more clinical work than many competitors’ 500-hour norm and offers no published gap-credit reduction for prior NP hours — experienced NPs trading fewer dollars for more clinical time should factor that in. The state-restriction warning is unusually direct for a program page; take it seriously if you live outside the Upper Midwest.
Certificate Admissions
- Completed APRN graduate program (master’s or doctoral) from an accredited nursing school
- Active national certification in an APRN specialty; current unencumbered RN and APRN licensure (Nursys)
- Minimum 3.0 graduate GPA
- Nursing experience in a psychiatric setting required
- Documented graduate coursework: advanced physiology/pathophysiology (lifespan), advanced physical assessment, advanced pharmacology (3 credits each), health promotion, and an NP role course — course descriptions may be requested
- Statement of goals, three letters of recommendation, resume/CV; interview possible
- Post-offer: background check, drug screen, health/immunization compliance
Tuition
Total tuition runs approximately $46,043 for the MS, $79,871 for the BSN-to-DNP, and $23,492 for the certificate at $939.66 per credit all-in ($862.39 tuition + $77.27 fees, 2025–26); the DNP estimate assumes the same online graduate nursing rate — confirm with the Bursar. The structural details favor students:
- Every online student pays the same rate — no out-of-state markup, unlike most public universities where non-residents pay double to quadruple
- Student fees are capped at 12 credits per semester
- Military benefits are unusually broad: ND resident rates for active duty, veterans, Guard/Reserve, dependents, and contracted ROTC cadets, plus Yellow Ribbon participation and military-specific scholarships
For an out-of-state nurse, the flat rate is the number that matters: $46K for the MS beats what many state schools charge non-residents for comparable programs. More tuition details are available here.
Why Choose This PMHNP Program?
Best suited for working psychiatric nurses in the Upper Midwest — or out-of-state nurses in UND-authorized states — who want zero campus travel, staffed placement support, and residency-blind tuition on a part-time schedule.
In a region with very few PMHNP options, UND combines three things that rarely appear together: no campus visits, a full-time Clinical Placement Team that works from your preferred sites, and one flat tuition rate for everyone. The curriculum backs the access story with substance — separate individual and group/family therapy courses give psychotherapy more room than the single-survey-course norm — and the student support package (dedicated advisor, free tutoring, unlimited academic coaching, 24/7 tech support) reflects a school that has run online programs at scale for years. The three-track lineup covers every entry point: choosing between the MS (~$46K) and BSN-to-DNP (~$80K) mostly comes down to whether you want the doctorate now — the DNP skips the psychiatric-experience gate the MS imposes but adds a required faculty interview and a hard 3.0 GPA floor. UND PMHNP students in their final two clinical semesters can also apply for BHWET behavioral health workforce stipends, with priority for those training in rural, underserved, or North Dakota communities.
Do the eligibility homework before applying. Psychiatric-setting experience is required for both tracks, which rules out nurses trying to pivot into psych from other specialties. You must live in a UND-authorized state, and the certificate page warns plainly that some states’ regulations block clinical placement — call your board of nursing first. The part-time-only pacing (3.5 years for a master’s) suits working nurses but frustrates anyone wanting speed, MS clinical hours aren’t published, and the weekly live meetings during clinical courses trim the schedule flexibility the asynchronous coursework otherwise promises.
Accreditation
The master’s degree program in nursing, Doctor of Nursing Practice program, and post-graduate APRN certificate program at the University of North Dakota are accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE), per UND’s accreditation page. All online programs are fully accredited by the Higher Learning Commission (HLC), and the North Dakota Board of Nursing lists UND’s PMHNP programs as approved through April 2031. Graduates of the MS and DNP tracks are eligible to sit for the ANCC Psychiatric-Mental Health Nurse Practitioner (Across the Lifespan) certification exam. Online students receive the same degree, transcript, and diploma as on-campus students.
More PMHNP Programs
Need more options? Our North Dakota page compares all online options for North Dakota nurses.