Program Tracks Overview
| Program | Est. Tuition | Est. Duration | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| MSN | $28.2K in / $52.9K out | 2 yrs FT, 3–4 PT | 46 |
| Certificate | $20.8K in / $39.1K out | 1.5–2 yrs | 34 (as few as 25) |
Kent State’s defining advantage is open access: no RN experience requirement, no GRE, a 2.75 GPA minimum, and 100% online coursework with zero campus visits.
Quick Facts
| Feature | Details |
|---|---|
| Program Types | MSN concentration; post-graduate certificate |
| Format | 100% online; students are never required to come to campus |
| Clinical Hours | 675 across four practicums (150 + 150 + 150 + 225) |
| Clinical Placement | Not clearly stated; faculty mentors and clinical preceptors supervise |
| Population | Lifespan (individuals, families, groups) |
| Distinctive Coursework | Consultation course; practicums organized by therapy modality |
| RN License Requirements | Active, unrestricted RN license in the state where clinicals occur |
| Tuition | $612.62/credit resident; $1,149.79 non-resident; +$15/credit online fee |
| Experience Requirement | None for the MSN; no GRE for either track |
| Accreditation | CCNE (MSN and post-graduate APRN certificate); HLC institutional |
MSN PMHNP Concentration
The estimated tuition for the MSN PMHNP concentration at Kent State is approximately $28,181 for Ohio residents (46 credits at $612.62/credit) and $52,890 for non-residents. The program can generally be completed in about two years of full-time study, while part-time students typically take three to four years.
MSN Curriculum
The 46-credit plan splits into a 12-credit MSN core and the 34-credit PMHNP concentration. This structure matters for budgeting: many published totals for this program quote only the concentration, understating cost by roughly $7,400 in-state. The core covers nursing theory, informatics, health policy, and research methods before the specialty sequence begins.
PMHNP Specialty Sequence. The concentration front-loads two heavyweight 4-credit courses — psychiatric assessment/psychopathology and neurobiology/psychopharmacology — then dedicates separate full courses to individual therapy and to family/group therapy. Few programs give psychotherapy this much dedicated credit weight; nurses who want prescribing-only training may find it more therapy-intensive than expected.
Unique Coursework. NURS 60353 (Individual, Organization and Community Consultation) is an outlier among Ohio PMHNP curricula. It trains community needs assessment and organizational consulting, which is useful for graduates heading into community mental health leadership rather than pure clinic work.
Core PMHNP coursework includes:
- NURS 60012 – Advanced Mental Health Assessment and Psychopathology (4 credits): comprehensive psychiatric assessment and differential diagnosis.
- NURS 60051 – Neurobiology and Psychopharmacology of Major Psychiatric Disorders (4 credits): evidence-based psychotropic prescribing.
- NURS 60151 – Individual Psychotherapy (3 credits): selecting evidence-based therapeutic approaches.
- NURS 60251 – Family and Group Psychotherapy (3 credits): family and group treatment techniques.
- NURS 60353 – Individual, Organization and Community Consultation (3 credits): community and organizational consultation skills.
- NURS 60441 – Pharmacology for the APRN (3 credits): prescribing principles across populations.
- NURS 61592–63592 – Practicums I–III (150 hours each): individual therapy, medication management, then family/group therapy.
- NURS 64592 – Practicum IV: Nurse Practitioner Role (225 hours): full-role immersion integrating all competencies.
More curriculum details are available here.
MSN Clinical Requirements
- 675 total clinical hours: three 150-hour practicums plus a 225-hour final immersion.
- Practicums progress by treatment modality — individual therapy, medication management, family/group therapy, then the integrated NP role — rather than by patient population.
- Settings include community mental health centers, private practice, primary care, emergency departments, correctional facilities, and hospital consultation teams.
- Faculty mentors and clinical preceptors supervise; who secures preceptors is not clearly stated.
- Clinical compliance (CPR certification, background check, health insurance, immunizations, physical exam) is required before the first practicum, at the student’s cost.
- Note: Kent State’s catalog states MSN concentrations require 300–600 clinical hours, while the per-course practicum hours sum to 675. Confirm the current total with the program before planning work schedules.
At 675 hours, Kent State sits well above the 500–600 hours typical of PMHNP programs and behind only Toledo (780) and Ohio University (750) among Ohio publics. That is more certification-exam preparation and more hands-on therapy time, but also more unpaid clinical time to schedule around a job. With placement responsibility unstated, assume you will need to help identify preceptors in your area.
MSN Admissions
Admissions are notably open — no RN work experience, no GRE, and no statistics prerequisite — but admission is competitive, and a video interview may be required.
- Bachelor’s degree from an accredited RN program (RNs with a non-nursing bachelor’s are considered via portfolio review).
- Minimum 2.75 undergraduate/graduate GPA.
- Active, unrestricted RN license in the state where clinical coursework will be completed.
- Curriculum vitae, admission essay (two pages, roughly 500 words, three set questions), and three professional references.
- Priority in selection goes to applicants with national certifications, specialty experience, and work with underserved populations.
- English proficiency scores for international applicants.
- Annual cycle: fall priority deadline March 1; spring priority deadline October 1.
Post-Graduate Certificate PMHNP
The estimated tuition for the Post-Graduate Certificate PMHNP at Kent State is approximately $20,829 for Ohio residents (34 credits at $612.62/credit) and $39,093 for non-residents. The program can generally be completed in about 1.5 to 2 years.
Certificate Curriculum
The certificate uses the same 34-credit PMHNP sequence as the MSN concentration — without the 12-credit MSN core, since certificate students already hold a graduate nursing degree.
The practical differentiator is the transfer policy: advanced health assessment, pathophysiology, and pharmacology (9 credits) may be waived if completed within five years with grades of B or better. That trims the certificate to 25 credits and cuts roughly $5,500 in-state, making Kent State more price-competitive for recent MSN graduates than the sticker price suggests.
- Advanced mental health assessment and psychopathology
- Neurobiology and psychopharmacology of major psychiatric disorders
- Individual psychotherapy; family and group psychotherapy
- Individual, organization and community consultation
- APRN core (assessment, pathophysiology, pharmacology) — waivable with qualifying transfer credit
More curriculum details are available here.
Certificate Clinical Requirements
- Same four-practicum sequence as the MSN track: 675 total hours (150 + 150 + 150 + 225), subject to the same 300–600 catalog discrepancy noted above.
- Certification-equivalent preparation: graduates meet the same ANCC PMHNP exam eligibility as MSN graduates.
Because clinical hours are not reduced for certificate students, this track carries a heavier clinical load than most Ohio certificates — Ursuline and Mount Carmel require around 500 hours. Post-master’s nurses working full-time should plan for the longer clinical runway.
Certificate Admissions
One notable gate: applicants who have not practiced as an APRN within the past two years face a five-year recency limit on their prior APRN core courses.
- Master’s or doctoral degree in nursing from an accredited program.
- Minimum 3.0 graduate GPA (stricter than the MSN’s 2.75).
- Active, unrestricted RN license in the state where practicum hours will be completed.
- Official graduate transcripts, curriculum vitae, admission essay, and three professional references.
- Course syllabi if requesting transfer credit for the waivable APRN core courses.
Tuition
Total estimated tuition is approximately $28,181 for Ohio residents in the MSN track (46 credits × $612.62/credit) and $20,829 for the certificate (34 credits × $612.62/credit).
Non-residents pay $1,149.79/credit: roughly $52,890 for the MSN and $39,093 for the certificate.
- A $15/credit distance learning fee applies to online courses — about $690 more for the MSN and $510 for the certificate.
- Kent State’s flat full-time tuition band (11–18 credits per semester) rarely applies here; students in these part-time-friendly plans are billed per credit.
- Certificate students who waive the three APRN core courses pay for 25 credits (~$15,316 in-state before fees).
- Rates are estimates and subject to annual increases; some published totals for this program reflect older per-credit rates.
- Clinical compliance costs (background check, immunizations, physical, compliance-tracking vendor) are paid by the student and sit outside tuition.
Realistic all-in cost for an Ohio resident is about $28,900 for the MSN and $21,300 for the certificate — solidly mid-pack in Ohio once the full credit count is used, not the cheapest option it is sometimes billed as.
More tuition information is available here.
Why Choose This PMHNP Program?
Best suited for nurses who lack psychiatric work experience, want zero campus travel, and value deep psychotherapy training over the fastest possible finish.
Kent State’s admissions posture is its clearest edge. There is no RN experience requirement, no GRE, and a 2.75 GPA floor — a meaningful contrast with Wright State, which requires one to two years of psychiatric nursing experience before you can apply. Bedside nurses pivoting into mental health from other specialties can start here without first spending years on a psych unit. The curriculum then compensates for that open door with substance: two full psychotherapy courses, modality-by-modality practicums, and 675 clinical hours that exceed most programs nationally.
The trade-offs are cost clarity and placement support. Once the 12-credit MSN core is counted, Kent State is not Ohio’s cheapest option — Ohio University costs about $5,000 less in-state, includes 750 clinical hours, and adds a 15% scholarship for eligible students. Kent State also does not clearly state who arranges preceptors, while Cleveland State advertises dedicated placement support. The cost verdict: pay Kent State’s mid-pack price for accessible admissions and therapy depth; pick Ohio University if the lowest in-state total is the priority; and for recent MSN graduates, Kent State’s certificate with the 9-credit waiver (~$15,300) is quietly one of the better certificate deals in the state.
Accreditation
Kent State’s master’s degree program in nursing and post-graduate APRN certificate program are accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE), as verified on the university’s accreditation statement; Kent State University holds institutional accreditation from the Higher Learning Commission. The university states that graduates of both tracks meet educational eligibility requirements for the ANCC PMHNP certification exam, and reports a 96.3% average board certification pass rate for its 2021 APRN MSN graduates. Note the original program materials referenced the source page’s vague accreditation wording; the CCNE status above was confirmed directly from Kent State’s own pages.
More Ohio PMNHP Programs
- Cleveland State University - Cleveland
- Mount Carmel - Columbus
- Ohio State University - Columbus
- Ohio University - Athens
- Ursuline College - Pepper Pike
- University of Toledo - Toledo
- Wright State University - Dayton