Program Tracks Overview
| Program | Est. Tuition | Est. Duration | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| MSN | $40,851 (partner) | 3 yrs | 51 |
| Certificate | $24,030 (partner) | 2 yrs | 30 |
Salve Regina’s defining advantage is price: flat per-credit tuition with no residency penalty, plus partner-institution and military discounts, makes it Rhode Island’s least expensive PMHNP pathway — cheaper than URI even at URI’s in-state rate. Coursework is fully online in seven-week modules with six start dates a year; the only required travel is a single 40-hour skills colloquium on the Newport campus.
Quick Facts
| Feature | Details |
|---|---|
| Program Types | MSN (PMHNP concentration), Post-MSN Certificate |
| Format | Mostly Online — 7-week online modules plus one 40-hour Newport skills colloquium |
| Clinical Hours | 750 supervised hours (both tracks) |
| Clinical Placement | Majority at psychiatric mental health community partner sites; guarantee not clearly stated |
| Population | Across the lifespan |
| Distinctive Coursework | Psychogenomics, healthcare informatics/telehealth |
| RN License Requirements | Current RN license in good standing |
| Tuition | $801/credit partner, $848 non-partner; $1,000 one-time MSN fee |
| Accreditation | CCNE (nursing); NECHE (institutional) |
MSN – PMHNP Concentration
The estimated tuition for the MSN with PMHNP Concentration at Salve Regina is approximately $40,851 for nurses from partner institutions (51 credits at $801/credit) or $43,248 at the standard $848/credit rate.
The program can generally be completed in about 3 years of full-time study, with the entire third year devoted to clinical practica.
MSN Curriculum
The 51-credit sequence runs in seven-week modules with six start dates per year (fall, spring, summer), mostly asynchronous with limited live sessions. That module format matters for working nurses: courses are short and stackable, so a missed term costs seven weeks rather than a full semester.
Structure. Year-one and year-two coursework covers APRN core (pathophysiology, health assessment, pharmacology) plus research, informatics, and policy before the three-course PMHNP didactic sequence. All 750 clinical hours are held for year three — a back-loaded design that keeps the early program fully online but concentrates the heaviest workload at the end.
Unique coursework. NUR 558 builds psychogenomics into medication management — using genetic factors to guide psychotropic selection — which few PMHNP programs teach as a named course topic. A dedicated informatics course (NUR 514) covers telehealth and clinical decision support, practical preparation given how much psychiatric care has moved to virtual delivery.
Representative courses:
- NUR 512 – Advanced Health Assessment
- NUR 535 – Pharmacologic Principles for Advanced Practice Nursing
- NUR 542 – Advanced Psychopharmacology Across the Lifespan
- NUR 546 – PMHNP I: Assessment, Diagnostics, Evaluation & Psychotherapies
- NUR 558 – PMHNP II: Psychogenomics, Pharmacologic Management & Counseling
- NUR 568 – PMHNP III: Mental Health Across the Lifespan
- NUR 570/575/580 – PMHNP Clinical I–III (250 hours each)
- NUR 514 – Advanced Healthcare Informatics
Students must maintain a 3.0 GPA and may transfer up to 9 credits, with at least 42 credits completed at Salve Regina. More curriculum details are available here.
MSN Clinical Requirements
- 750 direct, supervised clinical hours across the lifespan (3 practicum courses × 250 hours; 18 credits total)
- Practica completed during year three
- Majority of hours at psychiatric mental health community partner sites
- Mandatory 40-hour skills-based colloquium on the Newport campus at the start of the clinical sequence
- Placement guarantee and preceptor-search responsibility: not clearly stated
750 hours is above the ~500-hour national minimum and matches URI’s requirement, so Salve’s lower price does not come from thinner clinical training. The community-partner language suggests the school maintains site relationships, but it stops short of a placement guarantee — ask admissions directly who secures your preceptor. Budget for the Newport trip: it is the one fixed in-person cost in an otherwise online program.
MSN Admissions
Admissions are straightforward, with rolling review and no stated experience requirement, GRE, or interview.
- BSN from an accredited program
- Current RN license in good standing (verified)
- Minimum 3.0 cumulative GPA
- Official transcripts from all degree-granting institutions
- Online application; fall, spring, and summer starts
Post-Master’s Certificate – PMHNP
The estimated tuition for the Post-Master’s PMHNP Certificate at Salve Regina is approximately $24,030 for partner-institution nurses (30 credits at $801/credit) or $25,440 at $848/credit.
The program can generally be completed in about 2 years, with clinicals in year two.
Certificate Curriculum
The certificate is the MSN’s specialty core with the APRN foundation stripped out: four didactic courses (12 credits) plus the same three 6-credit practica. At 30 credits it is larger than many post-master’s PMHNP certificates — URI’s runs 19–20 credits — because Salve does not appear to reduce the specialty sequence based on prior coursework.
The trade-off is a uniform, predictable curriculum rather than an individualized gap analysis.
- NUR 542 – Advanced Psychopharmacology Across the Lifespan (3)
- NUR 546 – PMHNP I: Assessment, Diagnostics, Evaluation & Psychotherapies (3)
- NUR 558 – PMHNP II: Psychogenomics, Psycho-Pharmaco-Management and Counseling (3)
- NUR 568 – PMHNP III: Mental Health Across the Lifespan (3)
- NUR 570/575/580 – PMHNP Clinical I–III (6 each)
A minimum grade of B- is required in every course; a course may be repeated once, and a second grade below B- results in disenrollment.
More curriculum details are available here.
Certificate Clinical Requirements
- 750 direct, supervised clinical hours — identical to the MSN track
- Three practicum courses (18 credits) in year two
- Same mandatory 40-hour Newport colloquium
Full 750-hour parity is a genuine credential advantage: certificate graduates finish with the same clinical volume as MSN graduates, and well above certificates that require only 500 hours. The cost is time — two years is slow for a post-master’s certificate, and nurses who want the fastest route to PMHNP certification will find shorter options elsewhere in the state.
Certificate Admissions
No psychiatric experience gate or interview is stated; admission is rolling with three start seasons.
- MSN from an accredited institution
- Current RN license in good standing (verified)
- Official transcripts from all degree-granting institutions
- Online application; fall, spring, and summer starts
Tuition
Total estimated tuition is about $40,851–$43,248 for the MSN and $24,030–$25,440 for the certificate, depending on partner status. Estimates are credits × per-credit rate: 51 or 30 credits at $801 (partner) or $848 (non-partner).
- Partner-institution rate: $801/credit; standard rate: $848/credit
- Partner pricing extends to spouses, family members, and military members
- One-time MSN program fee: $1,000 ($500 for current Salve students); no equivalent fee stated for the certificate
- Employer tuition-reimbursement arrangements available where possible
- Rates are flat regardless of state residency
All-in, a partner-rate MSN student should plan on roughly $41,851 including the program fee — still the lowest published PMHNP total in Rhode Island. Before assuming the standard rate, check whether your hospital is a Salve partner; the difference is about $2,400 on the MSN.
See the official tuition page for more details.
Why Choose This PMHNP Program?
Best suited for working nurses who want Rhode Island’s lowest-cost PMHNP credential, need to start soon rather than wait for a fall cohort, and can accept a slower overall pace.
The value case is unusually clean. Salve charges everyone the same flat rate, so out-of-state nurses avoid the residency penalty that roughly doubles URI’s price, and even in-state URI students pay about twice Salve’s MSN total. If your employer is a partner institution — or you are military, or married to a partner-institution nurse — the discount compounds the advantage. Six start dates a year with rolling admission means you can typically begin within months of deciding, not the following academic year.
The trade-offs are pace and placement clarity. Three years for the MSN and two for the certificate are slower than many competitors, and the back-loaded clinical year means the hardest stretch comes last, when program fatigue is highest. The school’s community-partner clinical network is a plus, but the source materials never promise placement — verify that in writing. Nurses who prioritize one-to-one preceptorship and faculty-arranged placements over price may prefer URI; nurses who prioritize total cost and scheduling flexibility should start here.
Accreditation
Salve Regina University is institutionally accredited by the New England Commission of Higher Education (NECHE). The baccalaureate, master’s, and Doctor of Nursing Practice programs in nursing are accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE); the university’s CCNE statement does not separately name the post-master’s certificate, which is common phrasing but worth confirming with admissions if the certificate is your track. The university states that graduates are prepared to sit for the national PMHNP certification examination through either ANCC or AANP — dual eligibility that keeps both certifying bodies open to you.
Related PMHNP Programs
Rhode Island has just 2 PMHNP programs: the other program is URI. You can compare both schools, along with more online options our of state, on our main Rhode Island page.