Seattle University offers 2 Adult-Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner tracks:
- RN-DNP with AGACNP Specialization
- Post-Master’s Certificate: AGACNP
The DNP is a full-time, three-year program built around 150 clinical hours per quarter and access to a 20,000 sq. ft. Clinical Performance Lab at Swedish Cherry Hill Medical Center.
The certificate targets FNP- or AGPCNP-certified nurses who want to add acute care credentials without re-entering a degree program — and its monthly block schedule is one of the more employer-friendly formats in the Pacific Northwest.
Program Tracks Overview
| Program Name | Est. Tuition | Est. Duration |
|---|---|---|
| RN-DNP AGACNP | $107K–$109K ($973/cr × 110–112 cr) | 3 years |
| Post-Master’s Certificate AGACNP | $39,900 ($973/cr × 41 cr) | 18 months |
RN-DNP AGACNP
The estimated cost for the RN-DNP AGACNP at Seattle University is approximately $107,030–$108,976 at $973 per credit across 110–112 credits, and the program takes 3 years to complete on a full-time basis.
DNP Curriculum
The DNP curriculum totals a minimum of 110 credits and is organized into three tiers: Advanced Practice Foundation (19 credits), DNP Foundation (45 credits), and AGACNP Specialization (46 credits).
Foundation content covers pharmacology, pathophysiology, health assessment, healthcare policy, economics, epidemiology, informatics, quality improvement, and the DNP project internship sequence.
Specialization coursework moves through three progressive acute care management levels — chronic conditions, acute/complex conditions, and critical/unstable conditions — each paired with a lab and clinical practicum. All courses require a minimum grade of B-.
Advanced Practice Foundation (19 credits)
- NURS 6001 – Advanced Health Assessment: Lab (2 cr)
- NURS 6004 – Pharmacology for Registered Nurses (3 cr)
- NURS 6022 – Advanced Pharmacology (5 cr)
- NURS 6024 – Advanced Pathophysiology (4 cr)
- NURS 6075 – Clinical Reasoning (3 cr)
- NURS 6101 – Advanced Health Assessment: Theory (2 cr)
DNP Foundation (45 credits)
- NURS 6010 – Health Care Policy for a Just and Humane World (3 cr)
- NURS 6014 – Theory Informed Critical Inquiry I (3 cr)
- NURS 6015 – Critical Inquiry II (3 cr)
- NURS 6017 – Health Care Economics and Finance (3 cr)
- NURS 6018 – Health Program Planning, Development and Evaluation (3 cr)
- NURS 6020 – Epidemiologic Analysis of Populations at Risk (4 cr)
- NURS 6110 – Ethical Care for Social Justice (4 cr)
- NURS 6111 – Health Informatics (3 cr)
- NURS 6120 – Population-Based Health Care (3 cr)
- NURS 6130 – Foundations of Nursing Knowledge for Advanced Practice (3 cr)
- NURS 6160 – Leadership in Health Care Systems (3 cr)
- NURS 6190 – Quality Improvement Process and Methodologies (3 cr)
- NURS 6901 – DNP Internship I (3 cr)
- NURS 6903 – DNP Project Internship II (2–4 cr)
- NURS 6905 – DNP Project Internship III (2–4 cr)
AGACNP Specialization (46 credits)
NURS 6104 – Management of Gynecologic and Reproductive Health: Lab
Builds clinical skills in assessing and managing common gynecologic and reproductive health needs.
NURS 6204 – Management of Gynecologic and Reproductive Health: Theory
Covers gynecologic and reproductive health across the lifespan, including screening, pregnancy care, and common conditions.
NURS 6401 – Diagnostics and Procedures
Introduces common diagnostic tests and outpatient procedures used in acute and sub-acute care.
NURS 6411 – Diagnostics and Procedures Laboratory
Provides hands-on practice in performing procedures, ordering diagnostics, and interpreting results.
NURS 6402 – Acute Care I: Management of Chronic Conditions in the Acute Care Setting
Focuses on distinguishing acute and chronic problems and planning evidence-based care for adult and older adult patients.
NURS 6403 – Acute Care Practicum I: Management of Chronic Conditions during Acute Alterations in Health
Offers supervised clinical practice managing chronic conditions during acute care encounters.
NURS 6404 – Acute Care II: Management of Acute and Complex Conditions
Expands acute care decision-making for rapidly changing and complex inpatient conditions.
NURS 6405 – Acute Care Practicum II: Management of Acute Conditions During Altered States of Health
Provides advanced clinical experience caring for adults with acute and chronic problems in changing health states.
NURS 6406 – Advanced Inpatient and Critical-Care Pharmacology
Applies pharmacology principles to medication management in critical care settings.
NURS 6407 – Acute Care III: Management of Critical and Unstable Conditions
Focuses on evidence-based care for critically ill and unstable adult patients.
NURS 6408 – Acute Care Practicum III: Management of Critical or Unstable Conditions during Altered State of Health
Strengthens clinical skills in managing critically ill and unstable patients.
NURS 6409 – Acute Care Practicum IV: Specialty Focus
Provides focused advanced practice experience in a specialty acute care area.
NURS 6412 – Acute Care I-Lab: Management of Chronic and Complex Conditions
Supports acute care learning through lab-based application of chronic and complex condition management.
NURS 6414 – Acute Care II-Lab: Management of Acute and Complex Conditions
Reinforces acute care skills for complex inpatient conditions through simulation and lab practice.
NURS 6417 – Acute Care III-Lab: Management of Critical and Unstable Conditions
Develops lab-based competence in critical care assessment, reasoning, and intervention.
More curriculum details are available here.
DNP Clinicals
Students complete 150 clinical hours per quarter across four progressively complex practicum courses, plus a specialty focus practicum in Year 3. All nurse practitioner tracks require more than 600 supervised clinical hours for program completion, in addition to 400 hours of DNP project/internship experience.
- Practicum I: Chronic conditions in the acute care setting
- Practicum II: Acute and complex conditions
- Practicum III: Critical and unstable conditions
- Practicum IV: Specialty focus (e.g., hospitalist, cardiology, critical care, emergency)
- Many clinical shifts are structured as 12-hour shifts
- Clinical placements include hospitalist teams, specialty consult services, advanced heart failure units, and critical care settings
- Procedural training includes central line placement, thoracentesis, and airway management
- Clinical Performance Lab at Swedish Cherry Hill Medical Center (20,000 sq. ft.) used for simulation and OSCEs
- Global health experience available for some Acute Care cohorts
DNP Admissions
Applicants must hold an RN license and a BSN from a regionally accredited institution; one year of acute care experience is preferred for this specialization.
- BSN (or equivalent four-year baccalaureate) from a regionally accredited institution
- Active, unencumbered RN license; Washington state license required before program start in June
- Minimum 3.0 GPA in the last 90-quarter / 60-semester credits (sub-3.0 considered with evidence of other achievements)
- Undergraduate statistics course (3–5 credits) completed within 10 years with a grade of C or better
- One year of acute care RN experience preferred
- Two years of work experience preferred overall
- Professional résumé
- Letter of intent (2–3 pages, 12-pt Times New Roman, double-spaced)
- Two letters of recommendation (at least one from an academic source)
- Select applicants invited for interview (February)
- No application fee
- Priority deadline: December 1; program starts June
Post-Master’s DNP Applicants: Must hold a master’s degree in nursing or a health-related field with a 3.0 GPA from a regionally accredited program. If the master’s is in nursing, it must be CCNE or NLNAC accredited. Up to 500 post-baccalaureate supervised academic clinical hours may be credited toward the 1,000-hour graduation requirement. Priority deadline: January 15.
Post-Master’s Certificate AGACNP
The estimated cost for the Post-Master’s Certificate AGACNP at Seattle University is approximately $39,893 at $973 per credit across 41 credits, and the program takes 18 months (6 consecutive quarters) to complete.
Certificate Curriculum
The certificate requires 41 credits completed across six consecutive quarters. Coursework focuses exclusively on acute care: diagnostics and procedures, advanced inpatient pharmacology, and three escalating levels of acute care management — each paired with a lab and a clinical practicum — culminating in a specialty focus practicum. There are no DNP foundation or leadership courses; this program is purely AGACNP clinical preparation.
- Winter Year 1 (6 cr)
- NURS 6401 – Diagnostics and Procedures (1 cr)
- NURS 6406 – Advanced Inpatient and Critical-Care Pharmacology (3 cr)
- Spring Year 1 (5 cr)
- NURS 6402 – Acute Care I: Management of Chronic Conditions in the Acute Care Setting (3 cr)
- NURS 6412 – Acute Care I-Lab (2 cr)
- Summer Year 1 (5 cr)
- NURS 6403 – Acute Care Practicum I: Management of Chronic Conditions during Acute Alterations in Health (5 cr)
- Fall Year 1 (10 cr)
- NURS 6404 – Acute Care II: Management of Acute and Complex Conditions (3 cr)
- NURS 6414 – Acute Care II-Lab (2 cr)
- NURS 6405 – Acute Care Practicum II: Management of Acute Conditions During Altered States of Health (5 cr)
- Winter Year 2 (10 cr)
- NURS 6407 – Acute Care III: Management of Critical and Unstable Conditions (3 cr)
- NURS 6417 – Acute Care III-Lab (2 cr)
- NURS 6408 – Acute Care Practicum III: Management of Critical or Unstable Conditions during Altered State of Health (5 cr)
- Spring Year 2 (5 cr)
- NURS 6409 – Acute Care Practicum IV: Specialty Focus (5 cr)
More curriculum details are available here.
Certificate Clinicals
Clinical practicum hours are spread across four courses (Practicum I–IV), with specialty focus options including Hospital Medicine/ICU, Cardiology, and Emergency Medicine/Trauma. Students can complete clinical hours in their home communities.
- Practicum I: Chronic conditions during acute alterations in health
- Practicum II: Acute conditions during altered states of health
- Practicum III: Critical or unstable conditions
- Practicum IV: Specialty focus sub-specialty (hospitalist/ICU, cardiology, emergency/trauma)
- Clinical hours can be completed in the student’s home community
- Specific total hour counts are not published; three contact hours per credit apply to clinical courses per university policy
Certificate Admissions
Applicants must be certified as a Family Nurse Practitioner or Adult-Geriatric NP and hold a graduate nursing degree from a CCNE- or NLNAC-accredited program.
- Current FNP or AGPCNP certification required
- Graduate degree in nursing from a CCNE- or NLNAC-accredited program at a regionally accredited institution
- Minimum 3.0 GPA
- Active, unencumbered RN and ARNP license
- Professional résumé (two years of work experience preferred)
- Statement of professional and personal goals
- Two letters of recommendation: one academic, one from an employer — both must address potential for success in acute care APRN practice
- Prerequisite coursework required (within 3 years unless current clinical practice maintained): Advanced Health Assessment, Advanced Pathophysiology, Advanced Pharmacology, Differential Diagnosis, Epidemiology/Population Health, Ethics and Health Policy, Critical Inquiry/Research, Advanced Nursing Practice Roles, Primary Care Management
- No application fee
- Priority deadline: January 15; program starts January
Tuition
Seattle University charges $973 per credit for all graduate nursing programs, with no distinction between residents and non-residents. Both the DNP and the post-master’s certificate use this same per-credit rate.
The DNP program also carries a program-specific fee of $268 per quarter for full-time students (6 or more credits); the certificate program follows the same fee structure.
Additional quarterly fees include a $208 technology fee, $172 wellness fee, and $10 graduate activity fee. A one-time $175 matriculation fee applies at enrollment.
See the official tuition page for more details: Seattle University Graduate Tuition & Fees.
Accreditation
The baccalaureate degree program in nursing, Doctor of Nursing Practice program, and post-graduate APRN certificate program at Seattle University are accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE). Graduates of both the DNP and the post-master’s certificate are eligible to sit for the AG-ACNP certification exam through ANCC and AACN.
Other Washington State PNP Programs
- University of Washington - Seattle