California Baptist University offers two Adult-Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner tracks:
- MSN
- Post-Master’s Certificate
California Baptist University offers two Adult-Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner tracks:
- MSN AGACNP
- Post-Master’s Certificate AGACNP
Program Tracks Overview
| Program | Est. Tuition | Est. Duration | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| MSN AGACNP | $43.3K | About 3 years (8 semesters) | 62 |
| Certificate | $23.1K | About 1.5 years (4 semesters) | 33 |
Tuition, duration, and the MSN unit total are calculated rather than published.
The 33-unit certificate is the MSN’s AGACNP concentration with nothing added or removed, so the difference between the two credentials is 29 core units and roughly $20,000. CBU expects students in both tracks to keep working as registered nurses throughout the program.
Quick Facts
| Feature | Details |
|---|---|
| Program Types | MSN, Post-Master’s Certificate |
| Population Focus | Adult-Gerontology Acute Care (AGACNP) |
| Format | Hybrid. Online with in-person residencies, or campus one afternoon or evening per week |
| Campus Visits | Weekly for the campus format. Residency count not published for the online format |
| Clinical Hours | No AGACNP total published. CBU states it meets or exceeds California BRN requirements |
| Clinical Placement | Rotations assigned by CBU across hospitals, health care facilities, and community sites |
| RN Experience | One year for the MSN, one to two years for the certificate. No acute care requirement stated |
| License Requirements | Active, unencumbered California RN license |
| Distinctive Coursework | Trauma, geriatric acute care pharmacotherapeutics, advanced cardiac rhythm analysis |
| Start Terms | MSN: fall and spring. Certificate: spring and summer |
| Tuition | $699 per unit for 2026-27, plus a $1,246 program fee with each practicum course |
| Certification | ANCC AGACNP-BC, AACN ACNPC-AG, and California BRN nurse practitioner certification |
| Accreditation | CCNE for the master’s degree program. WSCUC institutional accreditation |
Requirements Shared Across All Tracks
Both tracks run the same 33-unit AGACNP concentration, so the specialty courses, practicum sequence, clinical rules, campus formats, and concurrent employment expectation are identical.
Clinical Requirements
- Practicum courses: four, taken alongside the four AGACNP theory courses (NUR508P, NUR509P, NUR510P, NUR511P)
- Clock hours: no total published for the AGACNP practicum sequence
- Regulatory floor: California requires nurse practitioner programs to meet a minimum of 500 supervised direct patient care hours, and permits programs to exceed it
- Placement model: CBU assigns rotations across hospitals, health care facilities, and community settings to vary the experience
- Faculty oversight: practicum hours are completed under the instruction and supervision of College of Nursing faculty
- Final practicum: NUR511P is structured as a residency, with complex caseloads and near-independent decision-making
- Simulation: students have access to CBU’s Clinical Simulation Lab and Resource Center in Riverside
You Should Know
- Hours are published for other concentrations: CBU lists clock hours course by course for its FNP practica (630 hours) and its PMHNP practica (585 hours)
- The AGACNP course descriptions carry no equivalent figure: the program page states only that the College of Nursing meets or exceeds California BRN clinical hour requirements
Campus Requirements
- Two formats: online with in-person residencies throughout the program, or on campus one afternoon or evening per week
- Campus format cadence: weekly, in person, at the Riverside campus
- Online format residencies: number, length, and timing are not published
- Neither format is fully remote: both require travel to Riverside
You Should Know
- Residency detail: CBU describes the online format as carrying in-person residencies throughout the program, and publishes no count, length, or schedule for them
RN Experience and Licensure
- MSN requirement: a professional resume showing current practice and at least one year of RN work experience
- Certificate requirement: at least one to two years of RN work experience
- Specialty setting: neither track specifies acute care, ICU, emergency, or critical care experience
- Concurrent employment: students are expected to work as registered nurses throughout the program
- Licensure: an active, unencumbered California RN license is required at application, not at matriculation
- Interview: a successful interview with the College of Nursing is required for both tracks
Master of Science in Nursing, AGACNP
The estimated tuition for the MSN AGACNP program at California Baptist University is approximately $43,338 (62 units at $699 per unit). The program can generally be completed in about three years across eight semesters.
Both figures are derived, not published. CBU lists the MSN at 39 to 62 units and 6 to 8 semesters across all six concentrations. AGACNP is the largest concentration at 33 units, which places it at the top of both ranges.
MSN Curriculum
- 62 units: a 29-unit advanced practice core plus the 33-unit AGACNP concentration
- NUR555, NUR558, NUR560: Advanced Pathophysiology, Advanced Pharmacology, and Advanced Assessment, the sequence required of nurse practitioner students in place of the combined 3Ps course
- NUR560: Advanced Assessment carries a weekly laboratory practicum totaling 45 hours
- IPE510, IPE520, IPE530: a three-course interprofessional education sequence ending in a university-wide simulation
- NUR508, NUR509, NUR510, NUR511: the four AGACNP theory courses, moving from acute presentation through geriatric syndromes, trauma, and multisystem transitions of care
- NUR510: a standalone trauma course covering kinematics of injury, special populations, and the AGACNP role on a trauma team
- NUR513 and NUR514: Pharmacology for Acute Care and Geriatric Pharmacotherapeutics for Acute Care
- NUR528: Advanced Cardiac Rhythm Analysis
- NUR597: Comprehensive Examination and professional portfolio
More curriculum details are available here.
MSN Admissions
- Degree: BSN from an institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education or CHEA
- GPA: 3.0 minimum
- Licensure: active, unencumbered California RN license
- Experience: resume showing current practice and one year as an RN
- Interview: required with the College of Nursing
- Fall deadlines: May 15 priority, August 1 standard
- Spring deadlines: November 1 priority, December 1 standard
- Clearances: CPR certification, background check, health clearance, drug testing, proof of health insurance, proof of motor vehicle insurance
Post-Master’s Certificate, AGACNP
The estimated tuition for the Post-Master’s AGACNP Certificate at California Baptist University is approximately $23,067 (33 units at $699 per unit). The program can generally be completed in about a year and a half across four semesters.
Certificate Curriculum
The 33 units are the MSN’s AGACNP concentration, course for course: the four theory courses and four paired practica, NUR513, NUR514, NUR528, and NUR597. Clinical requirements and the practicum sequence match the shared section above.
More curriculum details are available here.
Certificate Admissions
- Degree: MSN from an institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education or CHEA
- GPA: 3.0 minimum
- Prerequisites: Advanced Pathophysiology, Advanced Pharmacology, and Advanced Physical Assessment, each completed within the last five years with a B- or better
- Prerequisite recovery: the three courses can be taken at CBU
- Experience: resume showing one to two years as an RN
- Spring deadlines: November 1 priority, December 1 standard
- Summer deadlines: March 1 priority, April 1 standard
- Clearances: same set required of MSN applicants
You Should Know
- No fall entry: the certificate admits in spring and summer only, so a missed spring deadline pushes the start by a term rather than a year
- Pharmacology recency is tied to a second date: CBU requires Advanced Pharmacology to be completed within five years of the date the California BRN furnishing number application is filed, not only within five years of program entry, so a course that clears admissions can still expire before furnishing eligibility
Be aware that:
- Accreditation scope: CBU states that the master’s degree program in nursing is CCNE accredited
- What is not stated: the university does not separately state CCNE accreditation for the post-graduate APRN certificate program
- Why it matters: ANCC requires the post-graduate certificate program itself to be accredited for a certificate holder to sit for the AGACNP-BC exam
Tuition
Graduate nursing tuition for post-licensure programs is $699 per unit in 2026-27. The rate is the same for the MSN and the certificate, and does not vary by delivery format or state of residence.
| Program | Credits | Estimated Tuition |
|---|---|---|
| MSN AGACNP | 62 | $43,338 |
| Post-Master’s Certificate | 33 | $23,067 |
Mandatory fees sit on top of tuition:
- APRN concentration program fee: $1,246, charged with each of the four AGACNP practicum courses, adding about $4,984 to either track
- General graduate fee: $365 per semester at five or more units, $180 per semester at four units or fewer
- Comprehensive examination fee: $355, charged with NUR597
- Nursing course lab fee: $350, charged with NUR560 and therefore applying to MSN students only
You Should Know
- The program fee is course-linked, not annual: it attaches to NURS5080P, NURS5090P, NURS5100P, and NURS5110P by course code
- Both tracks pay it four times: certificate students take the same four practica, so the fee is identical at both credential levels
- General fee exposure varies: a part-time student stretching the MSN across eight semesters pays the per-semester general fee eight times
See the official tuition and aid page for current rates and fee detail.
Financial aid
CBU administers the federal Nurse Faculty Loan Program through the College of Nursing, though it is aimed at students preparing for nursing faculty roles rather than clinical practice. Graduate students should confirm eligibility for institutional aid separately, since certificate students at many universities are ineligible for degree-seeking awards.
Why Choose This ACNP Program?
The certificate is the concentration. Its 33 units are the MSN’s AGACNP block course for course, with the same practica and the same faculty oversight. A master’s-prepared nurse pays for specialty content and nothing else.
No acute care experience gate. CBU asks for one year of general RN practice for the MSN and one to two for the certificate. Applicants coming from med-surg, step-down, or telemetry are not screened out at the door.
Trauma and rhythm interpretation get their own courses. NUR510 and its paired practicum are built around traumatic injury, and NUR528 covers cardiac electrophysiology and arrhythmia management as a standalone course.
Two formats, one curriculum. Students choose weekly evening classes on the Riverside campus or an online cohort with periodic in-person residencies. Tuition is identical either way.
The program fits a working California RN in or near the Inland Empire who wants a cohort-based Christian program and can hold a nursing job while studying. Nurses who need a documented clinical hour count before committing, or who cannot travel to Riverside, will find the published information thin.
Accreditation and Certification
California Baptist University holds institutional accreditation from the WASC Senior College and University Commission. The master’s degree program in nursing is accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education, which covers the MSN AGACNP track.
The College of Nursing’s graduate nurse practitioner programs are approved by the California Board of Registered Nursing, the approval that allows graduates to apply for state nurse practitioner certification and a furnishing number.
Graduates of both tracks carry an adult-gerontology acute care population focus. That maps to two national exams: the ANCC Adult-Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner certification (AGACNP-BC) and the AACN Adult-Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner certification (ACNPC-AG). Certificate holders should confirm that the post-graduate APRN certificate program carries its own accreditation before sitting for either exam.
Additional ACNP Programs for California Students
- Cal State LA - Los Angeles
- CSU Long Beach - Long Beach
- Loma Linda University - Loma Linda
- University of California San Francisco - San Francisco
- West Coast University - Anaheim
Compare California ACNP programs by cost, admissions, clinicals etc