Colorado State University Pueblo offers five acute care nurse practitioner pathways:
- MS
- BSN to DNP
- MS AGACNP/FNP dual concentration
- BSN to DNP AGACNP/FNP dual concentration
- Post-Master’s Certificate
Program Tracks Overview
| Program | Est. Tuition | Est. Duration | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| MS | $33.2K | 2.5 years (7 semesters) | 53 |
| BSN-DNP | $56.1K | 4 years (11 semesters) | 83 |
| MS AGACNP/FNP | $46.3K | 2.5 years (7 semesters) | 74 |
| BSN-DNP AGACNP/FNP | $69.7K | 4 years (11 semesters) | 104 |
| Certificate | $15.0K | 2 years (6 semesters) | 24-26 |
Tuition and duration are both calculated rather than published. Tuition reflects Colorado resident and WRGP rates.
Every practicum hour must be completed in Colorado, and students locate their own preceptors after five documented attempts. That restriction applies to all five pathways, including the AGACNP/FNP dual concentration.
Quick Facts
| Feature | Details |
|---|---|
| Program Types | MS, BSN to DNP, post-master’s certificate |
| Population Focus | AGACNP, or AGACNP/FNP in the dual concentration |
| Format | Hybrid |
| Campus Visits | Not published; on-campus class days and three simulation labs are required |
| Clinical Hours | 780 AGACNP practicum hours, 1,560 for the dual, plus 540 DNP hours and 120 lab hours |
| Clinical Placement | Student-sourced preceptors; all hours must be completed in Colorado |
| RN Experience | One year full-time or two years part-time required for the MS tracks |
| Distinctive Coursework | Acute Care Skills Lab I and II; a five-course AGACNP theory and practicum sequence |
| License Requirements | Colorado or compact RN license; BLS, ACLS, and PALS |
| Start Terms | Fall; all first-term core courses are offered in fall only |
| Tuition | $625.89 per credit for Colorado residents and WRGP states, 2026-27 |
| Certification | AGACNP examination; the dual concentration adds FNP eligibility |
| Accreditation | ACEN; the clinical doctorate holds Initial Accreditation |
| State Restrictions | Practicum hours must be completed in Colorado |
Requirements Shared Across All Tracks
Clinical Requirements
- Total AGACNP hours: 780 clock hours for students admitted Fall 2024 or later, across four to seven semesters; 585 hours for students admitted before Fall 2024
- Rotation mix: 180 hours hospitalist or intensivist, 180 emergency or urgent care, 180 specialty medicine across two to four specialties, 180 hospital units, 60 rural health
- Placement location: all practicum hours must be completed in the state of Colorado
- Finding preceptors: students make five documented attempts before the Graduate Clinical Liaison assists, and are advised to start planning three semesters ahead
- Preceptor standard: AGACNP, physician, or physician assistant with national board certification and at least two years of practice in the population focus
- Substitute preceptors: FNPs working full-time in acute or emergency settings, and clinical nurse specialists, are each capped at 25% of program clinical hours
- Family practices: 120-hour maximum at a family-owned site, and no precepting by a family member or partner
- Indirect care: up to 30 hours of faculty-approved indirect patient care time
- Scheduling: no clinical hours during university holidays or fall, winter, and spring breaks
You Should Know
- Colorado-only clinicals: the graduate clinical handbook states that practicum hours must be completed in Colorado, which rules the program out for nurses who cannot rotate in-state
- Reciprocity: CSU Pueblo states the program meets Colorado State Board of Nursing requirements and that reciprocity to other states is not guaranteed
- New sites take time: a new clinical affiliation agreement takes four to six weeks, and some organizations take up to twelve months
Campus Requirements
- Published cadence: CSU Pueblo does not publish a campus visit count or schedule for the AGACNP concentrations
- On-campus class: the graduate clinical handbook describes pre-clinical orientation delivered on the first day of on-campus class
- Simulation labs: three lab courses carry 120 lab hours, NSG 562L Advanced Assessment Lab, NSG 613L Acute Care Skills Lab I, and NSG 614L Acute Care Skills Lab II
- Online listings: CSU Pueblo Online lists the Nurse Educator, Nurse Manager and Leader, and DNP programs; the AGACNP concentrations are not among them
RN Experience and Licensure
- MS tracks: one year of full-time or two years of part-time RN clinical experience is required
- DNP and certificate: those catalog pages list 2,000 hours of RN experience as an admission preference rather than a requirement
- Licensure timing: an active, unrestricted Colorado or compact RN license is required at admission for MS and MS-to-DNP options, and by the end of the first semester for BSN-to-DNP options
- Certifications: BLS, ACLS, and PALS are required for acute care and family NP students, must come from an American Heart Association or Red Cross provider, and must be current before the first clinical day
- Compliance: annual background check and drug screen, immunizations, and NSO student liability insurance, all tracked through DISA Healthcare, formerly CastleBranch
You Should Know
- Compliance deadline: fall admits must open a DISA Healthcare account and upload every required document by September 30, and missing that date blocks spring registration
Master of Science AGACNP
The estimated tuition for the MS AGACNP concentration at CSU Pueblo is approximately $33,172 (53 credits at $625.89/credit). The program can generally be completed in about 2.5 years across seven semesters.
MS Curriculum
- NSG 610: Diagnostic Reasoning (2 credits, spring and summer)
- NSG 613L: Acute Care Skills Lab I (2 credits, spring only)
- NSG 614L: Acute Care Skills Lab II (1 credit, summer only)
- NSG 641: Adult/Gerontology Acute Care I (3 credits, summer only)
- NSG 642 and 642L: Acute Care II and AGACNP Practicum II (6 credits, fall only)
- NSG 643 and 643L: Acute Care III and Practicum III (4 credits, spring only)
- NSG 644 and 644L: Acute Care IV and Practicum IV (4 credits, summer only)
- NSG 645 and 645L: Acute Care V and Practicum V (3 credits, fall only)
- NSG 646L: AGACNP Practicum MS (1 credit in each of the final three semesters)
- Advanced practice core: pathophysiology, pharmacology, advanced assessment and lab, theory, research, health promotion, informatics, and ethics, law and policy
More curriculum details are available here.
You Should Know
- Annual course rotation: each AGACNP theory and practicum course is offered in one fixed term per year, so failing or deferring a single course delays graduation by a full year
MS Admissions
- Degree and GPA: BSN from an accredited university with a 3.0 GPA or higher
- Prerequisites: statistics, microbiology, and chemistry, each passed with a C or better; a C-minus is not accepted
- Progression: every course must be passed with a B or better, with a 3.0 graduate GPA maintained
- Transfer credit: a maximum of nine semester hours, subject to program director approval
- Exit requirement: an oral comprehensive exam, with a 6 to 9 credit thesis as an option
BSN to DNP AGACNP
The estimated tuition for the DNP AGACNP concentration at CSU Pueblo is approximately $56,114 (47 credits at $625.89 and 36 doctoral credits at $741.60). The program can generally be completed in about four years across eleven semesters.
The MS is awarded concurrently with the DNP, which CSU Pueblo ties to states that require a specific master’s degree for nurse practitioner practice.
DNP Curriculum
The doctoral tier adds 30 credits, and the AGACNP specialty sequence does not begin until the summer of year two.
- NSG 505: Biostatistics and Research (3 credits), replacing the master’s research course
- NSG 712: Research and Evidence Based Practice (3 credits)
- NSG 714: Epidemiology (3 credits)
- NSG 716, 718, and 748: Health Care Business and Finance, Organizational and Systems Leadership, and Healthcare Ethics, Law and Policy (4 credits each, and each carrying 45 community practicum hours)
- NSG 801 to 805: the DNP seminar and four DNP Project Practicum courses (12 credits across four semesters)
- NSG 806L: Final DNP Practicum AGACNP (6 credits, split 3 AGACNP and 3 DNP)
- DNP practicum hours: 540 hours on top of the 780 AGACNP hours in the shared section, which CSU Pueblo totals as 1,320
More curriculum details are available here.
DNP Admissions
- Degree and GPA: BSN from an accredited university with a 3.0 GPA or higher
- RN experience: the DNP catalog page does not restate the one-year requirement that the MS page carries
- Ongoing compliance: background checks, immunizations, drug screens, CPR, ACLS, PALS, malpractice and health insurance must stay current throughout the program
- Graduation: an oral comprehensive exam plus an approved DNP project
MS and DNP AGACNP/FNP Dual Concentration
The estimated tuition for the MS AGACNP/FNP dual concentration is approximately $46,316 (74 credits at $625.89/credit). It can generally be completed in about 2.5 years across seven semesters.
The DNP version runs 104 credits at an estimated $69,721. It takes about four years across eleven semesters.
Dual Curriculum
- NSG 661 to 665: Family I through V (8 credits), running alongside the AGACNP theory sequence
- NSG 636L: FNP Practicum, a variable-credit course totaling 13 credits
- Clinical hours: 780 AGACNP plus 780 FNP hours, 1,560 in total, across five to six semesters
- NSG 807L: the DNP version replaces NSG 806L with a 10-credit final practicum split 4 FNP, 3 AGACNP, and 3 DNP
- Certification: graduates are eligible for both the AGACNP and FNP examinations
Admission requirements and the shared clinical, campus, and licensure requirements match the single-focus tracks. A post-master’s certificate in the dual concentration is also offered.
Post-Master’s Certificate AGACNP
The estimated tuition for the post-master’s AGACNP certificate at CSU Pueblo is approximately $15,021 (24 credits at $625.89/credit). Duration is not published; the required sequence spans at least six semesters.
Certificate Curriculum
- Credit range: 24 to 26 credits, set by an individualized gap analysis on admission
- Residency rule: a minimum of 16 postgraduate credit hours must be completed at CSU Pueblo
- Course list: the same NSG 613L, 614L, 641 through 645L, and 646L sequence the MS uses, so the shared clinical requirements apply unchanged
You Should Know
- Hour conflict: the certificate page states that 585 clinical hours must be documented for each nurse practitioner emphasis, while the practicum courses it requires total 780 hours under the current 1:60 ratio
Certificate Admissions
- Degree: a master’s degree in nursing from an accredited university with a 3.0 GPA or higher
- Application materials: three letters of recommendation, a letter of intent, and a curriculum vitae
- Preferences: 2,000 hours of RN experience, residency in Southern Colorado, and CSU Pueblo graduates
Tuition
Graduate tuition for Colorado residents and Western Regional Graduate Program states is $625.89 per credit for NSG courses numbered 500 to 699, combining a $441.60 base rate with a $184.29 nursing differential. Courses numbered 700 to 899 carry a $300 doctorate differential instead, or $741.60 per credit.
The non-resident base rate is $847.67, which brings a 500-level NSG course to $1,031.96 per credit. WRGP covers 14 western states and the U.S. Pacific territories.
| Program | Credits | Estimated Tuition |
|---|---|---|
| MS AGACNP | 53 | $33,172 |
| BSN-DNP AGACNP | 83 | $56,114 |
| MS AGACNP/FNP | 74 | $46,316 |
| BSN-DNP AGACNP/FNP | 104 | $69,721 |
| Post-Master’s Certificate | 24 | $15,021 |
Mandatory student fees add $91.37 per credit plus $326.88 per semester in flat health and recreation charges, capped at 12 credits.
Be aware that:
- Two rate schedules could apply to the DNP: the CSU Pueblo Online chart lists a flat $600 per credit for the Doctor of Nursing Practice regardless of residency, while the campus schedule produces $625.89 and $741.60 depending on course level
- Fee exposure depends on section type: students enrolled only in CSU Pueblo Online sections are exempt from mandatory, recreation, and technology fees, but a single residential credit triggers fees on the full term load
See the official tuition and fees page for the current schedules.
Financial Aid
CSU Pueblo requires a current FAFSA for scholarship consideration and awards through a single online application. Scholarship details are here.
Why Choose This ACNP Program?
- Dual acute and primary care concentration. CSU Pueblo runs an AGACNP/FNP track at both the MS and DNP levels, and graduates sit for both certification examinations. The clinical load is 1,560 hours.
- Published rotation targets. The graduate clinical handbook specifies where the 780 AGACNP hours go, down to 60 hours of rural health.
- Resident pricing reaches 14 states. WRGP participants pay $625.89 per credit rather than $1,031.96. The clinical hours still have to happen in Colorado.
- Colorado-only clinicals. Every practicum hour must be completed in-state, and students find their own preceptors. For a nurse living elsewhere, this closes the program.
- Annual course rotation. Each AGACNP specialty course runs in one fixed term per year, so a deferred course costs a full year rather than a semester.
The program suits Colorado nurses, particularly in the southern part of the state, who already have hospital contacts and want either a low resident rate or a dual population focus. Nurses who need clinical placements outside Colorado should look elsewhere.
Accreditation and Certification
The Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing accredits all three CSU Pueblo nursing programs. The master’s and post-master’s certificate programs hold Continuing Accreditation. The clinical doctorate holds Initial Accreditation, granted in spring 2022 after candidacy in 2019.
ACEN has scheduled a site visit for the MS and DNP programs on September 30, 2026, as part of continuing accreditation review. CSU Pueblo is institutionally accredited by the Higher Learning Commission.
The Colorado State Board of Nursing fully approves the baccalaureate program but does not approve graduate programs.
All AGACNP pathways prepare graduates for the adult-gerontology acute care nurse practitioner examination, offered as the ANCC AGACNP-BC and the AACN ACNPC-AG. Dual concentration graduates are additionally eligible for family nurse practitioner certification.
Review Other ACNP Programs in Colorado
- University of Colorado Anschutz - Anschutz