Clinical Nurse Specialist Option
In This Section:
The Clinical Nurse Specialist (CNS) option enables the student to acquire advanced knowledge of health care for individuals, families, and aggregate populations and to develop the skills needed to engage in a specific advanced practice or advanced-level nursing role. On admission, students select a specific program of study that will prepare the graduate for recognition and/or certification as a clinical nurse specialist or advanced-level nurse in a designated health care area.
The following specialties may be selected within the CNS option: Adult Health, Gerontology, Clinical Trials Research, Community Health (either advanced practice CNS or advanced-level), Nursing Administration (advanced-level), or students may also elect to include courses in their program of study that support sub-specialty practice (e.g., cardiac care, diabetes care, or other specialized areas of practice).
Degree Requirements
A. M.S. Program Core (9 credits)
- NURS 501, Issues in Nursing and Health Care (3 credits)
- NURS 510, Theoretical Foundation of Nursing (3 credits)
- NURS 512, Nursing Research (3 credits)
Advanced Practice Core (9 credits)
(Adult, Gerontology, Clinical Trials, Community CNS)
- NURS 503, Pathophysiology (3 credits)
- NURS 504, Pharmacologic Therapy (3 credits)
- NURS 502, Physical Assessment Across the Lifespan (3 credits)
or
NURS 522, Comprehensive Assessment of the Older Adult (Gerontology Specialty Only, 3 credits)
C. CNS Core (8 credits)
- NURS 518, Clinical Nurse Specialist I: Concepts and Theory (4 credits)
- NURS 519, Clinical Nurse Specialist II: Analysis and Application (4 credits)
D. Additional Courses Based on Specialties
Gerontology/Gerontology Education (Minimum 40-44 credits)
- NURS 523, Interventions for Common Health Problems in Older Adults (3 credits)
- NURS 602, Supervised College Teaching (Optional, 1 credit)
Clinical Trials/Research (Minimum 47-50 credits)
- PHS 520, Principles of Biostatistics (3 credits)
- PHS 521, Applied Biostatistics (3 credits)
- PHS 580, Clinical Trials 3 (3 credits)
- PHS 500, Research Ethics (1 credit)
Community Health (Minimum 37-49 credits)
- NURS 508, Perspectives in Population-based Health (3 credits)
- Electives (6 credits, selected with adviser approval)
Nursing Administration (Minimum 37-40 credits)
- Electives (9 credits, selected with adviser approval)
E. MS Capstone Experiences (11-14 credits)
- NURS 521, CNS Advanced Nursing Practicum (8 credits)
- NURS 594, Scholarly Paper or NURS 600, Thesis (3-6 credits)
For more information
Please contact Judith E. Hupcey, Ed.D., CRNP, Professor-in-Charge, Graduate Programs in Nursing, 717-531-4211 or jxh37@psu.edu.
Post-Master’s Geriatric Nursing Education Certificate
The Post-Master's Certificate in Geriatric Nursing Education program serves students who are seeking additional certification in geriatric nursing and nursing education.
