Texas Woman’s University’s College of Nursing offers two pediatric nurse practitioner pathways, both preparing for the primary care role:
- BSN to MSN – Primary Care, CPNP-PC
- Post-Master’s Certificate – Primary Care, CPNP-PC
Coursework is delivered online. TWU limits the PNP program to Texas residents, and every clinical rotation must take place in Texas. TWU’s catalog states plainly that although pediatric NP programs exist in both primary and acute care, TWU prepares students for the primary care role only.
Program Tracks Overview
| Program | Est. Tuition (Resident) | Est. Duration | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| MSN – PC | $23.4K | 2–3 yrs (est.) | 45 |
| Cert – PC | $14.1K | 1.5–2 yrs (est.) | 27 |
Tuition estimates use TWU’s Fall 2026-Summer 2027 bursar schedule: $323/credit graduate resident tuition plus the $95 master’s-level nursing surcharge, $81 University Services Fee, and $25 graduate Program Fee ($524/credit for NURS courses, $454/credit for the one BIOL course), multiplied by the catalog credit total.
- Why choose it: 780 practicum hours in pediatric primary care at about $23,400 for the MSN.
- Trade-off: Open only to Texas residents with all clinicals in Texas, and primary care only.
Quick Facts
| Category | Details |
|---|---|
| Population Focus | MSN: Primary Care (CPNP-PC) | Certificate: Primary Care (CPNP-PC) |
| Format | Online coursework; clinicals in Texas |
| Residency | Texas residents only |
| Clinical Hours | 780 practicum hours across three courses |
| Lab Intensive | 15-hour laboratory intensive within NURS 5223 |
| RN Experience Required | MSN: one year in a pediatric setting (provisional admission possible without it) |
| License Required | MSN: RN | Certificate: licensed APRN |
| Application Deadlines | MSN: rolling | Certificate: February 15 (fall), September 15 (spring) |
| Tuition | About $524/credit in-state, including per-credit fees |
| Accreditation | CCNE (master’s and post-graduate APRN certificate) |
Master of Science in Nursing (Pediatric Nurse Practitioner – Primary Care)
The MSN PNP-Primary Care requires 45 credits and costs an estimated $23,370 for Texas residents (42 NURS credits at $524 plus 3 BIOL credits at $454). Completion takes an estimated 2 to 3 years. It prepares BSN-prepared RNs for pediatric primary care practice, and applicants need one year of experience in a pediatric setting, or must gain it before the first practicum if admitted provisionally.
Duration (est.): the catalog’s prerequisite chain puts the pediatric sequence into five consecutive terms after the first core courses, so about six terms is the shortest path; part-time study extends this, within TWU’s six-year limit.
MSN Curriculum
The catalog divides the degree into 18 credits of advanced practice core and 27 credits of pediatric specialty coursework. The specialty sequence is strictly linear: each didactic course is paired with a co-requisite practicum, moving from well-child care to non-emergent acute and chronic illness to a final synthesis term. NURS 5223 builds diagnostic reasoning and common procedural skills and includes a 15-hour laboratory intensive. The program ends with an oral examination of a completed professional or clinical project.
Advanced Practice Core (18 credits)
- BIOL 5333 Advanced Pathophysiology (3)
- NURS 5663 Pharmacology for Advanced Nursing Practice (3)
- NURS 5643 Advanced Health Assessment for Advanced Nursing Practice (3)
- NURS 5073, 5093, 5133: evidence-based practice, theoretical foundations and role, health policy (9)
Pediatric Specialty Sequence (27 credits)
- NURS 5302 Foundational Concepts for the Pediatric Primary Care Nurse Practitioner (2)
- NURS 5223 Principles of Pediatric Care Management, Diagnostics, and Common Procedural Interventions (3)
- NURS 5343 Well Child Concepts in Pediatric Primary Care (3) with NURS 5353 PNP Practicum I (3)
- NURS 5363 Acute and Chronic Illness in Pediatric Primary Care (3) with NURS 5365 PNP Practicum II (5)
- NURS 5403 Synthesis and Transition to Professional Practice (3) with NURS 5585 Synthesis Practicum III (5)
View the MSN degree requirements in the TWU catalog.
MSN Clinical Requirements
- 780 practicum hours in total, per the catalog course descriptions
- NURS 5353 Practicum I, well-child care: 180 hours (3 credits)
- NURS 5365 Practicum II, non-emergent acute and chronic care: 300 hours (5 credits)
- NURS 5585 Synthesis Practicum III: 300 hours (5 credits)
- All clinical experiences must take place in Texas
Two of the three practicums are 300-hour, five-credit courses, so the second and third clinical terms are the heaviest. Nurses planning to keep full-time work should expect those terms to demand the most schedule flexibility.
MSN Admissions
- BS or BSN from a nationally accredited nursing program
- Current, unencumbered U.S. RN license
- 3.0 GPA in the last 60 hours of the undergraduate nursing degree and in any prior graduate coursework
- Undergraduate statistics course
- CV or resume showing one year of experience in a pediatric setting
- Nursing MSN Supplemental Application Form
- Official transcripts from every college attended; $50 application fee ($75 international)
- Deadline: rolling admissions, with priority dates set by TWU Graduate Admissions
Two provisional routes exist. Applicants without pediatric experience can be admitted provisionally but must complete the year of experience before starting practicum courses, which can delay the clinical sequence. Applicants with a GPA between 2.5 and 3.0 may be considered individually; they must earn a B or better in each of their first 12 graduate credits (at least 9 in nursing), and a C in that period means dismissal. Up to 12 transfer credits may be accepted, if approved, with a B or better in each course.
Post-Master’s Certificate: Nurse Practitioner (Pediatric Nurse Practitioner – Primary Care)
The Post-Master’s Certificate in PNP-Primary Care requires 27 credits and costs an estimated $14,148 for Texas residents (27 NURS credits at $524), taking an estimated 1.5 to 2 years. It prepares for pediatric primary care practice and is open only to MSN-prepared nurses who already hold APRN licensure, so it serves NPs adding the pediatric population rather than nurses entering advanced practice.
Duration (est.): the pediatric sequence runs through five prerequisite-linked terms in the catalog.
Certificate Curriculum
The 27 credits are the same pediatric specialty sequence as the MSN, including all three practicums. Advanced pathophysiology, pharmacology, and health assessment (9 credits) are prerequisites outside the 27, and must have been completed with a B or better. Pharmacology must fall within six years of the anticipated certificate completion; otherwise it has to be repeated. Other MSN courses are waived because every certificate student already holds a nursing master’s degree.
An NP whose pharmacology course is older than the six-year window adds 3 credits (about $1,572 in-state). Anyone needing all three prerequisites adds 9 credits and about $4,506, bringing the certificate to roughly $18,654.
View the certificate requirements in the TWU catalog.
Certificate Clinical Requirements
- 780 practicum hours across NURS 5353, 5365, and 5585, the same as the MSN
- All clinical experiences must take place in Texas
Because the certificate carries the full practicum load, a practicing NP gets the same pediatric clinical hours as an MSN student rather than a shortened version.
Certificate Admissions
- MS or MSN from a nationally accredited nursing program, with a 3.0 GPA in the master’s degree
- Licensed APRN (required of all post-master’s NP certificate applicants)
- Current, unencumbered U.S. RN license
- Basic statistics course
- Deadlines: February 15 for fall, September 15 for spring
The APRN requirement excludes nurses whose master’s degree is in education, administration, or another non-APRN field. Those applicants would need the full MSN route instead.
Tuition
TWU’s Fall 2026 through Summer 2027 tuition and fee schedule builds the graduate rate from three pieces: $50 statutory tuition, $188 designated tuition, and $85 Board Authorized tuition, for $323 per credit for Texas residents and $751 for non-residents. Every NURS master’s-level course adds a $95 per-credit nursing surcharge (up from $75 in 2025-2026), and every graduate course adds the $81 University Services Fee and $25 Program Fee. That brings each NURS credit to $524 for residents and $952 for non-residents. BIOL 5333 carries a $25 biology surcharge instead of the nursing surcharge, so it runs $454 resident and $882 non-resident per credit.
The PNP program is limited to Texas residents, but residency for tuition purposes is classified separately under Texas law, so a newly relocated Texan could still be billed at the non-resident rate. The non-resident column below covers that case.
The previous version of this page used about $576 per credit, taken from TWU’s cost-of-attendance table. That table’s $5,184 graduate tuition line covers 18 credits over a full fall-spring year rather than one semester, and it excludes the nursing surcharge, so it does not reflect the per-credit cost of a PNP course. This page uses the bursar schedule instead.
Estimated Total Tuition
| Pathway | Resident | Non-Resident |
|---|---|---|
| MSN – PC (45 credits) | $23,370 | $42,630 |
| Cert – PC (27 credits) | $14,148 | $25,704 |
| Cert – PC with all 9 prerequisite credits | $18,654 | $34,062 |
Figures are calculated from the 2026-2027 bursar schedule and catalog credit totals.
Fees Beyond Tuition
- Student Services Fee: $35.71 per credit, capped at $250 per semester
- Per-semester mandatory fees: Student Center $150, Fitness and Recreation $80, Medical Services $51, International Education $3. The bursar applies mandatory fees to all students regardless of method of study or location.
- Liability insurance ($16) in practicum courses and bloodborne pathogens insurance ($50)
- Graduation fee $40; application fee $50
At the full per-semester level of about $534, six semesters add roughly $3,200 (est.) to the MSN, based on the fee schedule above.
See TWU’s official cost of attendance.
Why Choose This PNP Program?
Best suited for: Texas nurses with pediatric experience who want primary care NP preparation with substantial clinical hours at in-state public tuition.
780 Practicum Hours in Pediatric Primary Care
The catalog assigns 780 practicum hours across three courses, above the usual single-population range. For nurses whose pediatric background is inpatient, that extra time in well-child and chronic-illness primary care is the practical preparation for outpatient practice.
In-State Cost
At about $524 per NURS credit including per-credit fees, the full MSN comes to roughly $23,400 before per-semester fees. The certificate is about $14,100 for an NP whose prerequisites are current.
Texas-Only Enrollment and Clinicals
Online coursework does not open the program nationally. Enrollment is limited to Texas residents and all clinical hours stay in Texas, so a nurse who expects to move out of state mid-program would lose access to clinical placement.
Who Should Look Elsewhere
- Nurses aiming for acute care (CPNP-AC) or PICU practice
- Anyone living outside Texas
- MSN-prepared nurses without APRN licensure seeking a certificate
- Nurses seeking a pediatric-focused DNP; TWU’s DNP is a post-master’s degree without a PNP track
The Verdict
TWU makes the most sense for a Texas RN with at least a year of pediatric experience who wants a primary care PNP credential at public in-state cost, and for Texas APRNs adding pediatrics through the certificate. Nurses interested in acute care, those outside Texas, and anyone who wants a BSN-to-DNP path should compare other programs.
Accreditation
TWU’s master’s degree program in nursing and its post-graduate APRN certificate programs are accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE), and the university is accredited by SACSCOC. Both pathways prepare for the pediatric primary care role, the population certified through PNCB’s CPNP-PC exam.
Because enrollment is limited to Texas residents and clinicals stay in Texas, Texas Board of Nursing licensure is the one that matters for most students. See TWU’s accreditation information.
Review Additional PNP Programs in Texas
- Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center - Lubbock
- The University of Texas at Austin - Austin
- The University of Texas at San Antonio - San Antonio
- University of Texas at Arlington - Arlington