The University of Arizona College of Nursing in Tucson offers 2 pediatric nurse practitioner pathways:
- DNP – Pediatric Nurse Practitioner Specialty (Primary Care)
- Pediatric Nurse Practitioner Graduate Certificate (Primary Care)
Both prepare pediatric primary care providers only; Arizona does not offer an acute care PNP track. Both admit for fall entry only, both deliver coursework online with required in-person immersions in Tucson during clinical semesters, and both require an unencumbered U.S. RN license. The College does not enroll DNP students who live in certain states, so eligibility should be checked before applying.
Program Tracks Overview
| Program | Est. Tuition | Est. Duration | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| DNP – PC | $69,848 | 2.5 yrs (FT) / 3.5 yrs (PT) | 66 |
| Cert – PC | $31,749 | 4 semesters | 30 |
Tuition estimates multiply the College of Nursing’s FY 2026–27 rate of $1,058.30 per credit, which the university states includes tuition and fees, by the catalog credit total. The College’s own plan-of-study cost sheets publish the same totals.
- Why choose it: The College arranges clinical placements, and PNP students can add the Psychiatric Mental Health NP certificate to the DNP for 1,440 clinical hours across both populations.
- Trade-off: Full-time entry requires 1,800 hours of pediatric RN experience and PALS certification, with one fall application cycle and one specialty per applicant.
Quick Facts
| Program Types | DNP (post-BSN or post-master’s entry); post-graduate certificate |
| Population Focus | Primary care only, both pathways (CPNP-PC). No acute care option. |
| Format | Mostly Online – online coursework, in-person immersions during clinical semesters |
| Campus Attendance | About 3 days in Tucson at the start of each clinical semester; orientation is online |
| Clinical Hours | DNP: 810 minimum. Certificate: 720. |
| Clinical Placement | Arranged by the College with approved preceptors; local placement prioritized |
| RN Experience Required | 1,800 hours in a pediatric setting for full-time entry; required of all students before the clinical year |
| Certifications | PALS by program start. Certificate applicants need current APRN certification. |
| Start Terms | Fall only, both pathways |
| Cohort Size | About 10 students (DNP–PNP) |
| Tuition | $1,058.30 per credit, FY 2026–27; no separate non-resident rate published |
| Accreditation | CCNE (DNP program); Arizona State Board of Nursing |
Clinical Education at Arizona
Both pathways share one clinical model, and it is the most practically important thing about this school. The College states that clinical placements for all students are arranged with appropriate preceptors and administrators, with priority given to placing students in their own geographic area. Where a local placement is unavailable, or where a student needs additional faculty support for skills development, the College may require the clinical experience to be completed in a different approved area.
That policy cuts both ways. It removes the preceptor search that delays or derails students at self-placement programs, and it removes the student’s control over where they end up. Anyone tied to one clinic or one city should raise geography with the Office of Clinical Operations before accepting a seat.
Campus and enrollment requirements
- Orientation (RISE) runs the first week of fall as synchronous Zoom sessions over two days, not on campus.
- Campus Clinical Immersion takes place in Tucson during the first week of each semester of the clinical year, for approximately three days. Dates are published at least a year in advance.
- The clinical preceptorship is in person, in an assigned practice setting.
- The clinical year requires full-time enrollment of 10 to 14 units. Part-time students move to full time for the final three semesters.
- All students must complete 1,800 hours of RN experience before beginning the clinical year. Part-time students are expected to work about 900 RN hours a year to get there.
Because the campus obligation is a countable set of three-day visits rather than a weekly commute, this page classifies both pathways as Mostly Online. The university describes the DNP as hybrid, which is the same arrangement under a different label. Budget for flights, lodging and time off for each immersion; none of it is in the tuition figure.
General Admissions
Admission runs through two applications: NursingCAS first, then the Graduate College application through GradApp, which you complete only after the College of Nursing recommends you. Admission is final only when both approve.
- Minimum 3.0 GPA in nursing coursework for the most recent nursing degree (3.0 cumulative for certificate applicants)
- Current, unencumbered U.S. RN license; applicants must reside in the United States
- CV submitted on the College’s applicant template
- Transcripts from all postsecondary institutions, verified by NursingCAS within two weeks of the deadline – unverified applications are not reviewed
- Annual cycle: applications open August 15, priority deadline November 1, final deadline March 1
- Decisions arrive in mid-December for priority applicants and mid-April for everyone else
- One specialty per application cycle; multiple applications are not accepted
- Certificate students must submit an Arizona Department of Public Safety fingerprint clearance card as a condition of final acceptance
Two rules deserve attention. The priority deadline is not a formality: applying by November 1 means a decision four months earlier than applying in February, which matters if you are comparing offers. And because you may apply to only one specialty per cycle, choosing between the PNP and another population focus is a year-long commitment made at application time, not later.
State authorization is the other gate. Because of state-level distance education and nurse practice act rules, the College cannot offer the DNP everywhere. Its published map lists the program as unavailable in Oregon, North Dakota, Iowa, Kansas, Arkansas, Louisiana, Alaska, New York, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Kentucky, Tennessee, North Carolina, Alabama, Georgia, New Hampshire, Delaware and Washington, D.C. That list changes, so confirm current status with the Director of Clinical Operations before investing in an application.
DNP – Pediatric Nurse Practitioner Specialty (Primary Care)
The DNP–PNP specialty requires 66 credits and a minimum of 810 clinical hours, which works out to an estimated $69,848 at the current per-credit rate. Full-time students finish in about 2.5 years across seven semesters; the part-time plan runs 3.5 years across ten. It prepares primary care pediatric nurse practitioners for ambulatory clinics, private practice, school-based clinics and federally qualified health centers, and the university states graduates are eligible for pediatric primary care NP certification – the PNCB CPNP-PC exam. Both BSN-prepared and master’s-prepared nurses may enter.
A published conflict worth knowing about. The specialty page’s curriculum paragraph states 64 credit hours and 720 clinical hours, while the program facts block on that same page states 66 credits and 810 hours. The university catalog settles it: 31 core units plus 35 pediatric emphasis units, totaling 66, with a minimum of 810 clinical hours. This page uses the catalog figures. The 810 hours also reconcile against the nine practicum units in the plan at 90 hours each.
DNP Curriculum
The degree splits into a 31-unit doctoral core taken by every DNP specialty and a 35-unit pediatric emphasis. The core carries the DNP project sequence, statistics, informatics, health policy, population health and quality improvement. The emphasis stacks three advanced practice foundation courses with a three-stage PNP specialty sequence, each stage paired with its own clinical practicum, and the practicum credits grow as the sequence advances – 2 units, then 2, then 5 – so the clinical load concentrates heavily in the final year. Clinical rotations begin in spring, after the pathophysiology, pharmacology and assessment courses are complete.
Pediatric Emphasis Courses
- NURS 621 Pediatric Pharmacology (2)
- NURS 672 Advanced Pediatric Health & Developmental Assessment (3)
- NURS 643 PNP Specialty I (3) and 643A Clinical Practicum (2)
- NURS 644 PNP Specialty II (4) and 644A Clinical Practicum (2)
- NURS 645 PNP Specialty III (2) and 645A Clinical Practicum (5)
- NURS 601 Advanced Pharmacology (3), NURS 603 Advanced Physical & Health Assessment (3), Advanced Pathophysiology (3)
- NURS 606 Healthcare Leadership and Finance (3)
One caveat on this list. The catalog marks most of these courses as in development with availability by spring 2028, which means the College is phasing in a renumbered curriculum. Students starting under the current plan should follow the program guide published for their own cohort year rather than assuming the catalog sequence matches it. View the full catalog requirements.
Adding a Psychiatric Mental Health Certificate
Arizona publishes a DNP–PNP plus PMHNP certificate option open only to PNP or PMHNP students. It adds one year, or three semesters, and requires 720 clinical hours for each specialty for a total of 1,440. Students attend orientation three times and clinical immersion twice instead of once, and complete the DNP project during the final year alongside the second specialty. You apply from inside the program: meet with your academic advisor during the first fall semester, then apply in the spring with advisor approval. For a nurse aiming at pediatric behavioral health, where demand consistently outruns supply, this is the most distinctive thing Arizona offers.
DNP Clinical Requirements
- Minimum 810 clinical hours across the specialty practicum sequence
- Nine practicum units distributed 2 / 2 / 5 across PNP Specialty I, II and III
- Rotations begin in the spring semester, after the advanced pathophysiology, pharmacology and assessment courses
- Clinical year requires full-time enrollment; three-day Tucson immersion at the start of each clinical semester
- Dual PNP plus PMHNP certificate students complete 720 hours per specialty, 1,440 total
At 810 hours, Arizona sits above the 500-hour certification floor and above the 600 to 750 range typical of single-population PNP programs. That is roughly two extra months of clinical work compared with a 700-hour program, concentrated in a final year that the plan already requires you to take full time. It is a genuine advantage for job readiness and a genuine constraint on working while enrolled.
DNP Admissions
- BSN, post-baccalaureate BSN, MEPN or MSN from a regionally accredited institution
- Two professional references
- At least 1,800 hours (one year) of RN experience to apply full time, in inpatient pediatric acute care, pediatric emergency, PICU, NICU, outpatient pediatric specialty, pediatric ambulatory or urgent care, pediatric primary care, pediatric home health or pediatric school health
- PALS certification through the American Heart Association by the start of the program
- Applicants still accruing experience hours apply to the part-time option instead
The experience requirement is pediatric-specific, which is stricter than it looks. An FNP applicant at Arizona qualifies with 1,800 hours in any RN role; a PNP applicant needs those hours in one of nine pediatric settings. Adult medical-surgical or general ED experience will not satisfy it. The part-time track is the documented workaround for nurses who are still building pediatric hours, and it is not a lesser pathway – it converges with the full-time plan for the final three semesters.
Pediatric Nurse Practitioner Graduate Certificate (Primary Care)
The PNP graduate certificate requires 30 credits and 720 clinical hours, an estimated $31,749, completed across four semesters – roughly a year and a third. It is built for practicing APRNs adding a pediatric primary care population focus, and the university describes its graduates as prepared for entry-level PNP competency in a primary care setting. The eligibility line is firm: you need an advanced practice nursing degree and current national APRN certification, so this is not a route for a BSN-prepared nurse or an MSN holder without an APRN specialty.
Certificate Curriculum
The certificate strips out the doctoral core and keeps the clinical spine: the three Ps, pediatric-specific assessment and pharmacotherapeutics, two pediatric management courses and a six-unit residency. Well-child and adolescent care and the acute and chronic conditions course together carry 11 units, so most of the work is concentrated in those two blocks plus the residency. The first semester is light at four units; the load climbs steeply in semesters two and three, which is where the full-time participation requirement bites.
- NURS 501 Advanced Physiology & Pathophysiology (3)
- NURS 572 Advanced Pharmacotherapeutics (3) and NURS 542 Pediatric Pharmacotherapeutics (1)
- NURS 609a Health Assessment (3) and NURS 609c Pediatric Health Assessment in Advanced Practice (1)
- NURS 642a Care of the Well Child and Adolescent (5)
- NURS 642b Diagnosis and Management of Acute and Chronic Conditions in Children and Adolescents (6)
- NURS 680 Women’s Health in Advanced Practice Nursing (2)
- NURS 642c Clinical Residency (6)
Note that the certificate’s catalog entry still uses the College’s earlier course numbering while the DNP requirements have been renumbered. The content overlaps; the numbers do not match across the two listings. View the certificate catalog requirements.
Certificate Clinical Requirements
- 720 total supervised clinical hours
- Six-unit clinical residency in the final semester, preceded by practicum embedded in the two pediatric management courses
- Full-time participation required during the last three of the four semesters
- Same College-arranged placement model and Tucson immersion schedule as the DNP
720 hours puts the certificate squarely in the normal band for a single population focus and 90 hours below the DNP, which is the honest picture: the certificate is the same clinical preparation without the doctoral coursework. What it asks in return is three consecutive full-time semesters, which is a heavy lift for an APRN already working.
Certificate Admissions
- MS or higher nursing degree focused on APRN certification
- Unrestricted U.S. RN license plus current APRN national certification (NP, CRNA, CNS or CNM)
- Cumulative GPA of 3.0 or above
- One professional reference, compared with two for the DNP
- Fall start only; fingerprint clearance card required before final acceptance
One warning the university states plainly: not all certificate specialties run every year. Confirm the PNP certificate is being offered for your intended entry year before you build a plan around it. Certificate applicants also face a financial rule the DNP does not carry, covered in the next section.
Tuition
Arizona prices graduate nursing simply. For FY 2026–27 the College of Nursing publishes a single rate of $1,058.30 per credit, described as tuition and fees combined, applying to every DNP specialty except Nurse Anesthesiology and to all graduate certificates. The fee schedule publishes no separate non-resident rate, so out-of-state students who are eligible to enroll pay the same published per-credit figure as Arizona residents – unusual for a public university and worth several thousand dollars against comparable programs.
| Pathway | Credits | Est. Total Tuition & Fees |
|---|---|---|
| DNP – PNP | 66 | $69,847.80 |
| PNP Certificate | 30 | $31,749.00 |
| PNP Certificate, with maximum transfer credit | 21 billable | $22,224.30 |
Figures are calculated from the published per-credit rate and catalog credit totals, and match the totals on the College’s own FY 2026–27 plan-of-study cost sheets.
Key Cost Takeaways
- Certificate-only students get no federal aid. Students enrolled solely in a graduate certificate are ineligible for federal financial aid and for College of Nursing scholarships. That turns a $31,749 certificate into a cash or private-loan proposition.
- Transfer credit is worth real money on the certificate. The College allows a maximum of nine transfer credits, which drops billable units to 21 and the total by about $9,525.
- Immersion travel is not in the estimate. Each clinical semester means three days in Tucson. Airfare, lodging and unpaid time off sit on top of tuition.
- The clinical year limits earning. Full-time enrollment of 10 to 14 units is required in the final semesters, and the College advises full-time students to keep work under 12 hours a week. Lost income is usually the larger number.
- Rates reset annually. Program tuition and fees are calculated as of January 1 each year, so a 2.5-year plan will cross at least two rate changes.
- The PMHNP add-on has no published combined price. The standalone PMHNP certificate is 35 units at $37,040.50; how the combined plan bills its three extra semesters is not published.
Read against other PNP programs, Arizona’s pricing is mid-range for residents and unusually good for everyone else, because the flat rate erases the non-resident penalty that dominates public university comparisons. The catch is that the states where that advantage would matter most include several where the College cannot enroll you. See the official costs and financial aid page.
Why Choose This PNP Program?
Best suited for: a nurse with pediatric RN experience who wants a doctorate without recruiting their own preceptors, can absorb a few days in Tucson each clinical semester, and lives in a state where the College is authorized to enroll.
Placement is arranged, not outsourced to you
Finding a pediatric preceptor is the most common reason distance NP students stall, and pediatric primary care sites are thinner on the ground than family practice. Arizona states that placements are arranged with approved preceptors, with local placement prioritized. For students outside major metros, that is worth more than a tuition discount.
A second population focus from inside the program
The PNP plus PMHNP certificate option adds one year and 720 additional clinical hours and produces a graduate prepared in both pediatric primary care and psychiatric mental health. Because you apply after enrolling rather than in the original cycle, it does not force the choice at application time. Few PNP programs publish a structured path to a second population focus at all.
Clinical volume above the norm, and no non-resident premium
810 clinical hours exceeds the typical single-population range, and a small cohort of about ten students means that volume comes with faculty attention rather than in spite of it. The flat per-credit rate then removes the cost penalty most public programs impose on out-of-state students, which makes the DNP competitive on price for anyone outside Arizona who can enroll.
Potential Drawbacks
- Residents of about 18 states and Washington, D.C. cannot enroll in the DNP.
- No acute care PNP track. Nurses targeting PICU, pediatric ED or inpatient practice need a CPNP-AC program – Arizona State offers one in-state.
- Full-time entry requires 1,800 hours in a pediatric setting specifically, and PALS by day one.
- One fall intake a year, one specialty per application cycle.
- Placement geography is the College’s call, not the student’s, when local sites are unavailable.
- Certificate students receive no federal aid or College scholarships, and the certificate is not guaranteed to run every year.
- The DNP curriculum is mid-transition, with catalog courses marked as available by spring 2028.
The Verdict
Arizona is a strong choice for a pediatric nurse who qualifies on experience and geography, particularly one interested in behavioral health. Arranged placements, 810 clinical hours, a ten-student cohort and a flat rate that ignores residency add up to a program that costs less trouble than most and, for out-of-state students, often less money. The PMHNP add-on is the feature that has no close equivalent among PNP programs. Where Arizona falls short is breadth and access: no acute care option, a pediatric-specific experience gate, and a state authorization list that rules out a large share of the country. If you want acute care, or you live in an excluded state, compare Arizona State and out-of-region programs instead. If you clear the gates and want primary care with placement support, this is a program worth an early application.
Accreditation
The Doctor of Nursing Practice program at the University of Arizona College of Nursing is accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE), and the College operates under Arizona State Board of Nursing requirements. The university states that PNP graduates are eligible for nurse practitioner certification in pediatric primary care, which is the PNCB CPNP-PC examination; neither pathway prepares for the acute care credential. Distance students should note that state authorization, not accreditation, is the limiting factor on where this program can be delivered.
Research More Arizona PNP Programs
- Arizona State University - Phoenix