3 Schools • 3 Mostly Online
Missouri has three in-state PNP schools on this page: UMKC, UMSL, and the University of Missouri. Together they cover pediatric primary care, acute care, and a dual primary/acute track across MSN, BSN-to-DNP, MSN-to-DNP, and post-graduate certificate pathways.
All three are mostly online, pairing online coursework with a small number of required campus trips. Estimated resident tuition runs from about $12K for the shortest certificate plan to about $75K for the longest doctoral plans.
Highlights include:
- UMSL has the only dual primary/acute PNP track among these schools, offered inside its BSN-to-DNP.
- UMKC offers acute care at three levels: MSN, post-MSN certificate, and post-MSN DNP.
- The University of Missouri has the lowest rate per credit, and out-of-state online students pay the same rate.
- Pediatric RN experience gates range from none stated at the University of Missouri to two years for UMKC acute care.
- Clinical hours run from 600 in UMSL’s certificates to about 1,031 in UMKC’s BSN-to-DNP.
- The University of Missouri admits three times a year; UMKC and UMSL admit mostly once a year.
Compare Missouri Pediatric NP Programs
| School | Population Focus | Online Format | Campus Commitment | Cost Per Credit | Degrees | Best For |
| University of Missouri-Kansas City (UMKC), Kansas City | Primary & Acute Care | Mostly Online | Once per semester | $951 all online students | MSN, BSN-DNP, MSN-DNP, Certificate | Experienced pediatric nurses seeking acute care at a flat rate |
| University of Missouri-St. Louis (UMSL), St. Louis | Primary, Acute & Dual | Mostly Online | Skills intensives | $1,009 resident | BSN-DNP, Certificate | Inpatient pediatric nurses wanting both credentials and a DNP |
| University of Missouri (Mizzou), Columbia | Primary Care | Mostly Online | 3–4 visits total | $681 all online students | MSN, BSN-DNP, MSN-DNP | Cost-focused primary care students, including out-of-state |
Cost per credit includes mandatory per-credit fees. UMKC adds a $308 fee per clinical credit, and Mizzou notes that department course fees may apply.
What’s the Best PNP Program for You?
Best Overall Value
The University of Missouri has the lowest per-credit rate of the three Missouri schools here, and online students outside Missouri pay the same rate. Its MS(N) is the least expensive master’s option among them at about $35K.
Best Acute Care Option
UMKC offers acute care through an MSN, a certificate, or a post-MSN DNP, all at one rate regardless of residency. That flat pricing matters most for acute care applicants outside Missouri.
Best Dual Primary/Acute Option
UMSL is the only school here with dual preparation. The dual DNP adds one 4-credit course to the single-population plan, so the second credential costs about $4K at the resident rate.
Best Certificate Option
UMKC’s acute care certificate runs 21 credits over about 14 months, the shortest fixed timeline among these certificates. It suits certified NPs adding pediatric acute care.
Best Doctoral Option
Mizzou’s BSN-to-DNP costs about $49K, the lowest doctoral total of the three schools, with a 1,000-hour clinical minimum. Nurses who want acute care at the doctoral level should look at UMSL instead.
Primary Care vs. Acute Care PNP Programs in Missouri
Primary care PNPs work in outpatient, preventive, school-based, and ambulatory pediatric settings and sit for the CPNP-PC exam. Acute care PNPs manage hospitalized, medically complex, unstable, and critically ill children and sit for the CPNP-AC exam. In Missouri, acute care is the harder door to open: both acute programs require inpatient or pediatric RN experience, and only UMSL offers a track preparing graduates for both exams.
| School | Primary Care | Acute Care | Dual Option | Experience Requirement |
| UMKC | Yes | Yes | No | 1 year pediatric RN required (primary care); 2 years (acute care) |
| UMSL | Yes | Yes | Yes | 1 year inpatient pediatric required (acute care and dual); none stated (primary care) |
| University of Missouri | Yes | No | No | None stated |
- Acute care experience gate: UMKC — acute care applicants need two years of full-time pediatric RN experience within the past three years, double the primary care requirement.
- Newer nurses: UMSL — the primary care DNP has no experience requirement and a selective Direct Admit route for strong UMSL BSN graduates.
- Acute care hours: UMKC — about 206 of the 784 hours in each acute care track are primary care, leaving roughly 578 acute care hours.
- Acute site access: UMSL — acute care and dual students need inpatient pediatric sites, which are concentrated in children’s hospitals and scarce in rural Missouri.
- Primary care preceptor rule: University of Missouri — family practice preceptors qualify for the core pediatric course only if they see 8–10 pediatric patients a day.
Missouri MSN PNP Programs
Two Missouri schools offer a PNP master’s. UMKC runs separate primary care and acute care MSNs, both gated by pediatric RN experience and both starting in summer only. Mizzou’s MS(N) is primary care only, opens to BSN nurses without a stated experience minimum, and is built around part-time study. Estimates below include mandatory per-credit and clinical fees.
| School | Population Focus | Estimated Tuition (resident) | Duration | Clinical Hours |
| UMKC | Primary Care | $48K | 2–3 years | 784 hrs |
| UMKC | Acute Care | $52K | 2–3 years | 784 hrs |
| University of Missouri | Primary Care | $35K | 3–3.5 years part-time | Not clearly stated ⚠️ |
- Fee basis: UMKC — tuition alone is about $38K (primary care) and $42K (acute care); the rest is online, simulation, and clinical-credit fees.
- Hour total: University of Missouri — six fixed courses carry 540 clinical hours, and the final practicum adds a variable amount, so ask for your plan’s total at admission.
- Distinct coursework: University of Missouri — the MS(N) requires standalone 90-hour clinical courses in pediatric mental health and in children with special health care needs.
- Start terms: University of Missouri — admits for summer, fall, and spring, while UMKC’s MSN starts in summer only.
Need a dual-track MSN or school-arranged preceptors? Compare BSN-to-MSN PNP programs nationally. Out-of-state schools set their own rules on enrolling and placing students from Missouri.
Missouri BSN-to-DNP PNP Programs
All three schools list a BSN-to-DNP, but only two are enrolling now. UMSL is the state’s main doctoral entry point, with primary care, acute care, and dual tracks and no MSN alternative. Mizzou offers a lower-cost primary care DNP. UMKC’s primary care BSN-to-DNP reopens for 2027 enrollment.
| School | Population Focus | Estimated Tuition (resident) | Duration | Clinical Hours |
| University of Missouri | Primary Care | $49K | 4–6 years | 1,000 hrs |
| UMSL | Primary Care | $71K | 3–4 years | 1,000 hrs |
| UMSL | Acute Care | $71K | 3–4 years | 1,000 hrs |
| UMSL | Dual Primary/Acute | $75K | Not clearly stated | Not clearly stated ⚠️ |
| UMKC | Primary Care | $75K | 4–5 years | 1,031 hrs |
- Enrollment pause: UMKC — the BSN-to-DNP is not enrolling until 2027, and UMKC points applicants to its MSN followed by the post-MSN DNP ⚠️.
- Nonresident cost: UMSL — nonresidents pay $1,970 per credit (about $138K for primary or acute care), while Illinois residents pay the resident rate and Midwest Student Exchange residents pay $1,514.
- Dual estimate: UMSL — the $75K figure assumes 74 credits, because UMSL does not publish a total credit count for the dual track.
- Hour basis: UMKC — 1,031 is direct clinical time plus 330 separate project hours, while the 1,000-hour totals at UMSL and Mizzou include project work.
Want an acute care DNP without UMSL’s nonresident rate or campus intensives? Compare BSN-to-DNP PNP programs nationally. Authorization and placement rules for Missouri students vary by school.
Missouri MSN-to-DNP PNP Programs
UMKC and Mizzou both offer a post-master’s DNP with a PNP role. UMKC’s version pairs its pediatric certificate with a 31-credit DNP, for MSN nurses who are not yet PNPs, and allows primary or acute care. Mizzou builds each plan from a transcript review and offers primary care only. UMSL has no MSN-entry DNP.
| School | Entry Point | Population Focus | Estimated Tuition (resident) | Duration | Clinical Hours |
| UMKC | Non-PNP MSN | Primary or Acute Care | $50K–$52K | Not clearly stated | 784 hrs pediatric |
| University of Missouri | MSN | Primary Care | From $25K | 3 years part-time | Individualized |
- Experience conflict: UMKC — its DNP page lists one year of pediatric experience without separating acute care, while the acute care certificate requires two, so acute applicants should plan on two ⚠️.
- Already certified: UMKC — certified PNPs can take the 31-credit DNP alone, with no new specialty clinicals or residencies.
- Cost floor: University of Missouri — the $25K figure reflects the 36.5-credit minimum, and nurses without prior pediatric NP coursework will take more.
- GPA bar: University of Missouri — MSN entry requires a 3.5 GPA and APRN certification documents, the highest bar among its pathways.
Need a post-master’s DNP with acute care at a lower cost floor? Compare MSN-to-DNP PNP programs nationally. Each out-of-state school decides whether it can enroll and place Missouri nurses.
Missouri Post-Graduate Certificate PNP Programs
UMKC and UMSL both offer primary care and acute care certificates for MSN- or DNP-prepared nurses. UMKC’s plans carry the full master’s clinical load at a fixed credit count. UMSL sets credits through a gap analysis, which makes it the cheaper route for practicing NPs and the costlier one for MSN nurses without NP coursework. Mizzou has no certificate.
| School | Population Focus | Estimated Tuition (resident) | Duration | Clinical Hours |
| UMKC | Primary Care | $21K | 18 months–2 years | 784 hrs |
| UMKC | Acute Care | $23K | 14 months | 784 hrs |
| UMSL | Primary or Acute Care | $12K–$31K | Not clearly stated | 600 hrs |
- Gap analysis: UMSL — practicing NPs may need only 12 credits, while MSN nurses without NP coursework take the full 31, and nonresidents pay $24K–$61K.
- No shortcut for CPNP-PCs: UMKC — certified primary care PNPs adding acute care still complete the primary care clinical course in the published plan.
- Interview and timing: UMKC — both certificates require a personal interview, and the acute care certificate starts in summer only.
- No certificate: University of Missouri — certified NPs adding pediatrics must enter the DNP instead.
Looking for a dual primary/acute certificate? Compare post-graduate PNP certificate programs nationally. Out-of-state programs set their own rules on enrolling and placing students from Missouri.
National Online PNP Options
Missouri’s three schools cover every population and pathway, but each carries a trade-off. None is delivered fully online: every program requires trips to Kansas City, St. Louis, or Columbia. Dual preparation exists only inside UMSL’s DNP, so nurses who want both credentials through an MSN or a certificate must look out of state. UMSL’s nonresident rate nearly doubles its cost for most out-of-state nurses. Mizzou requires students to find their own preceptors, and UMKC and UMSL do not publish who secures them. Nurses who want school-arranged placements, no campus travel, or more start dates should compare national programs against these in-state options.
FAQ
How many PNP programs are in Missouri?
Three Missouri schools are compared here: UMKC, UMSL, and the University of Missouri. Together they offer primary care at every degree level, acute care through UMKC and UMSL, and dual primary/acute preparation through UMSL’s BSN-to-DNP.
Are any Missouri PNP programs fully online?
No. All three are mostly online. UMKC holds a two- to three-day Kansas City residency once per clinical semester. UMSL requires a fall orientation and five short St. Louis intensives. Mizzou requires three campus events in Columbia for the MS(N) and four for the DNP.
Which Missouri PNP program costs the least?
The University of Missouri has the lowest rate per credit and the lowest MSN and BSN-to-DNP totals, at about $35K and $49K. For certified NPs, UMSL’s certificate can drop to about $12K at the resident rate when a gap analysis requires only 12 credits.
Do Missouri PNP programs arrange clinical placements?
Not clearly. Mizzou students find their own preceptors, and each preceptor contract must be submitted 12 weeks before the rotation. UMKC says rotations can be arranged near the student’s home but does not say who secures the preceptor. UMSL publishes no placement policy ⚠️. Plan to identify pediatric sites yourself.
Do I need pediatric nursing experience to apply?
It depends on the track. UMKC requires one year of pediatric RN experience for primary care and two for acute care, within the past three years. UMSL requires one year of inpatient pediatric nursing for acute care and dual. Mizzou and UMSL’s primary care DNP state no experience minimum.
Can out-of-state nurses enroll in Missouri PNP programs?
Often, but not from every state ⚠️. UMKC and Mizzou charge online students the same rate regardless of residency. UMSL charges nonresidents $1,970 per credit, except Illinois and Midwest Student Exchange residents. All three limit online enrollment by state, so check each school’s authorization list before applying.
Which Missouri school is best for a PICU or pediatric ED nurse?
UMKC fits nurses with two or more years of inpatient pediatric experience who want CPNP-AC preparation through an MSN or certificate. UMSL fits those who want both CPNP-PC and CPNP-AC preparation and a DNP in one plan.