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A doctorate in nursing practice from MU can help you advance your career in psychiatry and mental health. If you want to deliver advanced primary mental health care to children, adolescents and their families, this program could be for you.
Graduates will be eligible for advanced practice nurse certification as a Psychiatric and Mental Health Nurse Practitioner (PMHNP) by the American Nurses Credentialing Center.
Program structure
Delivery of this program is blended: You will complete most course work online, but an on-campus visit is required for five days during the summer before course work begins for orientation to the DNP program. Additional campus visits will be required throughout the program.
Courses are semester-based. How long it takes to complete the program depends on your academic progress so far. If you already have a master’s degree, you can study part time and complete the program in three years. If you have a bachelor’s degree and want to study part time, the program is more likely to take you five or six years.
Course work includes
Diagnostics and psychopharmacology
Pediatric mental health assessment and management
Brief individual psychotherapy, group therapy and social skills training
Mental health intervention for families
Ethics and sociocultural issues
Physical assessment and diagnostic reasoning
Career prospects
Potential careers
Mental health care provider
Mental health care services coordinator
Institutional mental health care consultant
Clinical instructor
September 2025
Sinclair School of Nursing
915 Hitt Street,
COLUMBIA,
Missouri,
65212, United States
Completed baccalaureate or master’s degree from a nationally accredited nursing program.
Minimum GPA of 3.5 for applicants with a master’s degree in nursing.
For applicants without a master’s degree, an average GPA of 3.3 in the last 60 hours of undergraduate nursing course work.
Applicants who do not meet the minimum GPA requirements for their BSN or MS also may provide additional evidence documenting examples of outstanding professional leadership, practice and/or scholarship for special consideration.
If English is not your native language, please submit a TOEFL score of at least 80 (internet-based test), an IELTS score of at least 6.5, a Pearson Test of English (PTE) score of at least 59 or a Cambridge C1 Advanced score of at least 180.
Application Deadlines: Fall: January 31; Spring: September 30; Summer: January 31
*There may be different IELTS requirements depending on your chosen course.
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