TTUHSC MSN Family Nurse Practitioner: credits, starts and clinicals
TTUHSC's online MSN Family Nurse Practitioner track keeps coursework and clinicals close to home, with a short list of campus days and a preceptor you line up where you live. TTUHSC's own sources disagree on its size, 48 credits in the catalog and 45 on the program page, and neither prints a clinical-hour total. This guide sorts out what is settled, what to confirm, and how we find FNP preceptors ready for TTUHSC's approval.
Find your FNP preceptor
Tell us your city and your first primary care term.
The FNP track at a glance
Both application windows come from the catalog's MSN admission table, where the Spring window is reserved for APRN tracks such as this one. Where the catalog and the program page disagree, the next section explains which one governs and whom to ask.
| Item | What TTUHSC states |
|---|---|
| Credits | 48 in the catalog; 45 on the program page |
| Format | Online courses, an on-campus intensive and on-campus skills labs |
| Start terms | Fall (apply Nov 1 to Feb 15) or Spring (apply May 1 to Aug 1); no summer entry |
| RN license | Current, unencumbered Texas or compact multistate RN license |
| Experience | One year as an RN before you apply |
| Certification | ACLS before the first population-focus clinical course |
| Clinical hours | Completed in your home area; TTUHSC prints no FNP total |
| Program length | Not published; the program page says to contact the School of Nursing |
48 credits or 45: how to read the conflict
TTUHSC prints two credit totals for the same track. The 2026-27 Academic Catalog, which TTUHSC describes as the official academic record for its year (May 1 to April 30), lists 48 credits, and the archived graduate FAQ said 48 as well. The live ttuhsc.edu program page shows 45 credit hours and, in place of a course plan, tells readers to contact the School of Nursing.
The catalog plan has gaps of its own. It lists Primary Care II (NURS 5541) and the Family Nurse Practitioner Practicum (NURS 6660), and both course descriptions name Primary Care I (NURS 5440) as a prerequisite, yet Primary Care I does not appear in the plan. Its prerequisite block also states a 21-credit subtotal over courses that add up to 15.
Work from the catalog, since TTUHSC names it the official plan, and take any mismatch to the Graduate Enrolled Student Advisor or the program director. Your plan of study, handed out at orientation, is the document that settles which courses you take and in which term.
For preceptor planning, the order of your clinical courses matters more than the credit total: each clinical course needs its own approved preceptor.
What must be in place before your first clinical course
Admission to the FNP asks for a current, unencumbered RN license, Texas or compact multistate, plus one year of RN experience before you apply. The track names no particular unit for that year, unlike the acute care track's intensive care, flight or emergency rule. Other items come due as clinicals approach.
The FNP readiness list
- ACLS certification before the first population-focus clinical course, and current again when you register for the FNP Practicum, whose prerequisites say so directly.
- BLS, the School of Nursing's immunization series, a background check through TTUHSC's approved vendor, drug screens before most placements, and proof of HIPAA training every year.
- Health insurance, which TTUHSC makes mandatory for online programs with clinical requirements.
- A home state TTUHSC can accept graduate students from. Ten states are marked closed to TTUHSC graduate students on its licensure disclosure page, and online students must give notice at least 60 days before moving to another state.
ACLS is the FNP-specific gate. Book the class a term ahead of your first primary care rotation so an expired card never stands between you and registration.
The clinical courses, briefly
Clinical work in the FNP runs through three primary care courses: Primary Care I, Primary Care II and the Family Nurse Practitioner Practicum. Primary Care II comes with an on-campus skills lab, and the catalog marks the practicum as requiring an on-campus OSCE. The post-graduate FNP certificate numbers its first two primary care courses differently (NURS 5540 and NURS 5641) and ends in the same practicum.
Hours in TTUHSC's nurse practitioner clinical courses are measured at one credit to 4.25 clock hours, a scale the catalog phases in from Summer or Fall 2026 depending on track. TTUHSC publishes no total clinical-hour figure for the MSN FNP, so each course syllabus and your course faculty set the requirement. The FNP clinical courses guide covers prerequisites and sequencing, and the 1-to-4.25 explainer shows how the ratio works.
TTUHSC also posts no semester-by-semester FNP plan online, so the term of your first clinical course comes from your plan of study. Begin the preceptor search at least a full semester before it.
Your preceptor: found by you, approved by TTUHSC
For the MSN FNP, securing a preceptor is the student's job. TTUHSC's graduate guidance lets you complete clinical hours in your home area, then requires SON staff and faculty to sign off on both the clinician and the facility. Every preceptor you use in a semester also goes through TTUHSC's electronic preceptor agreement, which repeats each term. The finding your own preceptor guide explains each piece.
Current graduate students can use a TTUHSC list of preceptors from the past two years as a starting point. A name on that list still has to say yes for your term, suit the course, and clear approval again.
Texas's rule for APRN programs, 22 TAC ยง219.10, lets programs use licensed APRNs or other licensed clinicians able to supervise at an advanced practice level, under a written agreement among school, preceptor and facility. TTUHSC has not published its own FNP preceptor criteria, so check a candidate's fit with your course faculty or the Graduate Coordinator before asking for a commitment.
Campus days, the intensive and the OSCE
TTUHSC's MSN nurse practitioner tracks bring students to campus for seven to eight days across the whole program. For FNP students that time covers the Advanced Health Assessment intensive, the skills lab tied to Primary Care II and the practicum's OSCE, with OSCEs held in Lubbock. The archived graduate FAQ says OSCE dates reach students a couple of months ahead.
Put those dates on the calendar you share with your preceptor and your employer as soon as they arrive. Students living in Houston, Austin, the Metroplex or out of state are planning flights or long drives as well as time off, and a rotation schedule built around campus dates avoids last-minute swaps. The intensives and OSCEs page covers every track.
What we do for TTUHSC FNP students
Our search is built around TTUHSC's process for this exact track: a primary care preceptor near your home, at a facility able to sign TTUHSC's paperwork, matched to the course on your plan of study. You share your address, your sequence and your work schedule, and we come back with a preceptor who has agreed to take you.
- A targeted search for primary care preceptors within a practical drive of home, for Primary Care I, Primary Care II and the practicum.
- The preceptor's license, certification and practice details and the facility's information, gathered and checked against what TTUHSC's approval asks for.
- Everything the electronic preceptor agreement needs, organized well before the semester opens.
- A replacement search the moment a preceptor withdraws, so your plan keeps moving.
The decision on every preceptor and site stays with TTUHSC's staff and faculty. Our part is making sure the request in front of them is complete and correct from the start. See how it works or send your details through the form below.
Questions TTUHSC students ask
How many credits is the TTUHSC online FNP program?
It depends on the source. The 2026-27 catalog lists 48 credits for the MSN FNP, while the ttuhsc.edu program page shows 45. TTUHSC treats the catalog as the official record for each academic year, so rely on the plan of study you receive at orientation and ask the Graduate Enrolled Student Advisor to reconcile any difference.
How many clinical hours does TTUHSC require for the MSN FNP?
TTUHSC does not print a total for the MSN FNP. Its nurse practitioner clinical courses are measured at one credit to 4.25 clock hours, and each course syllabus sets what you must complete. Confirm the requirement for every rotation with your course faculty before you and your preceptor build a schedule.
Can I start TTUHSC's FNP in the summer?
No. The MSN APRN tracks admit in Fall and Spring only. The Fall application window runs November 1 to February 15, and the Spring window, open to APRN tracks, runs May 1 to August 1. Summer starts at TTUHSC belong to the BSN to DNP and the Post-Master's DNP.
Can I do TTUHSC FNP clinicals outside Texas?
In many states, yes. Clinical hours happen where you live, but TTUHSC's licensure page lists ten states it cannot accept graduate students from, including Arizona, California and New York. If you plan to move mid-program, TTUHSC requires notice at least 60 days before the move, and approval in the new state is decided case by case. See moving out of state.
Does TTUHSC assign FNP preceptors?
The search belongs to the student. TTUHSC offers a list of preceptors used in the last two years, approves every preceptor and facility you propose, and its faculty confirm fit with each course. That search is exactly what we take on: we find the preceptor and prepare the approval details, and TTUHSC's faculty make the decision.
Related pages
Last checked 2026-09-26
We check these pages against TTUHSC's catalog, Student Handbook, program pages and licensure disclosures. Your course faculty, your program director and the plan of study for your cohort have the final word.
Your TTUHSC preceptor search, run by specialists.
Tell us your TTUHSC track, your next clinical course and the town you'll train near. We find preceptors who fit the course and pull together what SON staff and faculty need to approve both the clinician and the facility, early enough for the electronic preceptor agreement to go through before the term.
- Preceptors matched to the track: family primary care, adult-gerontology acute care, pediatrics, psychiatric mental health
- License, certification and facility details ready for TTUHSC's preceptor and facility approval
- In Lubbock, Amarillo, Abilene, the Permian Basin, Dallas-Fort Worth and the states TTUHSC accepts
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Your track, your town and your next clinical term is all we need to begin.