Nursing Graduate Certificates Areas of Interest

An online nursing graduate certificate (sometimes known as a post-graduate or post-master's certificate) is a master's level qualification for nursing grads who have already completed both a bachelor's and master's degree in a nursing area. They are focused areas that help nurses pursue a career in a specialty area of nursing for career growth and expertise. For example, if a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner wants to become certified as a Clinical Nurse Leader, they can earn a graduate certificate rather than going through another lengthy and expensive full degree program.

Some key considerations for an online graduate nursing certificate include:

• Full-time campus study over one academic year comprising two semesters
• Part-time campus study may be spread over a longer period, typically two years – one semester per year
• Credits are typically between 12 and 18 credit/semester units (varies by school and program)
• Most schools expect a minimum 3.0 GPA
• An active, unencumbered RN licensure is a requirement, as well as a minimum number of years of clinical nursing experience (typically 3)

Why Get an Online Graduate Certificate in Nursing?

A nursing graduate certificate:

• Gives you specialist knowledge in the treatment of patients with specific needs
• Helps you achieve certification and license to work in regulated niche areas of nursing (see full list below)
• Improves your employability options in healthcare, giving you more choices to work where you like
• Opens senior doorways into management, administration, and non-bedside senior hospital roles
• Leads to anything between 13% and 25% higher pay than nurses without such a certificate
• Increases job security
• Improves professional networking opportunities
• Is good preparation for pursuing doctoral-level degrees

Online Nursing Graduate Certificate Specializations

The following graduate certificates in nursing are available to help you enter specialty nursing careers: