Clinical Nurse Specialist

Program
Overview

Program Overview

Diversifying Your Nursing Career

The Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing designed its Clinical Nurse Specialist master’s program for registered nurses who wish to expand their nursing expertise related to the management of a specific patient population. If you seek diverse professional opportunities, such as delivering direct patient care, organizing services and resources while controlling costs, and educating nurses and healthcare professionals to improve healthcare delivery systems, the CNS master’s program will help you build the necessary competencies in both clinical theory-based and research-based nursing practices.

You will gain expertise in your area of clinical focus, either in adult or child health. The broad education and holistic approach to healthcare systems will allow you to experience professional roles as varied as your interests—you might find yourself working as an expert clinician, clinical leader, staff or academic educator, consultant, or researcher.

CNS options include:  Adult/Geriatric Health, Adult/Geriatric Critical Care, Pediatric Health, and Pediatric Critical Care.

Those who earn a master's degree as a clinical nurse specialist:

• Serve as educators, outcomes managers, consultants, researchers, change agents, and case managers, as well as clinical nurses
• Lead and collaborate in an interdisciplinary healthcare team that can include pharmacists, physical therapists, or social workers
• Provide guidance and support to patients and their families in navigating the complex healthcare delivery system
• Are prepared to pass the American Nurses Credentialing Center Clinical Nurse Specialist Exam

To be given consideration for a Merit Scholarship Award, you must be accepted for admission by March 1. Please note that on average it takes the Admissions Committee approximately one month to reach a decision upon receipt of a completed application.

Program
Requirements

Program Requirements

Students may apply for full- or part-time study.

The school seeks individuals who will bring to the student body the qualities of scholarship, motivation, and commitment. The Admissions Committee is interested in each applicant as an individual and will consider both academic potential and personal qualities. Therefore, school records, test scores, recommendations, and essays about goals and interests are important.

Recommendations about a student's character, intellectual curiosity, seriousness of purpose, and range of extracurricular activities are considered.

Selection factors include:

• Bachelor of Science degree in nursing
• Scholastic Grade Point Average of at least 3.0 on a 4.0 scale from an accredited college or university
• Graduate Record Exam (GRE) scores within the past five years (for MSN/MPH and MSN/MBA applicants only)
• Demonstrated commitment to nursing practice and scholarly pursuit
• Community service and professional commitment
• Interview with faculty member*
• Written expression of goals
• Letters of recommendation
• Applicants must submit evidence of current nursing licensure. Students must have or obtain Maryland Registered Nurse licensure for matriculation

*Interview with a faculty member may or may not be requested.

Additionally, applicants for the Adult-Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner program

• Will be exceptional students who are carefully chosen based on a number of factors including previous experiences.  Direct care acute care experiences will be required;
  OR 
• Will be required to attend part time during their first year in the program while working as a staff nurse in a critical care unit full time (more than 36 hours per week), and will not begin NP clinical courses until their second year.

Transfer of Credit

Transfer of credit is granted on an individual basis. The decision is based on equivalent content (for required courses), credit allotment and satisfactory completion of courses. You may petition for permission to substitute a course from another college or university by submitting a request to the Office of Admissions and Student Services along with the complete course syllabus.

Up to 6 credits of graduate course work taken at Johns Hopkins University or elsewhere may be accepted for transfer. Course work must have been completed within the last five years. Course work at the undergraduate level will not be considered for advanced standing credit.

Admissions
Procedures

Admissions Procedures

Start Early

Students are strongly encouraged to complete the application process early. Candidates for admission will be notified of a decision in writing after all the application documents are received and the Admissions Committee's review.

Note: The admissions committee for the Public Health Nursing, Nurse-Midwifery Track consists of representatives from both Johns Hopkins University and Shenandoah University.

Follow all instructions carefully to avoid delays in the processing of application materials. To expedite the application process, students may submit all supporting documentation, including official transcripts and recommendations, in sealed envelopes in one package (test scores excluded). Application supporting documentation may also arrive separately. Before a final admission decision can be made, all supporting documentation must be received.

Submit

• Completed and signed application form
• Signed statement acknowledging the School's Ethics Policy
• $75 non-refundable application fee
  (Make check or money order payable to "Johns Hopkins University")
• Goal statement
• Three recommendations:
  • At least one recommendation from an academic source (current or previous professor)
  • Remaining two recommendations may be from either an academic or professional source (employment/volunteer supervisor)
  • Recommendations should be enclosed in sealed envelopes with the recommender's signature across the envelope flap
• Official transcripts from all colleges and universities attended (including Johns Hopkins University)
• Current résumé
• Official GRE scores, if applying to the MSN/MPH or MSN/MBA programs, sent to the School of Nursing (School code: 5767)
• Verification of current RN license, all RN's must obtain a Maryland RN license and present verification by the time of matriculation

Note: Due to changing clinical site regulations, students are required to undergo a criminal background check prior to matriculation. The School will provide information about this process to accepted students.

Applicants Who Have Studied Abroad

International applicants and applicants who have completed courses outside of the United States must submit:

• Official course-by-course evaluation from the World Education Services (WES) or Commission on Graduates of Foreign Nursing Schools (CGFNS)
  (If any academic credit was granted from an academic institution outside the United States, credits must be evaluated)
• Official Test of English as a Second Language (TOEFL) scores for international students whose native language is not English
• All international students seeking an F-1 visa are required to submit official documents in English showing proof of funding

More information for international applicants 
Office of International Student, Faculty, and Staff Services

Curriculum
 

Curriculum

Sample Schedule - 36-38 credits

Core Courses - 12 credits

Advanced Practice Core Courses - 9 credits

* Either NR.110.536 Adult/Geriatric Variation or NR.110.537* Pediatric Variation is taken

Specialty Courses - 17 credits

* NR.110.520 - CNS Role Specialty Practicum I, NR.110.521 - CNS Specialty Practicum II, and NR 110.522 - CNS Outcomes Specialty Practicum III are also taken, topics are chosen by student and have a clinical component.
** NR.110.580 is for pediatric CNS focus only.
Note: Students must have at least one year of bedside experience in the specialty and population of interest.

Sample Course
of Study

Sample Course of Study

This master’s option may be completed in 15 months (4 semesters) and provides more than 500 clinical hours. To apply, you must have completed one year of full-time experience as a registered nurse in an adult or child care setting prior to clinical sequence.

Program Plan (full-time)

Fall I (9-12 credits)
Context of Healthcare for Advanced Practice Nursing (3 credits)
CNS Role Practicum I* (3 credits)
Education Requirement** (3 credits) (or in the last semester)
Statistical Literacy and Reasoning in Nursing Research (3 credits)

Spring I (12 credits)
Physiology/Pathophysiology I (3 credits)
Clinical Pharmacology (3 credits)
Advanced Health Assessment and Measurement* (2 credits)
Advanced Health Assessment and Measurement Adult/Geriatric or Pediatric Variations (1 credit)
Application of Research to Practice (3 credits)

Summer I (5 credits)
Program Development and Evaluation in Healthcare (2 credits)
CNS Expert Practice Practicum II* (3 credits)

Fall II (7-12 credits)
Education Requirement** (3 credits) (or in the first semester)
Health Promotion/Disease Prevention (1 credit)
CNS Outcomes Practicum III* (3 credits)
Philosophical, Theoretical, and Ethical Basis of Advanced Practice Nursing (3 credits)
Human Development Across the Lifespan (2 credits) (Pediatric CNS only)

* Course includes a clinical component

Program Plan (part-time)

Fall I (6 credits)
Statistical Literacy & Reasoning in Nursing Research (3 credits)
Context of Health Care for Advanced Practice Nursing (3 credits)

Spring I (6 credits)
Physiology/Pathophysiology I (3 credits)
Applications of Research to Practice (3 credits)

Summer I (3 credits)
Education Requirement (3 credits)

Fall II (8 credits)
CNS Role Practicum I* (3 credits)
Philosophical, Theoretical, and Ethical Basis of Advanced Practice Nursing (3 credits)
Human Development Across the Lifespan** (2 credits) (Pediatric CNS only)

Spring II (6 credits)
Advanced Health Assessment & Measurement* (2 credits)
Advanced Health Assessment and Measurement (Adult/Geriatric OR Pediatric variations) (1 credit)
Clinical Pharmacology (3 credits)

Summer II (5 credits)
CNS Expert Practice Practicum II* (3 credits)
Program Development and Evaluation in Healthcare (2 credits)

Fall III (4 credits)
CNS Outcomes Practicum III* (3 credits)
Health Promotion/Disease Prevention (1 credit)

* Course has a clinical component

Online
Option

Online Option

 A look at the course sequencing by semester for the Clinical Nurse Specialist online programs (full-time and part-time options). For more information, see the online programs FAQ page.

Program Plan (full-time)

Fall I (9-12 credits)
Context of Healthcare for Advanced Practice Nursing (3 credits)
CNS Role Practicum I* (3 credits)
Education Requirement** (3 credits) (or in the last semester)
Statistical Literacy and Reasoning in Nursing Research (3 credits)

Spring I (12 credits)
Clinical Pharmacology (3 credits)
Physiology/Pathophysiology I (3 credits)
Advanced Health Assessment and Measurement* (2 credits)
Advanced Health Assessment and Measurement Adult/Geriatric or Pediatric Variations (1 credit)
Application of Research to Practice (3 credits)

Summer I (5 credits)
Program Development and Evaluation in Healthcare (2 credits)
CNS Expert Practice Practicum II* (3 credits)

Fall II (7-12 credits)
Education Requirement** (3 credits) (or in the first semester)
Health Promotion/Disease Prevention (1 credit)
CNS Outcomes Practicum III* (3 credits)
Philosophical, Theoretical, and Ethical Basis of Advanced Practice Nursing (3 credits)
Human Development Across the Lifespan (2 credits) (Pediatric CNS only)

* Course includes a clinical component

Program Plan (part-time)

Fall I (6 credits)
Statistical Literacy & Reasoning in Nursing Research (3 credits)
Context of Health Care for Advanced Practice Nursing (3 credits)

Spring I (6 credits)
Physiology/Pathophysiology I (3 credits)
Applications of Research to Practice (3 credits)

Summer I (3 credits)
Education Requirement (3 credits)

Fall II (8 credits)
CNS Role Practicum I* (3 credits)
Philosophical, Theoretical, and Ethical Basis of Advanced Practice Nursing (3 credits)
Human Development Across the Lifespan (2 credits) (for Peds CNS only)

Spring II (6 credits)
Advanced Health Assessment & Measurement* (2 credits)
Advanced Health Assessment and Measurement (Adult/Geriatric OR Pediatric variations) (1 credit)
Clinical Pharmacology (3 credits)

Summer II (5 credits)
CNS Expert Practice Practicum II* (3 credits)
Program Development and Evaluation in Healthcare (2 credits)

Fall III (4 credits)
CNS Outcomes Practicum III* (3 credits)
Health Promotion/Disease Prevention (1 credit)

* Course has a clinical component

The CNS option is available to international students who plan to complete the program onsite in Maryland.  In order to meet regulations for an F – 1 Visa,  international students must enroll in face to face courses at the School of Nursing in Baltimore. In addition, CNS clinical experiences must be completed within the state of Maryland.  The School does not offer the CNS online option to international students who wish to study or complete clinical experiences outside of the United States

Tuition
 

Tuition

Tuition and Other Costs

*Full-time: 12 credit hours per semester
**All students must have health coverage.  Purchase of the School’s plan is optional.
***Amounts for other expenses vary based upon student's selection of books, supplies, and living arrangements.

Billed expenses are subject to change without prior notice.