Texas Woman’s University’s College of Nursing offers 2 Adult-Gerontology Primary Care Nurse Practitioner pathways:
- MSN
- Post-Master’s Certificate
Both pathways are delivered online with a Dallas immersion experience. TWU currently limits the AGPCNP program to Texas residents, and all clinical work must take place in Texas.
Program Tracks Overview
| Program | Est. Tuition (Resident) | Est. Duration | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| MSN – AGPCNP | $18,810 | Not published | 45 |
| Post-Master’s Certificate – AGPCNP | $11,286–$15,048 | Not published | 27 (plus up to 9 prerequisite credits) |
Tuition estimates multiply TWU’s 2026–2027 resident graduate rate ($323/credit) plus the $95/credit graduate master’s nursing surcharge ($418/credit total) by the catalog credit total; the certificate range adds the 9 prerequisite credits for applicants who still need them.
- Why choose it: 780 clinical hours across three practica at about $418 per credit, with certificate students completing the same 27-credit specialty sequence as MSN students.
- Trade-off: Only Texas residents can enroll, all clinicals stay in Texas, and TWU does not publish who arranges AGPCNP clinical sites and preceptors.
Quick Facts
| Program Types | MSN; Post-Master’s Certificate |
| Format | Online with Dallas immersion experience |
| Campus Attendance | Dallas immersion; NURS 5503 includes a 15-hour laboratory intensive |
| Clinical Hours | 780 (180 + 300 + 300) |
| Clinical Placement | Texas only; responsibility not published |
| Residency | Texas residents only |
| Population Focus | Adolescents, adults, and older adults |
| Licensure Required | Unencumbered U.S. RN (MSN); licensed APRN (certificate) |
| Tuition | $418/credit resident (tuition plus nursing surcharge) |
| Accreditation | CCNE |
Master of Science in Nursing – Adult-Gerontology Primary Care Nurse Practitioner
The MSN-AGPCNP requires 45 credits and costs an estimated $18,810 in resident tuition. TWU does not publish a completion time; the catalog sets a six-year maximum. Applicants need a BS or BSN, an unencumbered U.S. RN license, and Texas residency.
MSN Curriculum
The degree splits into an 18-credit advanced practice core and a 27-credit AGPCNP sequence. The core covers the 3 Ps (pathophysiology, pharmacology, health assessment) plus evidence-based practice, role theory, and health policy.
The specialty sequence pairs didactic courses with three practica of increasing length. It opens with foundational concepts and a care management course that covers diagnostics and common procedural interventions, including a 15-hour laboratory intensive. Primary care management of adolescents through older adults precedes Practicum I. Acute and chronic disease management runs alongside Practicum II, and a synthesis and transition-to-practice course pairs with Practicum III.
The program ends with an oral examination of a completed professional or clinical project, which the catalog notes is subject to change.
Advanced practice core (18 credits):
- BIOL 5333 – Advanced Pathophysiology (3)
- NURS 5663 – Pharmacology for Advanced Nursing Practice (3)
- NURS 5643 – Advanced Health Assessment for Advanced Nursing Practice (3)
- NURS 5073 – Evidence-Based Practice for the Promotion of Quality Outcomes (3)
- NURS 5093 – Theoretical Foundations and the Advanced Nursing Role (3)
- NURS 5133 – Health Policy and Health Care Delivery for Advanced Nursing Practice (3)
AGPCNP specialty sequence (27 credits):
- NURS 5502 – Foundational Concepts for the AGPCNP (2)
- NURS 5503 – Principles of Adult and Geriatric Care Management, Diagnostics and Common Procedural Interventions (3), includes 15-hour lab intensive
- NURS 5323 – Primary Care Management of the Adolescent, Adult, and Older Adult (3)
- NURS 5523 – AGPCNP Clinical Practicum I: Introduction to Adult Primary Care (3)
- NURS 5563 – Acute and Chronic Disease Management of the Adult and Older Adult (3)
- NURS 5565 – AGPCNP Clinical Practicum II: Acute and Chronic Disease Management (5)
- NURS 5573 – Synthesis and Transition to Professional Practice for the AGPCNP (3)
- NURS 5575 – AGPCNP Clinical Practicum III: Advanced Care Management (5)
Full degree requirements are in the TWU graduate catalog.
MSN Clinical Requirements
- Total clinical hours: 780, per the catalog course descriptions
- Practicum I (NURS 5523): 180 hours
- Practicum II (NURS 5565): 300 hours
- Practicum III (NURS 5575): 300 hours
- Location: all clinical experiences must occur in Texas
- Placement responsibility: not clearly published for the AGPCNP track
- On-site component: Dallas immersion experience; the catalog does not state its length or timing beyond the 15-hour lab intensive in NURS 5503
The 300-hour Practicum II and III courses are the planning problem. Each demands substantial weekday clinic time in a single term, which working nurses usually need to negotiate with employers well in advance.
Placement support is the larger unknown. TWU’s clinical placement service page describes a team that secures sites and preceptors, but it covers only the online FNP program. Applicants should assume they may need to identify Texas preceptors themselves until TWU confirms otherwise.
MSN Admissions
- BS or BSN from a nationally accredited nursing program
- Current, unencumbered U.S. RN license, uploaded to the application
- Texas residency (program currently limited to Texas residents)
- Undergraduate basic statistics course
- Minimum 3.0 GPA in the last 60 hours of undergraduate nursing coursework and in all prior graduate coursework
- Provisional admission possible with a 2.5–2.99 GPA in the last 60 hours
- Nursing MSN Supplemental Application Form, uploaded to the application
- Official transcripts from every college attended
- Recommendation requests through the application (number not stated)
- $50 application fee ($75 international)
- Transfer credit: up to 12 semester hours with grades of B or higher
Deadlines are inconsistent across TWU pages. The AGPCNP program page lists rolling admission and points to Graduate Admissions, which gives university-wide priority dates of March 1 (fall) and November 1 (spring). The College of Nursing certificates page lists February 15 (fall) and September 15 (spring). Applying by the earlier nursing dates avoids the risk.
Provisional admits must earn a B or better in each of their first 12 credits, at least 9 of them in nursing. One C during that period means dismissal. After admission, two grades below B in required courses, or two in the same course, remove a student from the program even if the course is retaken.
Post-Master’s Certificate – Adult-Gerontology Primary Care Nurse Practitioner
The AGPCNP post-master’s certificate requires 27 credits and costs an estimated $11,286 in resident tuition, rising to $15,048 if all 9 prerequisite credits are needed. TWU does not publish a completion time. TWU’s certificates page states applicants must already be licensed APRNs.
Certificate Curriculum
The certificate is the MSN’s 27-credit AGPCNP sequence without the master’s core. MSN courses are waived except the 3 Ps: Advanced Pathophysiology, Pharmacology, and Advanced Health Assessment. Applicants missing any of these take them first, adding 3 to 9 credits.
Pharmacology has a recency rule. The course must fall within six years of anticipated certificate completion; the catalog states that APRNs credentialed by the Texas Board of Nursing with older coursework must repeat it. An APRN who took pharmacology early in a master’s program may need to retake it, adding 3 credits and about $1,254 in tuition.
- Prerequisites if not current: BIOL 5333 (3), NURS 5663 (3), NURS 5643 (3)
- NURS 5502 – Foundational Concepts for the AGPCNP (2)
- NURS 5503 – Care Management, Diagnostics and Common Procedural Interventions (3)
- NURS 5323 – Primary Care Management of the Adolescent, Adult, and Older Adult (3)
- NURS 5523, 5565, 5575 – AGPCNP Clinical Practicum I–III (3, 5, 5)
- NURS 5563 – Acute and Chronic Disease Management of the Adult and Older Adult (3)
- NURS 5573 – Synthesis and Transition to Professional Practice for the AGPCNP (3)
Full requirements are in the certificate catalog page.
Certificate Clinical Requirements
- Total clinical hours: 780 across the same three practica as the MSN (180, 300, 300)
- Location: Texas only
- Placement responsibility: not clearly published
- Prior clinical hours: TWU does not publish a gap analysis or credit for clinical hours from a previous NP program
Certificate students complete the full 780 hours regardless of prior NP experience. For a practicing APRN, that is the same clinical commitment as an MSN student, compressed into a shorter program.
Certificate Admissions
- MS or MSN from a nationally accredited nursing program
- Licensed APRN
- Current, unencumbered U.S. RN license
- Texas residency
- Minimum 3.0 GPA in the master’s nursing degree
- Basic statistics course
- 3 Ps completed with a B or better, pharmacology within six years of anticipated completion
- $50 application fee ($75 international)
- Deadlines: February 15 (fall), September 15 (spring)
The APRN requirement appears on the College of Nursing certificates page, not in the catalog entry, which lists only a master’s in nursing. The catalog notes programs may set additional criteria on their websites, so this page treats APRN licensure as required. Master’s-prepared nurses who are not APRNs, such as educators or administrators, are not eligible and would need the MSN.
Tuition
TWU’s 2026–2027 graduate catalog lists resident graduate tuition at $323 per credit, plus a $95-per-credit surcharge for graduate master’s nursing. That puts AGPCNP tuition at $418 per credit for Texas residents. The non-resident rate ($751 per credit before the surcharge) does not apply because the program admits Texas residents only.
A published conflict worth knowing about. TWU’s financial aid cost-of-attendance page lists $5,184 in graduate tuition for 9 credits per semester, or $576 per credit. That figure is a general graduate estimate and does not itemize the nursing surcharge. This page uses the catalog’s itemized rate schedule. The difference matters: $576 per credit puts the MSN at $25,920, $7,110 more than the catalog-based estimate.
Estimated Total Tuition
| Pathway | Tuition ($418/credit) | Tuition + Per-Credit Fees ($509/credit) |
|---|---|---|
| MSN (45 credits) | $18,810 | $22,905 |
| Certificate (27 credits) | $11,286 | $13,743 |
| Certificate with all prerequisites (36 credits) | $15,048 | $18,324 |
Figures are calculated from TWU’s published 2026–2027 rates, not totals published by the university. Per-credit fees are the $25 graduate program fee and $66 university services fee.
Fees Beyond Tuition
- Graduate program fee: $25 per credit
- University services fee: $66 per credit
- Student services fee: $35.71 per credit, capped at $250 per semester
- Per-semester fees: fitness and recreation $80, medical services $51, student union $150, international education $3
- Malpractice liability insurance for clinical programs (amount not published)
- Student-paid clinical clearances such as background checks, drug screens, and immunizations
- Travel to Dallas for the immersion experience
See TWU’s cost to attend page and the catalog’s financial information for current rates.
Why Choose This AGPCNP Program?
Best suited for: Texas-resident nurses who can secure weekday clinic time in Texas and want a low-cost public AGPCNP program with high clinical volume.
780 Clinical Hours in Three Practica
The 180-300-300 practicum structure is a substantial supervised clinical load, and certificate students complete all of it too. The final two practica carry most of that load, so students should plan reduced work hours for those terms.
Public Pricing Near $418 per Credit
At an estimated $18,810 in MSN tuition, or about $22,905 with per-credit fees, TWU is priced for in-state public students. Certificate students who already hold current 3 Ps pay roughly $11,286 in tuition.
Texas Residency Is a Hard Gate
Out-of-state nurses cannot enroll, and Texas residents who plan to move mid-program would lose access to Texas clinical sites. The Dallas immersion adds a travel requirement for students in Houston, West Texas, or the Rio Grande Valley.
Unclear Preceptor Support
TWU publishes placement support for online FNP students but not for AGPCNP students. Nurses without existing Texas primary care contacts should confirm placement responsibility before enrolling, since 780 hours requires several reliable preceptors.
The Verdict
TWU makes the strongest case for Texas residents with primary care connections who want substantial clinical training at public-university cost. Licensed APRNs in Texas adding an adult-gero primary care focus also get a direct 27-credit route. Nurses outside Texas cannot apply, and Texas applicants who need guaranteed placement support should compare programs that publish one.
Accreditation
TWU’s MSN, along with its BSN and DNP, is accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE). The catalog does not explicitly name the national certification exams AGPCNP graduates are eligible to take.
State authorization is not a factor for most applicants because TWU limits the program to Texas residents and requires all clinicals in Texas.
Other AGPCNP Programs in Texas
- University of Texas at Arlington - Arlington
- University of Texas Medical Branch - Galveston