This Graduate Certificate Program will allow primary care-certified pediatric nurse practitioners to acquire the nationally-specified pediatric acute and critical care content and clinical skills needed to take the national pediatric acute care certification exam and then to function competently within the acute care scope of practice. It will require satisfactory completion of twenty-four (24) credits of didactic content and clinical hours. The certificate provides nurses with essential knowledge and skills to assume acute care roles in a myriad of settings using a patient and family-centered care model. Courses focus on integrating advanced health assessment, pathophysiology, and acute clinical care and management. Specific clinical experiences in the courses will be tailored to meet the needs of individual graduate certificate students. Students will be expected to complete a minimum of 675 pediatric acute care clinical hours as required to meet the specialty competencies. Upon successful completion, graduates are eligible to take the Pediatric Nurse Practitioner-Acute Care national certification examination offered by the Pediatric Nursing Certifying Board (PNCB). 

Admission Requirements

1. Completion of a graduate (M.S.N or D.N.P.) clinical degree in Nursing from a nationally accredited institution with a grade point average (g.p.a.) of 3.0 
2. Current Michigan Registered Nurse licensure.
3. Current PNP-PC specialty certification by a nationally recognized body in their area of specialization and applicant must upload the certificate. 
4. A personal goal statement.
5. Two professional letters of recommendations.
6. Resume.
7. Official transcripts from all postsecondary institutions. 
8. If the student is currently enrolled in the D.N.P program, the certificate will not be awarded until the D.N.P. is posted on the transcript.