Become an FNP
Earn your master’s degree and become a family nurse practitioner (FNP). FNPs are advanced practice registered nurses who care for patients from infancy to the end of life, focusing on health promotion and disease prevention.
You’ll manage patients who:
- Have episodic illness and injury
- Need chronic disease management
- Require palliative or end-of-life care
The FNP curriculum prepares students to manage medically and psychologically stable patients and to identify, diagnose and refer patients experiencing sudden or progressive deterioration.
Faculty Spotlight: Dr. Christine Smith
With an interest in the healthcare of underserved communities, Smith invites her nursing students to work alongside her at a local shelter, where she provides health education courses. She has also served as an advisor to a student mission trip to Mexico.
State-of-the-Art Simulation Lab
Opened in 2012, the Kathy J. Holmgren Nursing Simulation Laboratory provides hands-on opportunities for students to practice treating patients in a safe environment. It offers:
- A 3,000-square-foot facility equipped with the latest medical technology
- Four rooms that simulate a clinical setting
- Three rooms dedicated to skills development
- High-fidelity mannequins that simulate different health scenarios
- Audio and video recording capabilities that allow students to review their work and receive direct feedback from faculty
Where FNPs Work
- Primary care clinics and offices
- Hospitals
- Urgent care centers
- Home health agencies
- Long-term care facilities
- School-based health centers
- Community health centers
- Occupational health clinics
Convenient Evening Schedule
Graduate nursing core courses start as early as 4:30 p.m. at our Chicago campus, easily accessible by car and public transit. You can continue working in your current role, drawing valuable connections between your classroom and practicum experiences and your nursing practice.
Alumna Profile
Kim Wilson MSN ’10 runs KareFirst—the largest nurse practitioner-owned healthcare management group—and finds North Park graduates to be some of the top problem-solvers.
Where Alumni Work
- Advocate Health Care
- Ascension Saint Joseph
- Endeavor Health Elmhurst Hospital
- John H. Stroger, Jr. Hospital of Cook County
- Loyola University Medical Center
- NorthShore University HealthSystem
- Northwestern Medicine
