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Certificate Program Acute & Specialty Care Clinical Nurse Specialist (CNS)

The School of Nursing prepares nurses for the care of acute and chronically-ill adults within the Acute & Specialty Care CNS program at the MSN or post-master's certificate level. This is an Advanced Practice role that prepares the student to assume the roles of clinician, educator and researcher, as well as clinical consultant and clinical leader. Emphasis is placed on providing the student with the advanced theoretical knowledge and practice skills needed to function in increasingly complex care settings across the care continuum. Evidenced based practice, outcomes management, clinical research, and advanced clinical decision-making are also emphasized.

The curriculum builds on both the theoretical knowledge and clinical experience of the bachelor's and master's prepared nurse.

Full-time students can complete the Post-Master's Certificate in Acute Care CNS in 20 months. In the first year you would have didactic classes on Thursdays and Fridays. In the second year, the didactic component is on Thursday, and clinicals are Monday-Wednesday.

WOC Nursing: Students in the Acute & Specialty Care CNS program can select to pursue Wound, Ostomy & Continence Nursing specialty preparation. Students in this program would complete 2 didactic courses in WOCN, as well as an additional preceptorship. This would enable you to sit for AWOCN certitication.

Program Coordinator:  Arlene Keeling, PhD, RN;  (434)924-5906,  email: awk2z@virginia.edu

Clinicals

Students complete 560 clinical hours, divided evenly between two practica courses. The first clinical course (GNUR 7311) must be completed at the UVA Medical Center. The Medical Center adjoins the School of Nursing and is a 580-bed, Level I trauma center with 8 ICUs. It provides an excellent clinical cite with a wealth of professional and technological resources. The second practicum (GNUR 7312) may be completed at another facility in Virginia with prior arrangement or the program director.

The individual student determines the focus of his/her specialization (ie: cardiology, ER/trauma, digestive health, nephrology, wound/ostomy/continence, neurology or neuro-surgery, general surgery, pulmonary, transplant, oncology, etc). The acute care graduate program can accommodate students interested in preparing for more than one specialty.  In such cases, students should expect additional clinical hours, and will receive individual faculty advisement.

Certification

Students are qualified to sit for the CNS certification examination in either Critical Care or Adult Health from the American Nurses Credentialing Center.

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Admission Requirements

Admission to the School of Nursing is competitive and based on evaluation of all portions of the application. To be considered for the  Certificate, applicants must submit a completed application and:

Application deadline:

Fall or Summer entry: April 1
Spring entry: November 1

International applicants have additional admissions requirements that can be viewed here. 

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Downloads, Program of Study, and Links

For More Information

For additional information on admission to and programs of study at the UVa School of Nursing, please fill our our online form. You are also welcome to call the Office of Admissions at (434) 924-0141 / (888) 283-8703.

Questions on admissions and financial aid should be directed to Clay Hysell, Assistant Dean for Graduate Student Services, email hysell@virginia.edu