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Neonatal Nurse Practitioner

Delivering comprehensive care to pre-term and full-term infants who are experiencing life-threatening conditions and chronic illnesses is the role of the neonatal nurse practitioner. These advanced practice nurses are experts in neonatal care and not only manage these critically ill patients, but also work with the parents and families during times of extreme stress. If you have at least one year of nursing experience with high-risk newborns and are ready to advance to the next level of care, the Neonatal Nurse Practitioner track may be for you!

Mississippi's only Neonatal Nurse Practitioner track

The Neonatal Nurse Practitioner track is the only one of its kind in the state of Mississippi. With this degree, you will receive state-of-the-art education, clinical experiences and personalized training in the University of Mississippi Medical Center's Level 4 neonatal intensive care unit, intermediate care nursery and newborn nursery. There are 630 clinical hours required for successful completion of this track, and these clinical hours are under the mentorship of well-trained and well-qualified, leading neonatal nurse practitioners, neonatologists, geneticists and specialists in the areas of pediatric surgery, endocrinology, cardiology, neurology, and pharmacology. All clinical hours must be completed within the state of Mississippi. Upon completion of this track, you will be ready to sit for the neonatal nurse practitioner certification exam offered by the National Certification Corporation (NCC).

Plans of study and course scheduling

The Neonatal Nurse Practitioner track offers a curriculum taught by well-prepared faculty using a combination of online, on-campus and hybrid methods. Also, state-of-the-art simulation labs are utilized to teach complex procedures. Not only do our students benefit from the low faculty-to-student ratio and personalized attention we provide, but also from the enhanced learning experiences that occur when collaborating with other classmates who have diverse backgrounds and skill sets.

Flexible plans of study are available and are designed by faculty with individual consideration given to students' goals and geographic locations. Students will be given an individualized plan of study appropriate for their role by their academic adviser upon enrollment, and applicants who already have a nurse practitioner certification in another area will have a shorter plan of study.

• Course descriptions
• MSN plan of study

Certification and Licensure

The University of Mississippi School of Nursing's Neonatal Nurse Practitioner track, a track leading to certification, satisfies the requirements set forth by the governing body in the State of Mississippi. Completion of the Neonatal Nurse Practitioner track also qualifies graduates to take the NCC national certification exam in order to obtain a state advanced practice license as a nurse practitioner. Please be advised that requirements for nursing licensure vary from state to state. UMMC has not made a determination on whether the degree meets the licensing requirements of states, territories or entities outside of Mississippi. If you are located (presently living) outside of the state of Mississippi and are interested in this track, please contact admissioncounselor@umc.edu immediately and UMMC will make every effort to make a determination of whether it meets licensure requirements for the state in which you are located.

Additionally, Mississippi is a Nursing Licensure Compact (NLC) state. The Nursing Licensure Compact (NLC) is an agreement between states that allows nurses to have one license but the ability to practice in other states that are part of the agreement. However, be advised that ultimately reciprocity of a Mississippi nursing or advanced practice nursing license is determined by individual states and entities. For more information related to how nursing reciprocity works, please visit www.ncsbn.org.

For more information

For additional general information regarding the Neonatal Nurse Practitioner track, you may email admissioncounselor@umc.edu or call (601) 815-0124.

For more specific information, please contact the individual track director listed on the program contacts webpage.