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Master of Science in Nursing

 

Reach Your Career Goals with an Advanced Nursing Degree

Transform yourself and advance your career as a nurse practitioner or nurse educator.

The online Master of Science in Nursing programs from Saint Xavier University strengthen your skills as an advanced clinician or educator for an immediate impact on your career.

U.S. News & World Report Official Badge

No. 3 in the Nation
U.S. News & World Report (2024)

Launch School of Nursing

Why Earn Your MSN at SXU?

SXU's nationally-recognized, CCNE-accredited online MSN program will provide students with knowledge and skills to translate evidence into practice, use current informatics and health care technologies, collaborate effectively with other professionals, and apply professional standards within a framework of ethical decision-making. You will be recognized as a leader in your area of practice, empowered to positively impact outcomes.

The learning outcomes of each track are applicable to a variety of settings, making Saint Xavier's online MSN program a flexible education experience you will use throughout your career.

Nursing student working in simulation lab

TWO tracks to choose from

The online MSN offers two tracks to advance your professional nursing career:


Family Nurse Practitioner

Learn the skills to provide comprehensive, patient-centered primary care to individuals of all ages. Coursework prepares graduates to take the family nurse practitioner certification exam administered by ANCC or AANP.
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Family Nurse Practitioner

Nurse Educator track


Nurse Educator

Develop teaching techniques and learn how to adapt them to different settings, such as public health classes, hospitals, and schools of nursing. Coursework prepares you for the Certified Nurse Educator (CNE) exam. (SXU also offers this track as a stand-alone certificate for nurses who already have an MSN.)

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About the Program

When completing a Master of Science in Nursing at Saint Xavier University, students will have the choice of two tracks to pursue as a focus:

FAMILY NURSE PRACTITIONER (FNP)

Learn the skills to provide comprehensive, patient-centered primary care to individuals of all ages. Coursework prepares graduates to take the family nurse practitioner certification exam administered by ANCC or AANP.

NURSE EDUCATOR

Acquire knowledge of teaching-learning philosophies and develop teaching strategies that can be used in classroom, clinical, simulation, and online settings. Courses are taught by experienced nurse educators and follow Nurse Educator Competencies as articulated by the National League for Nursing NLN). You will be prepared to assume an educator role in either clinical or academic organizations. Graduates are eligible to sit for any of the Certified Nurse Educator (CNE) exams offered by NLN.

On-campus FNP Skills Intensives occur in the second and third year of the program in the Simulation and Integrated Learning Center (SILC) at SXU. Students learn suturing techniques, office procedures, chest and abdominal radiology interpretation, and orthopedic examination. In addition, students are introduced to simulation technology with OtoSIM and OphthoSIM during the workshop-style Intensive. In a separate on-campus visit, standardized patients are utilized to allow students to complete sensitive female and male exams in a formative learning environment.

The Student Nurses Association (SNA) is an organization for students in all levels of the nursing program to connect at group meetings and through a variety of community service projects. The group is guided by two full-time nursing faculty members.

Working one-on-one with preceptors, students engage in practicum activities that provide real-world experience to develop the skills needed for the FNP or educator role.

In addition, they'll have a laundry list of added benefits from choosing SXU as their school of choice for their degree:

  • Saint Xavier University School of Nursing combines asynchronous online activities with experiential learning to produce graduates ready to practice the FNP or educator role in a variety of settings.
  • The faculty are experienced professional nurses who hold doctoral degrees in nursing from a variety of colleges and universities and are passionate about teaching the next generation of nurses.
  • Small class sizes allow for close interaction with faculty and student colleagues.
  • Students will develop a habit of lifelong learning that will prepare them for the ever-changing nursing profession.
  • With core values of service, integrity, and excellence exemplified throughout the program, students will become more effective citizens and assets to their communities.

The goals of the graduate nursing program are to:

  1. Prepare registered professional nurses to meet current and future health care needs of populations through advanced nursing practice and transformative leadership, grounded in Mercy values.
  2. Provide a foundation for research or practice-focused doctoral study in nursing.

The MSN program outcomes are to:

  1. Synthesize knowledge from other disciplines with nursing theory, research and policy to improve health care delivery and outcomes.
  2. Assume leadership in designing, providing, and coordinating comprehensive care in complex and varied settings.
  3. Lead initiatives to improve quality, safety, and communication in managing and providing health care.
  4. Translate evidence into practice to improve patient and population outcomes.
  5. Evaluate care outcomes through aggregate data analysis and appropriate application of informatics and health care technologies.
  6. Advocate for patients/populations and health-promoting policies across the health care continuum.
  7. Apply professional standards within a framework of ethical decision-making and an awareness of personal and professional values and beliefs.
  8. Practice in collaborative and interdependent relationships with diverse patients, populations, and colleagues across a variety of health care settings.
  9. Design patient/population-centered and culturally responsive strategies in the delivery of clinical prevention and health promotion services.
  10. Engage in professional behaviors that promote lifelong learning and accountability for practice while serving as a role model.

Choose a high-quality nursing education that is affordable, accessible and immediately applicable.

Saint Xavier University as well as the School of Nursing and its programs are consistently recognized for their educational quality.


The baccalaureate degree program in nursing and master's degree program in nursing at Saint Xavier University are accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE).

Because of the rigorous standards necessary to earn and maintain accredited status, CCNE-accredited nursing schools like SXU's School of Nursing give prospective students greater confidence in the education they will receive. Earning a nursing degree from a CCNE-accredited program will also assure employers of the value of your education.

Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education Accreditation

Ranked No. 3 in the Nation for Best Online Graduate Nursing Program (2024) by U.S. News & World Report.

These distinctions help give you confidence in the professional nursing development you will experience as a student at Saint Xavier University, and they will demonstrate the full value of your degree to employers, peers, and patients.

Clinical Partner Discount

The 20% clinical partner tuition discount can be taken advantage of by students enrolled in SXU's graduate program who are employed as a .5 or greater (40 hours per pay period) status in a clinical setting where our School of Nursing undergraduate nursing students are able to conduct clinicals on an ongoing, consistent basis. A consistent basis of which students are hosted by the clinical site is defined as two years or more.

  • Those students working in the same identified clinical setting with a work status of .4 or less will be eligible for a 10% tuition discount.
  • Please note that the above discounts cannot be combined with any other discounts.

Employer Assistance

Select organizations are eligible for tuition assistance. Speak with a graduate admission counselor for more information.

Post-Master's Nursing Certificates

Family Nurse Practitioner

Family Nurse Practitioner Certificate

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Nurse Educator

Nurse Educator Certificate


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Alumni testimonials

"I wanted to attend a school with a strong mission to serve others and a school that kept the foundation of faith and social justice at the core of their academic programs. Saint Xavier was also highly ranked for its online graduate nursing program, which helped confirm my decision to apply."
"Many of the professors were also working on further degree work themselves and actively engaged in roles within nursing, research, and leadership. This enabled them to understand the roles we all were juggling during degree work and gave them a more comprehensive view of nursing's opportunities and challenges beyond the academic realm."
"I believe that Saint Xavier empowers nurses to become leaders within their respective units, to use critical thinking and make decisions based on theoretical knowledge and evidence-based practices, and to act with kindness and respect to each patient entrusted into our care."
 

MSN Online Information Sessions

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