How to become a Nurse Practitioner (NP)
Nurse Practitioners are advanced-practice RNs licensed to diagnose, treat, and (in most states) prescribe. The American Association of Nurse Practitioners reports 385,000+ licensed NPs as of 2024, with growth far outpacing physician supply.
Prerequisites
An active, unencumbered RN license is required before applying to NP programs. Most programs also require 1-2 years of bedside experience, though direct-entry options exist for new-grad BSN candidates and for second-degree students entering nursing.
Education
NPs train at the graduate level — either Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) or Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP). The American Association of Colleges of Nursing has set the DNP as the preferred entry-level credential for advanced practice, and many programs have shifted MSN → DNP, but MSN-prepared NPs remain fully licensable. Programs typically run 2-3 years for an MSN and 3-4 years for a BSN-to-DNP. Specialties chosen at admission: FNP (family), AGNP (adult-gerontology, primary or acute), PMHNP (psychiatric-mental-health), PNP (pediatric), NNP (neonatal), WHNP (women's health), or AGACNP (adult-gerontology acute care).
Certification + licensing
Each NP specialty has its own national certifying body (AANP, ANCC, NCC, PNCB). After passing the national cert exam, the NP applies to their state board for an Advanced Practice Registered Nurse (APRN) license. Practice authority varies by state: about half of states have Full Practice Authority (NP can diagnose + prescribe independently), the rest require physician collaboration or supervision agreements.
Where NPs work
About 70% of NPs work in primary care; the rest spread across acute care, urgent care, specialty practices (cardiology, oncology, dermatology), telehealth, hospital medicine, and skilled nursing. Family-medicine groups, federally qualified health centers, and large primary-care employers (One Medical, ChenMed, Oak Street, VillageMD) are heavy NP employers, alongside hospital systems hiring AGACNP/AGNP for hospitalist + step-down roles.
Salary + growth
BLS lists Nurse Practitioner among the fastest-growing occupations in the US (projected 38% growth 2024-2034 vs ~7% across all occupations). Median annual salary is in the $120k-$135k range nationally per recent BLS data, with significant variance by specialty (CRNAs and Psych NPs sit higher; primary-care FNPs near the median).