UC Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner Certificate Program
A collaborative, UC-wide academic certificate program to prepare future mental health care leaders
The UC Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner (PMHNP) Certificate Program is a 12-month, hybrid graduate certificate designed to prepare advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs) to care for patients with psychiatric and mental health needs across the lifespan.
Personal experience propels students to improve mental health care in California
Read UC PMHNP student Chris Hall’s story »
Developed in collaboration with Sue & Bill Gross School of Nursing at UC Irvine, UCSF School of Nursing and UCLA School of Nursing this program responds to California’s critical shortage of mental health professionals. Housed at the Betty Irene Moore School of Nursing at UC Davis, this program features virtual classroom learning and includes clinical placements throughout the state.
Graduates are eligible to sit for the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s (ANCC) Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner (Across the Lifespan) Board Certification (PMHNP-BC™) examination to become a board-certified PMHNP to care for psychiatric and mental health patients.
Fast facts
- Type (full vs. part-time): full-time
- Duration: 12 months
- Format: hybrid
- Objective: to prepare licensed NPs to become board-certified PMHNPs to care for psychiatric and mental health patients in California
- Outcomes: an increased workforce of mental health providers workforce in communities that have the most need
- Application period: mid-August – November 1
About the program
This unique UC-wide initiative was created to expand access to psychiatric care across California by training a new generation of board-certified psychiatric-mental health nurse practitioners. The 12-month hybrid program combines online education with three immersion sessions in summer, fall and winter quarters, as well as regional clinical training across California. This 48-unit graduate academic certificate (GAC) provides supplemental course work and clinical experiences to allow licensed NPs to qualify to sit for the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s (ANCC) Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner (Across the Lifespan) Board Certification (PMHNP-BC™) examination to become a board-certified PMHNP to allow practicing NPs to care for psychiatric and mental health patients.
What we're looking for
We welcome applications from licensed, experienced APRNs who are ready to deepen their practice and make a meaningful impact in mental health care. Eligible professionals include:
- Nurse Practitioners (NPs)
- Clinical Nurse Specialists (CNSs)
- Certified Nurse Midwives (CNMs)
- Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists (CRNAs)
What we provide
- A structured, fast-track pathway to board certification as a PMHNP in California
- Access to expert faculty across the UC system
- Clinical placement coordination throughout California
- Virtual immersion sessions for experiential learning
- A curriculum grounded in case-based learning, technology, and systems thinking
- Interprofessional support to build leadership and collaborative skills
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Core courses are offered primarily online in summer, fall, winter and spring quarters, with some virtual sessions through UC Davis. Students typically attend class virtually on Wednesdays for their clinical case conference. Students should expect that some quarters, courses and clinical experiences must be completed during evenings and weeks. There are virtual immersion sessions in the summer, fall and winter quarters. Students may be required to attend virtual sessions to review and enhance course content comprehension. Review our program course curriculum to learn more about course offerings.
This program is developed in collaboration with Sue & Bill Gross School of Nursing at UC Irvine, UCSF School of Nursing and UCLA School of Nursing. Prospective students apply for the UC PMHNP Certificate Program through the Betty Irene Moore School of Nursing at UC Davis. Guided by the school’s core values of leadership development, interprofessional and interdisciplinary education, transformative research, cultural inclusiveness and innovative technology, the UC PMHNP Certificate Program takes 12 months (four consecutive quarters including one summer) to complete.
Programs at the School of Nursing prepare nurses with both the knowledge and skills needed to meet the needs of a constantly changing health care system. Rooted in a growing body of research and nurtured by visionary faculty who seek to transform health care, the curricula embrace integrative case-based learning, technology and systems-wide perspectives.
- Full-time enrollment (12 units per quarter) is required
- UC PMHNP Students are expected to complete the program in four quarters
- UC PMHNP students will take graduate core courses during each quarter of the program, plus 16-24 hours/week of supervised clinical training
- Essential abilities and technical standards for students
- International graduate requirements
Review requirements, admissions and aid information for the UC PMHNP Certificate Program
