Texas Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) Programs
BestNursingDegree.com wants to help you locate the best master’s degree for your aspirations in nursing. Request information from several MSN programs in Texas to make sure you choose the best fit for your life. Be sure to consider online programs, as well as traditional campus nursing schools in Texas.
Texas is in the midst of a population boom and needs more healthcare providers to keep up with the demand for services. Demand for primary healthcare professionals who provide geriatric and mental health services, such as adult gerontological nurse practitioners and psychiatric mental health clinical nurse specialists, is especially acute. According to a report by the University of Texas at Austin, close to 70 percent of Texas counties are considered mental health professional shortage areas. The Center for Health Statistics predicts that residents over age 65 will soon make up 16 percent of Texas’ population.
Texas also needs more nurse educators. According to the Texas Center for Nursing Workforce Studies, Texas schools of nursing had a faculty vacancy rate of almost six percent in 2008. That rate will likely increase, as 64 percent of current nursing faculty members will become eligible for retirement within the next 12 years. A MSN degree with a focus on nurse education is typically the entry-level degree for a nurse educator, and qualifies its holder to teach LPN and ADN students. MSN-prepared nurses are ready for a variety of careers, including leading clinical sessions for BSN students.
Professional organizations for MSN-prepared nurses in Texas include Texas Nurse Practitioners, Texas Nurses Association and Texas Organization of Nurse Executives.
Curriculum of Master’s Degrees in Nursing Programs
An MSN curriculum can vary state to state or program to program.
Some of the programs you can expect to encounter in a post-baccalaureate degree:
- Nursing Management
- Research and Practice
- Managing Clinical Outcomes
- Critical Issue Management
- Specialty focused classes
The demand for well-qualified nurses with master’s level degrees in Texas is rising rapidly. There are several universities in Texas with master level nursing programs, and many are listed in the U.S. News top 400 list of universities in the USA.
The Texas Women’s University is an example with campuses located in Denton, Dallas and Houston. This university offers full-time and part-time programs, but encourages students to work part-time when enrolled in the clinical courses. In addition, there are some courses that may be completed online or partially online.
Master’s level nursing programs include:
- FNP for acute, family and adult care
- Nurse Education
- Administration
- Nurse Health Systems Management
- Clinical Nurse Leadership
Although 78 percent of students live off campus, they offer numerous student organizations and a learning enhancement service, which provides individual academic counseling, academic peer tutoring and study skills workshops.
Another top rated university is Texas Tech University in Lubbock, TX, which offers a master of nursing family nurse practitioner track (FNP). This particular program’s primary focus is training nurses to work in rural agencies and rural other health care settings. This is an online track that requires occasional trips to the Lubbock campus, which is ideal for students that live a longer distance from campus.
Careers for Master’s of Nursing Graduates in Texas
The population in Texas is booming, which means there is an increased need for more healthcare workers. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics cites nursing as the fasting growing profession from 2008 to 2018, as reported by Forbes. Adult gerontological nurse practitioners and clinical specialties in the field of psychiatric mental health are in acute need.
The outlook is favorable with positions available for adult and geriatric nurse practitioners throughout Texas. They are typically responsible for treatment of patients in skilled care and nursing home settings. There is also a demand for nurse practitioners in hospital settings. Nurse anesthetist, nurse administrators and neonatal intensive care practitioners (NNPs) are some examples.
Many nurse practitioners provide primary and preventative care in doctor offices and many other settings. Another example is a certified nurse midwife, who provides care for obstetric and gynecologic patients and also works in labor and deliver, and Nursing Informatics analysts are being hired by hospitals to make the patient’s records available online as directed by the new economic stimulus bill passed last year.
Use BestNursingDegree.com to find a master’s degree that can prepare you for the next level. Request information from our featured programs to make the right decision, or peruse our nursing resources webpage for more information to help you take the next steps in your nursing journey.
MSN programs in Texas include:
- Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center. Texas Tech offers online MSN programs in nurse administration and nurse education; the nurse practitioner program is partially online. Texas Tech also offers an interesting option for ADN-prepared nurses who would like to become nurse educators: an RN-to MSN program with a focus on educational leadership.
- University of Texas at Austin. The University of Texas at Austin offers a full complement of MSN programs, with multiple opportunities for sub-specialization. A nurse may choose to focus on maternity nursing; within maternity nursing, she can select to focus on administration, public health nursing or teaching. Additional coursework in gerontology is available to all MSN students who would like to develop expertise in the care of the aging.
