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Nursing Leadership Certificate (Online)
Lead in Multiple Health Care Settings
Advance your nursing expertise and develop the skills to manage budgets, train and coordinate caregivers, and ultimately, drive safe, high-quality, and effective nursing to those in need.
Tap into your leadership abilities and take your nursing career to the next level. As you progress through the coursework designed by extensively experienced nursing leaders, you will gain access to innovative leadership practices.
The online post-Master’s Nursing Leadership Certificate is structured in a way to equip you with a toolkit to respond to hospitals’ modern, real-world problems with informed and practical solutions. Combine your skills as a nurse with your dedication as a leader and learn the nuances of effective staffing, mediation, communication, and human relations.
Nursing Leadership Certificate Benefits
- Coursework designed by experienced nursing leaders
- Skills to step into managerial and administrative roles
- Informed and practical solutions for a modern world
1 Year
Duration
$850
Cost per Credit
18
Credit Hours
100%
Online Delivery
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Career Outlook: Organize and Innovate
With an online post-Master’s Nursing Leadership Certificate, you’ll gain the specialized knowledge foundation to take on managerial, administrator, and specialist roles. Nursing leaders, on average, earn a salary of $134,440. These positions are expected to grow 28% by 2033, which is much faster than average1.
Take on new opportunities with more autonomy and higher salaries.
When you earn your post-Master’s Certificate in Nursing Leadership from Utica University, you gain access to new opportunities that expand your career, give you more autonomy, and advance your salary potential.
► $134,440
Nursing Directors earn an average of $134,440 annually, with a high-end average of more than $250,000.1
► 29%
Demand for medical and health services managers, including Nurse Directors, is projected to increase 29% by 2033, with many current professionals nearing retirement.2
Career Opportunities with a Nursing Leadership Certificate
Nursing Leader
$117,960/year
As a Nursing Leader2—such as a senior manager or executive—you would improve outcomes and maintain a standard of excellence for a larger population of patients and health care professionals. You would ensure your organization adheres to changes in health care laws, technologies, and regulations—and you’d be rewarded with career longevity, an excellent salary, and the ability to impact health care at a systemic level.
Additional Nursing Leadership Certificate careers include:
- Clinical Nurse Manager
- Nursing Manager
- Chief Nursing Officer
Sources:
1. NursingEducation (October 17, 2024). Director of Nursing Career Overview. Retrieved on May 28, 2025, from https://nursingeducation.org/careers/director-of-nursing/
2. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. (May 2025). Medical and Health Services Managers. Retrieved on May 28, 2025, from https://www.bls.gov/ooh/management/medical-and-health-services-managers.htm
Faculty Spotlights
Learn innovative and adaptive leadership skills from the highest caliber Nursing Leaders in the classroom. From their extensive research in the field and real-world knowledge base, they will push you in the right direction as you develop your own leadership ethos and style.
Associate Professor of Nursing
Dr. Cynthia Love-Williams is an Associate Professor of Nursing at Utica University. She has worked in nursing education since 1996 in both associate and baccalaureate programs. Dr. Love-Williams’ educational background includes a baccalaureate degree from Mississippi University for Women, a master’s degree from Wright State University, and a doctoral degree from Russell Sage Graduate Schools.
Dr. Love-Williams is the current Director of the Graduate Nursing Program at Utica University and her areas of expertise are in critical care, medical-surgical nursing, and inter-professional education. To stay connected to the health care field and be able to apply real-world experiences to the learning environment, Dr. Love-Williams practices per diem at a local health care facility as the Hospital Supervisor. Her areas of research include inter-professional education, simulation, test taking, and student success.
Frequently Asked Questions
Advancing your life and career with an online degree comes with lots of questions, and we want to ensure your search for answers is effortless. If you have a question we haven’t covered, call (866) 295-3106 to speak with an enrollment counselor.
Learn more about our state authorizations.
The baccalaureate degree program in nursing at Utica University is accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (http://www.ccneaccreditation.org).
The master’s degree program in nursing and post-graduate APRN certificate program at Utica University is accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (http://www.ccneaccreditation.org).
You can complete the program in approximately 12 months.
Tuition is $850 per credit hour. You’ll need to complete 18 credits for a total tuition of $15,300.
Nursing Leadership Certificate Curriculum: Passion Meets Talent
18 TOTAL CREDITS REQUIRED
Designed by practitioners and educators with extensive experience in both nursing and nursing education, the online post-Master’s Certificate in Nursing Leadership’s curriculum will cultivate and enhance your skills as an educator to create an inclusive and engaging classroom environment.
The interactive and dynamic courses of the program cover topics that combine nursing and teaching, meaning you’ll be prepared to adopt new trends in the field to best inform your teaching style. Students will engage with creating a course curriculum of their own in accordance with institutional, department, state, accreditation, and professional standards. Graduates will be prepared to enter an interview with their portfolio that proves an advanced understanding of both the language and concepts of the field.
Please check with your Success Coach for your individualized plan of study.
The curriculum course abstracts on this page are meant to provide a high-level course overview and subject to change based on term, faculty, and/or institutional requirements. View the official course descriptions as written in the Utica University Academic Catalog and in adherence to regional compliance.
Online Nursing Leadership Certificate Admission Requirements
To apply for our Family Nurse Practitioner Advanced Studies online certificate program, you’ll need the following:
- Completed application
- 3.0 GPA
Applicants with a GPA below the minimum may be admitted at the department’s discretion. A GPA letter will be required. - Official Transcripts: All students seeking enrollment in the Certificate of Advanced Studies in Family Nurse Practitioner, Nursing Education, and Nursing Leadership must hold a Master’s in Nursing degree from an accredited nursing program.
- Two letters of recommendation from a current nursing colleague or professional licensed as an RN, physician, or nurse practitioner
- 2,000 hours of work experience as a registered nurse in the United States, verified by an HR department
- Personal Statement:
Detail your personal and professional goals and explain how this program will help you bring them to life. The statement of interest must include well-constructed responses to the following:
1. Describe how your professional experiences have prepared you for future education in the role which is the focus of your desired track.
2. Describe your plans to alter your work, professional and /or personal obligations in order to have time needed to successfully complete graduate course and clinical work.
3. Identify one significant contemporary issue/problem in the current US health care system and discuss how members of the nursing discipline can help address/solve the issue/problem.
- Successful Background Check: Not Required for Admission. Approved background check and fingerprints required at the time of clinical courses. Students shall be drug-screened through arrangements made by the school and the screening agency. Students are responsible for the cost of all screenings. You may be denied participation and placement at a clinical agency based on the background or drug screening findings and the clinical agency’s pre-employment screening policy.
Withdrawal from the program will be necessary if you cannot be placed in a clinical agency to meet program practicum requirements.
Tuition and Financial Aid
This 18-credit Nursing Leadership Certificate program costs $850 per credit hour. Utica University is dedicated to making an advanced education accessible and affordable. Learn more about tuition and financial aid for online programs.
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