Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) vs Nurse Practitioner (NP)

To become an NP, you need an active RN license and graduate NP education. Many RNs take a Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) route, and AACN reports that post-baccalaureate DNP programs let nurses with a bachelor's degree go straight to the doctorate. Either route can lead to the same NP certification exams, as long as the program prepares you in the NP role and a population focus.

DNP vs NP: At a Glance

What is an NP?

A nurse practitioner (NP) is a licensed advanced practice role and a job title, not a degree. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) occupation definition describes NPs as registered nurses with specialized graduate education who diagnose and treat acute, episodic or chronic illness, independently or as part of a health care team, and who may prescribe medication. Under the APRN Consensus Model, NPs hold an APRN license and pass a nationally accredited certification exam in one of six population foci (NCSBN).

The Consensus Model calls for APRNs to practice and prescribe without physician oversight, but NCSBN notes that some states have not adopted all of its elements, so an NP's practice and prescribing authority depends on the state where they are licensed.

NPs are educated and certified in a particular population focus and must complete certification requirements specific to it.

BLS industry estimates for May 2025 counted the most NPs working in these settings:

• offices of physicians: 148,600
• hospitals: 79,530
• outpatient care centers: 31,590
• offices of other health practitioners: 15,260
• home health care services: 11,600

Nurse Practitioners fall under the category of Advanced Practice Registered Nurses (APRNs), alongside nurse anesthetists, Certified Nurse-Midwives and clinical nurse specialists (NCSBN). To become an NP or another type of APRN, nurses must first earn a license as a Registered Nurse (RN). Completing a nursing program is not the same as holding a license: to be eligible to take the NCLEX licensing exam, a graduate must have completed a prelicensure program approved by a nursing regulatory body, according to NCSBN's page on nursing program approval, and each state board then sets its other licensing requirements. One route into nursing is a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) program.

To advance from an RN to an NP requires graduate education: a Master of Science in Nursing (MSN), a postgraduate certificate or a DNP from an accredited program that prepares you in the NP role and a population focus (ANCC, NPCB).

How Nurses Become NPs Through an MSN or a DNP

1. Hold an active RN license. Both FNP certification boards require one before you can sit for their exams (ANCC, NPCB).
2. Complete a graduate NP program. On the MSN route, that is a master's degree; on the DNP route, a DNP track that prepares you for the NP role. A DNP in another focus, such as nursing administration or health policy, does not meet this step, and a nurse seeking a new certification area must complete all the coursework required for certification in that role (AACN). For family NPs, ANCC requires a program accredited by CCNE, ACEN or NLN CNEA, and NPCB requires one accredited by a nursing accreditor recognized by the U.S. Department of Education or the Council for Higher Education Accreditation. Both boards require at least 500 faculty-supervised clinical hours (NPCB specifies direct patient care hours) and graduate courses in advanced physiology/pathophysiology, advanced health or physical assessment and advanced pharmacology (ANCC, NPCB). You can compare family nurse practitioner programs by degree level.
3. Pass a national certification exam in your population focus, such as the FNP exams described below.
4. Apply for a state APRN license. The Consensus Model ties APRN practice to an APRN license held in addition to certification (NCSBN). Our guide to APRN licensure and certification covers this step.
5. Renew your certification on the certification board's cycle; the FNP renewal rules are described below.

Requirements differ by state and by certification board, so confirm them with your state board of nursing and the certification board before you enroll.

What is a DNP?

The Doctor of Nursing Practice is a practice doctorate: AACN describes it as an alternative to research-focused doctoral programs, designed for nurses seeking a terminal degree in nursing practice. The research-focused nursing doctorate is the Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in nursing, which is best suited for research and scholarly roles. Like the MSN, the DNP is a university degree, and AACN's guidance says a school may award either a master's or a DNP for advanced nursing preparation (Essentials FAQs).

AACN stresses that "the DNP is an academic degree, not a role." DNP programs can prepare nurses for direct patient care, including NP roles, or for indirect care such as nursing administration, executive leadership and health policy (AACN). Only a DNP track that includes NP role and population-focus preparation leads to NP certification; an NP who already holds a master's and certification can complete a post-master's DNP to earn the doctorate, which adds a degree rather than a new certification.

While a DNP degree is a doctoral-level degree, NPs with DNPs are not the same as physicians or other medical doctors (MDs). Instead, a DNP signifies that a nurse has completed a terminal degree in nursing practice. Earning a DNP does not change the NP credential itself: DNP-prepared and MSN-prepared NPs sit the same certification exams and hold the same state APRN license.

What the Letters Mean: DNP, APRN, FNP-C and FNP-BC

A signature such as "DNP, APRN, FNP-C" stacks three different kinds of credential: a degree, a license and a board certification. Each comes from a different body, and a nurse can hold the license and the certification without the doctorate.

• DNP (degree). Awarded by a university. On October 25, 2004, AACN member schools voted to endorse moving the preparation of advanced practice nurses from the master's level to the doctorate, and the National Organization of Nurse Practitioner Faculties (NONPF) most recently reaffirmed its call for the DNP as entry-level NP preparation in April 2023 (AACN). These are positions of professional organizations, not licensing requirements.
• APRN (license). Advanced practice registered nurse is the licensed category. The Consensus Model recognizes four APRN roles: certified nurse-midwife (CNM), certified nurse practitioner (CNP), certified registered nurse anesthetist (CRNA) and clinical nurse specialist (CNS) (NCSBN).
• FNP-C (board certification). NPCB, whose legal name is the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners Certification Board (AANPCB), awards the FNP-C credential to nurses who pass its FNP exam, which has 150 questions (135 scored) and a 3-hour time limit (NPCB). Certification lasts five years and can be renewed with at least 1,000 practice hours as an FNP and at least 100 advanced practice continuing education contact hours, including 25 in advanced pharmacology, or by retaking the exam (NPCB renewal handbook).
• FNP-BC (board certification). ANCC awards the FNP-BC credential, which is valid for five years. Its exam has 175 questions (150 scored and 25 unscored pretest questions) and a 3.5-hour time limit, and a new test content outline takes effect October 30, 2026 (ANCC).

The push to make the doctorate the entry degree for NPs is unfinished. Oregon amended its rule for APRN education programs effective May 1, 2026, and the rule now requires program curricula to culminate in "a graduate degree or post-graduate certificate" (OAR 851-021-0050). Nurse anesthesia, a separate APRN role, is where doctoral entry is already in place (see the table above).

Is a DNP a Doctor?

Academically, yes: a DNP is a doctoral degree, so a nurse who holds one has earned a doctorate. Medically, no: a DNP is a nursing degree, and a DNP-prepared NP practices under an APRN license, not a physician's license, so a DNP is not a medical doctor (MD). The American Association of Nurse Practitioners (AANP) supports using "doctor" together with the licensure title for doctorally prepared nurses in clinical settings, saying patients have the right to know who is providing their care and how those clinicians were educated. If you plan to use the title with patients, check your state's rules first.

DNP Salary vs NP Salary

BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) data show that nurse practitioners had a median annual wage of $132,300 in May 2025, nationally. The lowest-paid 10 percent earned less than $101,340 and the highest-paid 10 percent earned more than $174,420, and BLS counted 323,040 NPs employed. These figures cover NPs at all experience levels, so they are not starting pay.

Since a DNP is a degree and not a separate occupation, BLS counts DNP-prepared and MSN-prepared NPs together in one occupation (nurse practitioners, SOC 29-1171), so OEWS data cannot show whether a DNP raises pay. For more on nursing pay, see nursing salaries by state and our NP career and salary guide.

Two other APRN roles appear in the same BLS data for comparison (median annual wage, national, May 2025):

• Nurse anesthetists (SOC 29-1151): $236,590. This is a separate APRN role, and new students now enter it through a doctoral nurse anesthesia program, not through an NP-focused DNP (see the table above).
• Nurse midwives (SOC 29-1161): $134,040. Nurse-midwifery is a separate APRN role with its own education and certification, not an NP specialization (NCSBN).

These figures illustrate an important point: a DNP does not guarantee a nurse higher pay. Pay follows the role a nurse holds, and BLS does not measure the effect of a degree on pay.

If you are weighing the DNP against other graduate nursing credentials, our overview of types of nursing degrees compares them.

Which Should You Choose: A DNP or an NP?

Every NP holds the same kind of certification and APRN license, so the real choice is whether to reach the NP role through a master's (or postgraduate certificate) or a DNP track with NP preparation. Neither route is right for everyone.

Choose a DNP if…

• You want a practice doctorate, the terminal degree in nursing practice, and the program you choose includes NP role and population-focus preparation (see What is a DNP?).
• You want to use the "doctor" title in clinical settings where it is permitted, which AANP supports for doctorally prepared nurses (see Is a DNP a Doctor?).
• You are ready for a longer program: AACN guidance suggests about 3 years of full-time post-baccalaureate study, and accredited DNP programs include at least 1,000 post-baccalaureate supervised practice hours in total, with the NP clinical hours counted inside that total (see the table above).
• You are an NP with a master's who wants to add a doctorate: a post-master's DNP takes at least 12 months of full-time study under AACN guidance (see the table above).

Choose an NP route through an MSN if…

• Your goal is clinical NP practice: both FNP certification boards accept a master's degree from a program that prepares you in the NP role and population focus (see the table above).
• You want to qualify for NP certification without the additional DNP coursework and DNP project; a master's or postgraduate certificate that meets the boards' role, population-focus and clinical-hour requirements qualifies (see the table above).
• You want to start practicing as an NP and decide on a doctorate later: AACN's guidance describes nurses who complete a master's and then go on to a DNP (see What is a DNP?).

If you are drawn to nurse anesthesia rather than NP practice, note that it is a separate APRN role entered through a doctoral nurse anesthesia program (see the table above).

Ultimately, the decision between becoming an NP with an MSN versus an NP with a DNP degree comes down to a handful of factors:

DNP vs NP: Frequently Asked Questions

What does DNP stand for?

DNP stands for Doctor of Nursing Practice. It is a degree, not a license or a job title; the role a DNP-prepared nurse works in, such as nurse practitioner, comes from separate certification and licensure (see What the Letters Mean).

Is a DNP higher than an NP?

They are different kinds of credential, so one does not outrank the other. A DNP is the terminal practice degree in nursing, while NP is a licensed role that a nurse can reach with a master's, a postgraduate certificate or a DNP that includes NP preparation (see the table above).

What can a DNP do that an NP cannot?

An NP's clinical authority comes from the NP certification and the state APRN license, which require preparation in the NP role and a population focus whether the program was an MSN, a postgraduate certificate or a DNP (see What is an NP?). A DNP without NP preparation, for example in nursing administration, does not make someone an NP, and nurse anesthesia requires a separate doctoral nurse anesthesia program. For an NP, the doctorate mainly changes the degree they hold and their use of the "doctor" title (see Is a DNP a Doctor?).

Who makes more money, an NP or a DNP?

BLS does not report pay for DNP holders separately, because a DNP is a degree, not an occupation. DNP-prepared NPs are counted with all other NPs, so the BLS figures describe pay for the NP occupation as a whole rather than showing a DNP premium (see DNP Salary vs NP Salary).

What is the difference between a DNP and an FNP?

An FNP is a nurse practitioner certified in the family/individual-across-the-life-span population focus, while a DNP is a degree. An FNP can hold an MSN, a postgraduate certificate or a DNP, as long as the program prepared them in the FNP role and population focus (see What the Letters Mean).