Make a difference in women’s health care through a career in nurse-midwifery.
Nurse-midwives are advanced practice nurses who provide family-centered primary health care to women throughout their reproductive lives, including counseling and care during pre-conception, pregnancy, childbirth, postpartum and the neonatal period. Midwifery is one of the most rewarding advanced practice nursing occupations, providing you with the framework to promote physiologic birth and affirm the power and strength of individuals while addressing their general health care.
Shenandoah’s Post-Graduate Certificate in Nurse-Midwifery prepares you with the necessary skills and knowledge to lead the profession in the promotion of high quality, evidence-based midwifery care. The certificate program can be completed in three semesters.
I received sensitive compassionate care and an impeccably individualized educational experience from each and every faculty member and office personnel here at Shenandoah University!”
Michelle Olson-White ’17 | Certificate in Nurse-Midwifery
A Message From Our Director, Penny Marzalik, Ph.D., APRN-CNM, IBCLC, FACNM
Learn More About This Program & Its Accreditation
The Post Graduate Certificate (PGC): Midwifery program is designed for RNs who already hold a graduate degree (MS, MSN, DNP, or PhD) in Nursing. The Midwifery Certificate provides the student with the necessary skills and knowledge to educate new midwives in the full scope of the Midwifery Management Process. The program integrates independent, collaborative, consultative, and referral-based midwifery management within an interprofessional healthcare environment. Graduates of this certificate program will be eligible to take the national certification examination given by the American Midwifery Certification Board (AMCB). Successful completion of this examination allows the practitioner to use the professional title, “Certified Nurse-Midwife.” The program can be completed in 1 year full time with summer courses. Cohorts are established annually in the Fall. Midwifery courses are offered on campus for one full intensive week per semester with the remainder of the course offered online. Students are encouraged to explore clinical site placement in their home communities and will be assisted by SU clinical site coordinators.
The Nurse-Midwifery Program at Shenandoah University is fully accredited by the ACNM Accreditation Commission for Midwifery Education (ACME), 2000 Duke Street, Suite 300 Alexandria, VA 22314; Tel: 703-835-4565, support@theacme.org, https://theacme.org/
Learn more about Nurse-Midwifery at Shenandoah and Nurse-Midwifery Accreditations
Career Possibilities
Our program prepares you to assume the role of a certified nurse-midwife in a variety of clinical settings. Didactic and clinical course content focuses on role development, assessment and management of women’s health, antepartal, intrapartal, postpartal, and neonatal periods as well as primary women’s health throughout the lifespan. You’ll gain clinical experience in a variety of health care settings, including ambulatory, rural and medically underserved areas.
Classes
The program’s online format allows you to access course modules on the Canvas Learning System, attend classes on campus for a concentrated period of time, and be placed with clinical preceptors for 10 weeks. You return to campus in the final week for review and exam. Students who live at a prohibitive distance may take a proctored exam close to home and may attend the reviews via e-resources.
Prerequisites, in addition to the MSN, include 3 credits of advanced pathophysiology, 3 credits of advanced pharmacology, 4 credits (3 credit course with a 1 credit lab) of an advanced health assessment course. All courses must be at the 500 level or above.
Minimum grade of B required in all specialty courses.
The Nurse-Midwifery specialty courses are offered in a hybrid format that allows you to access course modules on the Canvas Learning System, attend classes on campus for a concentrated period of time, and work with clinical preceptors for your clinical experience. The MSN or post-graduate certificate is conferred after successful completion of a final comprehensive exam. Students are encouraged to explore clinical site placement in their home communities and will be assisted by SU clinical site coordinators.
Nurse-Midwifery Specialty Courses for Post Graduate Certificate Students *
| Course | Title | Prerequisites | Credit | Semester |
| Semester 1 | ||||
| NM 610 | Primary Care of Women | MSN or Core | 2 | Fall |
| NM 620 | Antepartum Care | MSN or Core | 2 | Fall |
| NM 612 | Women’s Health | MSN or Core | 2 | Fall |
| NMLB 624 | Midwifery Practicum I (180 clinical hours) | MSN or Core | (3) | Fall |
| Credits for Semester One | 6 (3) | |||
| Semester 2 | ||||
| NM 640 | Comprehensive Perinatal Care | 610, 620, 612, 624 | 3 | Spring |
| NM 641 | Perinatal Complications | 610, 620, 612, 624 | 2 | Spring |
| NMLB 630 | Midwifery Practicum II (240 clinical hours) | 610, 620, 612, 624 | (4) | Spring |
| Credits for Semester Two | 5 (4) | |||
| Semester 3 | ||||
| NM 660 | Advanced Nurse-Midwifery Role Development | 640, 641, 630 | 2 | Summer |
| NM 652 | Evidence-Based Practice Project | 640, 641, 630 | 1 | Summer |
| NMLB 651 | Integrated Midwifery Internship (300 clinical hours) | 640, 641, 630 | (5)* | Summer |
| Credits for Semester Three | 3 (5) | |||
| Total Credits in Clinical Cohort | 14 (12) | |||
| Total Credits in Certificate | 26 | |||
* Normally, our clock hour to clinical credit is 4:1, however, in courses with an IP clinical component, # of experiences should be sufficient to meet students’ learning needs. The length & timing of birth is unpredictable, therefore students may require additional hours to gain enough experiences to successfully meet the ACNM Core Competencies for Basic Midwifery Practice 2020.
Application Information
We’re excited you’re interested in one of our graduate nursing programs! Shenandoah reviews applications on a rolling basis, which means we will begin evaluating your application once all your documentation has been submitted. Students submitting completed applications before our priority deadlines will be considered first.
