How hard is it to become a nurse practitioner?

Once you have done this, you can then move on to gaining clinical experience as a registered nurse.

If you have only received your associate's degree at this point, you will need to work towards obtaining your Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN), while simultaneously getting clinical experience. This results in many hours of work and studying that does not leave you much personal free time.

Whatever your specific situation, you must complete enough clinical experience as a registered nurse; this is a requirement for becoming a nurse practitioner.

Next, you need to complete your education to become a nurse practitioner by obtaining a master's degree in nursing. A master's degree in nursing can take anywhere from two to four years to obtain.

Then you have to obtain licensure and certification to become a nurse practitioner. To do this, you need to have a master's degree in nursing and a valid state-registered nurse's license. You also must have completed a certain number of clinical experience hours and passed a national certification exam.

The national certification exam for nurse practitioners is the hardest exam you will face. It is given by several institutions, like the Pediatric Nursing Certification Board, the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners, and the American Nurses Credentialing Center.

Depending on what type of nurse practitioner you want to be, you may also have to obtain additional certifications.

The long academic and clinical experience road, hard exams, and time consumption, make becoming a nurse practitioner very difficult.