PMHNP Programs in Kentucky
Kentucky has 7 verified, in-state PMHNP programs and, unlike most of its neighbours, it is a reduced-practice rather than restricted-practice state. Its wage data is the most spread-out of any state in this guide: a below-average median paired with a top decile above $160,000. Here are the verified programs, the licensure rules, and what that spread means for you.
The short version
Kentucky has 7 verified, in-state PMHNP programs, listed below from our canonical dataset with sourced accreditation, credits, clinical hours and cost.
Kentucky is a reduced-practice state — one category less restrictive than Tennessee, Georgia, Missouri or Florida. NPs must maintain a collaborative agreement with a physician to practice and to prescribe.
Reduced practice is a meaningful step up from restricted: the AANP category means state law limits at least one element of practice, rather than requiring career-long supervision or delegation.
The statewide NP wage is $122,870 (BLS OEWS, May 2025), about 7% below the national median — but the 90th percentile reaches $162,960. That is a spread of roughly $40,000 from median to top decile, the widest of the states in this guide.
A wide spread means placement and setting matter more than the headline average suggests. Accredited online programs also enroll Kentucky residents — see our online PMHNP ranking.
Kentucky is the outlier in this part of the country, and in a good way. Where Tennessee, Georgia and Missouri all sit in the AANP's most-regulated restricted category, Kentucky is classified reduced practice. The distinction is not cosmetic: restricted practice means career-long supervision, delegation or team management by another provider, while reduced practice means state law limits at least one element of practice — in Kentucky's case, through a required collaborative agreement with a physician to practice and to prescribe.
The wage picture is the other thing worth understanding before you commit. Kentucky's median of $122,870 is unremarkable, roughly 7% under the national figure. But its 90th percentile of $162,960 is competitive with states that have far higher medians. That combination — modest middle, strong top — means the range of outcomes for a Kentucky PMHNP is unusually wide, and where you end up working will drive your earnings more than it would in a flatter market.
Below are the 7 verified in-state programs, the licensure requirements, and the full wage distribution.
The 7 verified psychiatric nurse practitioner (PMHNP) programs based in Kentucky
Northern Kentucky University School of Nursing
Highland Heights, KY
Frontier Nursing University
Versailles, KY
University of Louisville
Louisville, KY
Western Kentucky University
Bowling Green, KY
Eastern Kentucky University
Richmond, KY
Frontier Nursing University
Versailles, KY
University of Kentucky
Lexington, KY
Accredited online psychiatric nurse practitioner (PMHNP) programs Kentucky residents can do
Most PMHNP study is online. These verified, accredited programs enroll students from most states and let you complete the supervised clinical hours near you. Online programs set their own state authorization, so confirm each one admits Kentucky residents before you apply.
California State University, Fresno
CCNE-accredited · post-master's certificate · 540 clinical hrs
Program pageDrexel University College of Nursing and Health Professions
CCNE-accredited · post-master's certificate · 640 clinical hrs
Program pageFairleigh Dickinson University Henry P. Becton School of Nursing and Allied Health
ACEN-accredited · MSN · 750 clinical hrs
Program pageGeorgia Southern University School of Nursing
CCNE-accredited · BSN-to-DNP · 630 clinical hrs
Program pageGeorgia State University Byrdine F. Lewis College of Nursing and Health Professions
CCNE-accredited · MSN · 500 clinical hrs
Program pageHerzing University
CCNE-accredited · MSN / post-master's certificate · 540 clinical hrs
Program pageJohns Hopkins University School of Nursing
CCNE-accredited · post-master's certificate · 500 clinical hrs
Program pageLa Salle University School of Nursing and Health Sciences
CCNE-accredited · MSN · 692 clinical hrs
Program pageLewis University College of Nursing and Health Sciences
CCNE-accredited · MSN · 540 clinical hrs
Program pageNorthern Kentucky University School of Nursing
CCNE-accredited · MSN · 750 clinical hrs
Program pageRadford University School of Nursing
CCNE-accredited · post-master's certificate · 540 clinical hrs
Program pageRocky Mountain University of Health Professions
CCNE-accredited · post-master's certificate · 540 clinical hrs
Program pageSimmons University
CCNE-accredited · MSN / post-master's certificate · 756 clinical hrs
Program pageUniversity of Cincinnati College of Nursing
CCNE-accredited · post-master's certificate
Program pageUniversity of South Alabama College of Nursing
CCNE-accredited · MSN / post-master's certificate · 600 clinical hrs
Program pageConfirm current state authorization with each program. For the full comparison of these programs, see our online PMHNP ranking.
How to become a PMHNP in Kentucky
The path to becoming a psychiatric-mental health nurse practitioner in Kentucky is the same graduate-nursing route used nationwide, with one local variable: your APRN license and prescriptive authority come from the Kentucky Board of Nursing. Here are the five steps.
- 01
Earn a BSN and an RN license
Most PMHNP programs admit Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) graduates who hold an active RN license. If you start with an associate degree or a non-nursing bachelor's, bridge programs exist. You'll practice on a Kentucky RN license while you complete graduate school.
- 02
Enroll in an accredited PMHNP program
Choose an MSN or a BSN-to-DNP with a PMHNP focus. The degree must hold CCNE or ACEN accreditation, or it won't qualify you for the certification exam. Kentucky has 7 verified in-state programs (listed above), and 46 accredited online programs also enroll Kentucky residents.
- 03
Complete a minimum of 500 supervised clinical hours
The ANCC requires at least 500 faculty-supervised clinical hours, and many programs require 600 to 750. Securing local clinical placements is the biggest practical hurdle, so confirm whether a program arranges your preceptors before you enroll.
- 04
Pass the ANCC PMHNP-BC certification exam
The ANCC PMHNP-BC first-time pass rate was 83% in 2024 and 82% in 2025. Either the ANCC exam or the newer AANPCB PMHNP exam qualifies you for state licensure; ANCC's PMHNP-BC is the one most employers list by name.
- 05
Get Kentucky APRN licensure and DEA registration
The Kentucky Board of Nursing issues your APRN license and prescriptive authority once you're certified, and a federal DEA registration lets you prescribe controlled substances. Practice authority varies by state, so confirm current Kentucky requirements with the board before you enroll.
For the full national pathway, including itemized cost, timeline, and program selection advice, see our complete guide on how to become a PMHNP.
Kentucky NP licensure and reduced practice
Kentucky licenses APRNs through the Kentucky Board of Nursing, on top of national PMHNP-BC certification. The AANP classifies the state as reduced practice, defined as state law limiting at least one element of nurse practitioner practice — as distinct from restricted practice, which requires career-long supervision or delegation by another provider.
In Kentucky that limit takes the form of a collaborative agreement with a physician, required both to practice and to prescribe. It is a genuine constraint, and it still means you need a physician partner. But the framing differs from a delegation or supervision model: a collaborative agreement is a professional relationship between practitioners rather than a chain of authority, and it tends to be less operationally intrusive day to day.
Because the specifics of collaborative agreements — including any differences between controlled and non-controlled prescribing — are set by statute and can change, confirm the current requirements directly with the Board before making a career decision on them.
What the state requires
- Active Kentucky RN license (or a multistate compact license)
- Graduate PMHNP degree from a CCNE- or ACEN-accredited program
- National PMHNP-BC certification (ANCC)
- APRN licensure from the Kentucky Board of Nursing
- A collaborative agreement with a physician to practice and to prescribe
- DEA registration to prescribe controlled substances
State board: Kentucky Board of Nursing
PMHNP pay in Kentucky
Kentucky's statewide NP wage is $122,870 per BLS OEWS (May 2025), with a mean of $125,010 across 4,770 nurse practitioners — about 7% below the $132,300 national NP median.
The spread is what makes Kentucky interesting. The 10th percentile is $95,710 and the quartiles run $106,240 to $132,720 — all modest. Then the 90th percentile jumps to $162,960, roughly $40,000 above the median. Most states in this guide show a gap of $30,000 or less between median and top decile; Tennessee's is barely $20,000.
A wide upper tail usually reflects a market where specific settings, specialties or seniority pay far better than the typical role. For a psychiatric nurse practitioner that is a reason to research individual employers and settings carefully rather than budget from the state median — and reduced practice authority makes the higher-autonomy models that tend to sit in that upper tail more accessible here than in Kentucky's restricted-practice neighbours. BLS does not publish a separate psychiatric-mental health NP wage; that specialty pays above the NP average nationally. See our PMHNP salary guide.
The Kentucky PMHNP job market
Kentucky combines two urban markets — Louisville and Lexington — with extensive rural and Appalachian counties carrying persistent mental health provider shortages and a heavy documented burden of substance use disorder. That makes psychiatric prescribers, and PMHNPs specifically, a sought-after group. The BLS projects nurse practitioner employment to grow about 40% from 2024 to 2034 nationally; a Kentucky-specific projection is not separately verified here. Reduced rather than restricted practice authority is a practical advantage in rural settings, where finding any physician partner is harder and a supervision model would be a heavier constraint than a collaborative one.
- Community mental health centers and FQHCs in Kentucky often qualify for the federal NHSC Loan Repayment Program, which is especially relevant across the state's rural shortage designations.
Choosing a PMHNP program from Kentucky
With 7 verified in-state programs plus the national online field, Kentucky gives you room to choose. The factors that matter most:
- Given the wide wage spread, research target employers and settings, not just the state average — the difference between the median and top-decile outcome here is about $40,000.
- Kentucky's rural counties are where psychiatric demand is highest and preceptors are thinnest, so establish early whether a program will place you or leave you to find someone in Pikeville or Hazard on your own.
- Confirm current collaborative-agreement requirements with the Kentucky Board of Nursing, since the rules are statutory and subject to change.
- Choose your degree route deliberately — see our MSN PMHNP ranking and post-master's certificate ranking.
- Check the accreditor term expiry, not just that a program is accredited — a certificate finishing after its CCNE term lapses is a problem you inherit.
- Weigh the in-state field against the national online options in our online PMHNP ranking.
Keep researching
Best Online PMHNP Programs
The full national field of accredited online options.
MSN PMHNP Programs
Master's-level PMHNP options compared.
PMHNP Programs by State
Browse every state's verified programs.
How to Become a PMHNP
The pathway, certification, and clinical-hour requirement.
PMHNP Salary Guide
What psychiatric NPs earn by state, experience, and setting.
Best PMHNP Programs
The flagship ranking across every format.
Questions, answered
How many PMHNP programs are in Kentucky?+
Can nurse practitioners practice independently in Kentucky?+
What is the difference between reduced and restricted practice?+
How much do PMHNPs make in Kentucky?+
Can I do a PMHNP online in Kentucky?+
Program details and figures trace to primary sources; gaps are labeled, not estimated.