Academy of Medical-Surgical Nurses

What Academy of Medical-Surgical Nurses does

The Academy of Medical-Surgical Nurses (AMSN), founded in 1991 and headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, is the only professional association exclusively dedicated to medical-surgical nurses in the United States. It supports registered nurses across their full career lifecycle, from nursing school through certification and continuing practice, with a member base spanning individual nurses, student nurses, healthcare organizations, and nurse researchers. The organization delivers its mission through membership tiers (including a free student tier and group options for hospitals), the AMSN Online Library (168+ NCPD-accredited courses), certification preparation products tied to the CMSRN and CAVRN credentials governed by the affiliated Medical-Surgical Nursing Certification Board (MSNCB), and an annual convention supplemented by Med-Surg Nurses Week, a biweekly podcast, a journal club, and awards programs (PRISM, BEAM, FAMSN).

The technical stack centers on the MapleLMS learning management system that powers the Online Library, with Auth0 for identity management and Stripe for payment processing. The association is operated by Smithbucklin, a professional association management company, and shares leadership and headquarters with MSNCB, creating an integrated professional and certification ecosystem. Revenue is generated through annual membership dues, individual and group course purchases (microlearning at $10, CMSRN review at $149, DEI programs at $295, full curricula up to $445), certification fees, publications (Core Curriculum, Scope and Standards), convention registration, and merchandise.

AMSN positions itself as the definitive voice for the medical-surgical nursing specialty, issuing position statements on staffing, DEI, and health literacy, and partnering with adjacent associations (AACN, INS, AAMN, NACNS, NSO) and the Virtual Nursing Academy to expand its reach. Its product cadence in 2025-2026 includes new certification review courses, microlearning modules, oncology content, and AI literacy programming, indicating ongoing catalog and vertical expansion.

Name

Academy of Medical-Surgical Nurses

Legal name

Academy of Medical-Surgical Nurses

Website

https://amsn.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1991

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

AMSN is the only US professional association dedicated exclusively to medical-surgical nurses, providing membership, continuing education, certification preparation (CMSRN, CAVRN), publications, awards, and an annual convention serving nurses from school through credentialed practice.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Nursing Professional Association

NAICS

Educational Support Services (611710)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600), Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Nursing & Allied Health Certification Prep (CNA, EMT/Paramedic, Radiology, Sonography, PT/OT) (EDANAIAB)

Keywords

• Medical-surgical nursing
• Nursing certification
• Continuing nursing education
• Professional nursing association
• Nursing professional development

Headquarters

HQ city

Pitman

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Dues: Annual membership fees supporting nurses throughout their professional careers, with tiered pricing for individual, student, and group memberships. Members receive discounts on certification, education, and publications.
2. Online Education and NCPD Courses: Sale of continuing education courses through the AMSN Online Library. Members receive free monthly CE courses and discounted pricing on premium courses including certification review ($149 member), practice exams ($99 member), and DEI programs ($295 member).
3. Certification Fees: CMSRN and CAVRN certification exam fees processed through MSNCB, with substantial discounts for AMSN members. Includes exam prep materials and recertification fees.
4. Publications and Textbooks: Sale of Core Curriculum for Medical-Surgical Nursing (6th edition) at $79-$129 and Scope and Standards of Medical-Surgical Nursing Practice (7th edition) at $29-$49. Both available in electronic and physical formats.
5. Events and Conventions: Registration fees for the annual AMSN Convention (offering 15+ contact hours), virtual certification review courses, and specialty events.
6. AMSN Store: Sale of merchandise, promotional materials, and specialty items through the AMSN Store.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

AMSN is a nonprofit professional membership association exclusively serving medical-surgical nurses. It sells individual and group memberships and offers a portfolio of paid and free products including CMSRN and CAVRN certification review courses and practice exams, an online NCPD continuing education library with 168+ courses, microlearning modules, webinars, a journal club, and the Med-Surg Moments podcast. It also sells textbooks (Core Curriculum, Scope and Standards), publishes a peer-reviewed journal, and runs the annual AMSN Convention with registration fees.

Product overview

AMSN offers a comprehensive professional ecosystem for medical-surgical nurses built around its Online Library platform. The core offering includes certification exam preparation courses (CMSRN and CAVRN Certification Review Courses), a microlearning library covering clinical topics (immune system, infectious disease, reproductive systems, oncology), and CE-eligible content including webinars, podcasts (Med-Surg Moments), journal clubs, and annual convention recordings. Supporting publications include the Core Curriculum for Medical-Surgical Nursing (6th Edition) and Scope and Standards of Medical-Surgical Nursing Practice (7th Edition). The portfolio also includes awards programs (PRISM Award, BEAM Award, FAMSN fellowship) and an annual convention. The platform is delivered through the MapleLMS-powered Online Library for course delivery, with Stripe for payments and Auth0 for authentication.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• AMSN Individual and Group Membership Annual membership program for medical-surgical nurses providing access to member benefits including discounts on certification prep, continuing education, publications, and entry to the AMSN community ecosystem.

Quantifiable outcome

• 74% of hospital leaders believe virtual nursing will become integral to care delivery models in acute inpatient care

Named customers1 record

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration3 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Medical-Surgical Nursing Certification Board (MSNCB)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMSNCB is the certification body for medical-surgical nursing, offering CMSRN and CAVRN credentials. AMSN and MSNCB share leadership, staff (Smithbucklin), and headquarters, creating an integrated professional and certification ecosystem. The organizations co-develop education, certification prep, and practice standards.
• Virtual Nursing AcademycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAMSN and MSNCB partnered with the Virtual Nursing Academy to transform medical-surgical nursing through leadership development and cutting-edge resources for virtual nursing. Supports CAVRN certification and virtual nursing best practices.
• American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AACN)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership panel at AMSN Convention 'Stronger Together: Building Bridges Between Critical Care and Medical-Surgical Nurses' (2025), fostering collaboration between specialties.
• Infusion Nurses Society (INS)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerCo-presented webinar on Common Peripheral IV Myths with Barb Nickel, APRN-CNS, CCRN, CRNI, providing evidence-based IV practice education.
• American Association for Men in Nursing (AAMN)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerCo-presented webinar on Psychosocial Dimensions of Prostate Cancer in Black Men addressing men's health nursing education.
• Nurses Service Organization (NSO)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerPartnered with NSO and AON for Nurse Malpractice Trends Update webinar, providing liability risk prevention education for nurses.
• NACNSminorGTM or Marketing PartnerPartnered with NACNS for Protecting Your Nursing License webinar with Attorney Aaron Kemp, providing legal education for nurses.
• MedtronicminorGTM or Marketing PartnerPremier partner supporting AMSN educational activities, providing sponsored lunch session at 2024 Annual Convention.
• MapleLMScoreTechnology or IntegrationTechnology platform powering the AMSN Online Library for course delivery, enrollment, progress tracking, and certificate generation.
• SmithbucklincoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerProfessional association management company providing staff support, operations, and organizational management for AMSN and MSNCB.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Infusion Nurses Society (INS): INS is a specialty nursing society for infusion nurses offering membership, certification (CRNI), and standards publications. AMSN has a documented GTM partnership with INS (co-presented IV webinar), confirming direct overlap in specialty nursing education.
• American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AACN): AACN is a specialty nursing association for critical-care nurses, operating the same membership, certification (CCRN), continuing education, and annual convention model as AMSN. It is the most structurally comparable peer organization in the nursing specialty association space.
• Emergency Nurses Association (ENA): ENA serves emergency nurses through membership, certification (CEN), continuing education, and an annual conference, following the same professional association playbook as AMSN in the emergency nursing specialty.
• Oncology Nursing Society (ONS): ONS is a specialty nursing association for oncology nurses offering membership, certification (OCN), continuing education, publications, and an annual congress — directly mirroring AMSN's professional association business model for a different nursing specialty.
• American Association for Men in Nursing (AAMN): AAMN is a specialty nursing association with a narrower demographic focus. AMSN has a documented GTM partnership with AAMN (co-presented webinar), indicating direct peer-level collaboration in nursing education and advocacy.
• Association of periOperative Registered Nurses (AORN): AORN is the specialty association for perioperative nurses offering membership, certification (CNOR), guidelines, and education — a closely analogous model to AMSN's med-surg specialty focus.

Broad incumbents

• National League for Nursing (NLN): NLN is a broad nursing education organization focused on nurse educators and nursing education programs, with overlapping interests in nursing workforce development, certification, and continuing education comparable to AMSN's educator-facing products.
• Sigma (Sigma Theta Tau International): Sigma is the global nursing honor society and professional organization offering continuing education, publications, and leadership development. It overlaps with AMSN in nursing continuing professional development but serves a broader membership base.
• American Nurses Association (ANA): ANA is the largest broad-scope professional association for all registered nurses in the US, offering membership, continuing education, and advocacy across specialties. AMSN's specialty focus positions it as a complement (or alternative) to ANA's generalist offering.

Emerging players

• Virtual Nursing Academy: Virtual Nursing Academy is an emerging organization partnered with AMSN and MSNCB to advance virtual nursing leadership. It overlaps with AMSN in the emerging CAVRN certification and virtual nursing education space, representing both a partner and a potential emerging peer in the virtual nursing niche.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/medsurgnurses
• Facebookfacebook.com/MedSurgNurses
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/academymedical-surgicalnurses

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Academy of Medical-Surgical Nurses