Every NKU online nursing program is listed as not authorized for Oregon, and the NP tracks draw applicants from 11 other states. The nearest fully open state is Nevada, on Oregon's southeastern border, where NKU accepts applicants to every online program including the NP tracks.
Tell us your NKU track and where you live. A placement advisor replies with the preceptor and site that fit NKU's rules for you.
| Program group | Oregon |
|---|---|
| MSN FNP, AGACNP, PMHNP and the NP certificates | Not an admission state |
| MSN Nursing Education and Nurse Executive Leadership | Not authorized |
| Post-master's DNP | Not authorized |
| Online RN-to-BSN | Not authorized |
NKU's two table copies match on Oregon. Because NKU's preceptors have to practice in approved states, Oregon clinics and hospitals cannot host NKU students living elsewhere either. The full set of rows is on our state authorization page.
Oregon's board is relaxed about graduate placements from other states. Its APRN FAQ poses the question of Board approval for out-of-state APRN programs placing students in Oregon, and OSBN's answer is no. The old administrative rule requiring prior authorization for NP practicums by students of non-Oregon programs was repealed effective July 1, 2021. Oregon's advance-notice requirement for outside programs covers only PN and RN tracks leading to a first license; OSBN exempts advanced practice programs and those that do not lead to licensure, such as RN-to-BSN study.
OSBN does still expect anyone teaching nursing in Oregon to hold an Oregon license, and a school must clear either NC-SARA or Oregon's Higher Education Coordinating Commission before it enrolls Oregon residents. None of that changes NKU's table: state authorization is NKU's decision, and for now NKU has Oregon in the not-authorized column. AANP lists Oregon as full practice.
Oregon remains a non-compact state, and NCSBN's map lists no legislation in the works. An Oregon RN license covers Oregon only, so any move to an NKU state means applying for a new RN license there, compact state or not. Legacy Health, Kaiser Permanente Northwest, OHSU, Samaritan Health Services and Providence Oregon are the main systems, across the Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, Salem, Eugene-Springfield and Bend metros.
Of Oregon's four neighbors, only Nevada is open with NKU, and it is open for everything, NP training included. Washington, Idaho and California are not authorized. Farther afield, Alaska and Montana accept NKU applicants for all but the NP programs. For a nurse who wants NP training and a compact license at once, Colorado is the western state on NKU's list that offers both.
Nevada is also outside the compact, so an Oregon nurse moving there applies for a Nevada RN license. Already enrolled and thinking about Oregon? By NKU's own disclosure, a move into a restricted state can leave field placements unfinished, so speak with your advisor first.
Oregon nurses use us as a planning partner before a move. Share the NKU track you want and the state you have in mind, and a placement advisor reports back on the clinicians there who meet NKU's standards and the lead time your first rotation needs. Once Nevada or another NKU state is home, we handle the search and the Medatrax paperwork. Start with the form.
No. NKU draws FNP applicants, like those for its other NP programs, from just 11 states, and in the West only Colorado and Nevada make the list. Every other NKU online program is closed to Oregon residents as well, so the NP question only reopens after a move.
A state board's placement rules and a university's state authorization are separate questions. OSBN places no approval step on out-of-state APRN programs, but NKU sets its own table and lists Oregon as not authorized. NKU publishes no reasons for individual states, so read its live page for changes.
No. Oregon and Nevada both stand outside the Nurse Licensure Compact, so each requires its own license. An Oregon nurse moving to Nevada for an NKU program should plan on a Nevada RN license, because NKU wants a current license, unencumbered, from the state where you work and hold licensure.
Four things: whether the state appears on NKU's NP admission list or your program's authorization row, what RN license it requires, how NKU treats a mid-program residency change, and, for NP tracks, how deep the local bench of specialty preceptors runs.
Last checked 2026-09-24
We check these pages against NKU's own published sources. NKU's School of Nursing and your Canvas clinical shells have the final word.
Tell us your NKU track, where you live and which 7-week session your clinical starts. We find a preceptor and site that fit NKU's rules for your track and have your self-placement request ready well inside the 90-day window.
A placement advisor replies with the preceptor and site that fit NKU's rules for you.