Washington State nurses and Ohio University's programs
As of September 2026, Washington residents cannot apply to Ohio University's graduate nursing programs or its RN-to-BSN; the state is on none of Ohio University's lists. Washington, for its part, runs one of the tighter gates for programs based elsewhere, requiring Board approval before any clinical. This page sets out what that means.
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Washington against Ohio University's state lists
Graduate nursing at Ohio University is reserved for nurses who live in one of 28 approved states and are licensed there without restriction. Washington is not one, and neither are Oregon or Idaho; the approved states closest to it are Alaska and Montana. Each of the provost's three graduate disclosures, MSN, post-master's certificate and DNP, marks Washington "No".
| Program | For Washington residents | Format | Clinical hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| MSN NP tracks (FNP, PMHNP, AG-ACNP) | Not available | Online, campus intensives | 750 each |
| Post-master's NP certificates | Not available | Online, campus intensives | 750 |
| Emergency NP certificate | Not available | Online, two intensives | 450 in the catalog; 500 on the program page |
| MSN-to-DNP | Not available | Online, intensives | 1,000 post-baccalaureate |
| Nurse Leader or Nurse Educator MSN | Not available | Online | 500 |
| RN-to-BSN | Not available: on none of its four lists | Online | 31.5 |
For the RN-to-BSN, Ohio University's disclosure note on Washington says a program "must apply for approval". Check the current position with Ohio University before you apply or relocate.
WABON approval comes before any clinical
Here the state, not the facility, holds the key. Washington's rule, WAC 246-840-571, requires an out-of-state distance program to get a green light from WABON, the Washington State Board of Nursing, before its students start any clinical or practice hours in the state. Approval means applying, matching Washington's program standards, overseeing and evaluating students on Washington soil, keeping national accreditation and filing yearly reports. WABON's approved roster includes RN-to-BSN, MSN and NP offerings.
Two more conditions follow. WABON ties approved placements from out-of-state programs to students who live in Washington, weighing other cases one at a time, and wants a Washington ARNP license from any out-of-state faculty member teaching ARNP practice there. Change may be coming: WABON opened rulemaking with a CR-101 notice dated December 5, 2025, covering the education rules and naming clinical placement barriers among its targets.
ARNP preceptors, and a grant outside programs miss
Washington licenses its nurse practitioners as ARNPs, and AANP rates the state full practice. Its education rules restrict who precepts an ARNP student. The preceptor must be licensed as an ARNP, a physician (MD) or an osteopathic physician (DO), actively and without encumbrance, or hold another state's equivalent, and cannot be the student's relative or personal friend. For Ohio University's own expectations, request the clinical overview sheets and preceptor packet from graduatenursing@ohio.edu.
State money supports preceptors too. The Washington State Student Nurse Preceptorship Grant, a legislative creation, is administered by WABON. ARNPs, RNs and LPNs qualify once they have a year's experience, and payment is per student, for 80 or more hours with each, capped at two students each term and paid out quarterly; the Summer 2026 cycle closed September 15. Outside programs are shut out wherever the hours happen, and RN-to-BSN programs are left out as well.
Seattle, Spokane and a newer compact state
Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue dwarfs the rest, at close to 4.16 million people in 2025 Census estimates. Spokane-Spokane Valley counted about 608,000 and Kennewick-Richland roughly 324,000, and the Washington slice of the Portland-Vancouver area holds about 545,000. Systems NP students weigh include UW Medicine, Providence and its Providence Swedish hospitals (headquartered in Renton), PeaceHealth, MultiCare Health System and Virginia Mason Franciscan Health.
Compact membership took effect January 31, 2024, which makes Washington a recent member; multistate RN licenses from other member states now reach RN practice there. It has not enacted the APRN Compact, so ARNP licenses stay Washington-only. The license guide explains how licensure follows the site.
Who we help with Washington ties
Between Ohio University's residence rule and WABON's resident-focused approvals, this page serves two readers best: Ohio University students expecting a move to Washington, and Washington nurses deciding whether to relocate to a listed state first. If you will move mid-program, write to graduatenursing@ohio.edu first; a Washington clinical would also need WABON approval of Ohio University's program, which only Ohio University can confirm.
Wherever you land, your placement advisor searches locally for a preceptor who fits your Ohio University course, checks each license against the site's state, screens for rules like Washington's no-friends-or-relatives standard, and prepares what faculty review ahead of the clinical packet deadline. Faculty give final approval, and your file arrives complete. Next stop: the approved states guide or the form below.
Questions Ohio University students ask
Can I study in Ohio University's online FNP program while living in Washington?
Not as of September 2026. Graduate applicants must live in one of Ohio University's 28 approved states and hold a valid, unrestricted RN license there, and Washington is not among them. Alaska and Montana are the nearest approved states. The list has changed before; keep checking.
Does an out-of-state program need WABON approval for Washington clinicals?
Yes. Washington's rule requires WABON approval before a distance program from another state places students there, and approvals are generally tied to Washington residents. WABON publishes its approved roster and asks programs placing students without approval to contact its education unit.
Would the state pay a Washington preceptor for precepting an Ohio University student?
Not through the state's preceptorship grant. Its terms leave out programs based outside Washington, wherever the hours are worked, and exclude RN-to-BSN programs outright. The grant is built for preceptors teaching students of Washington programs, so hours with an Ohio University student would not count toward it.
When did Washington join the Nurse Licensure Compact?
Implementation came on January 31, 2024, per NCSBN's table, so Washington is one of the newer members. Nurses with a multistate license from another member state can now practice as RNs there. The APRN Compact is separate, and Washington has not enacted it.
Related pages
Last checked 2026-09-24
We check these pages against Ohio University's own catalog, program pages and Nursing Knowledge Center. Your syllabus, the Graduate Nursing Student Handbook and your faculty have the final word.
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