Hey, I'm trying to apply to an online PMHNP program that will still allow for me to take the CA boards. It's hard to tell if some of these programs will be CA approved and was hoping someone here knows the trick.

I have been trying to avoid Walden, but am having difficulty finding better schools that aren't going to end up being a waste in CA. Where I live there are only 2 brick and mortar schools that do not offer online versions and have in-class schedules that I can't make for personal reasons.

Few things:

- there is no specific board exam to take in CA for NP's.

- the list of CA approved NP programs are available here: https://www.RN.ca.gov/education/apprograms.shtml#np, as you may notice, they are all based in CA.

- graduates of Walden and other similar "online" schools can still get certified as an NP in CA. They are basically lumped together with graduates of all other schools not listed in the CA approved NP programs. That can include Walden or even the big names such as Columbia or Johns Hopkins. To accomplish that, the candidate has to pass a national NP board such as the one offered by AANP, ANCC, PNCB, NCC, or AACN.

- graduates of the CA approved NP programs do not need to take a national NP board exam in order to get certified.

OK, so if I understand right, I can go to any online University and then sit for the national NP board to gain certification. (Which would probably be the better board to sit for in case I ever move?) That certification is what allows me to start looking for a practice to join.

Does that mean the program needs to be nationally approved? Or if I get a degree from University of Texas Arlington, or Vanderbilt I just show that to the AACN and they schedule a time to take their national board?

I might just be thinking about this wrong, for my undergraduate degree I made sure to go to a school that was both nationally and regionally accredited. I was assuming they're would be a similar designation for my masters/NP certificate

There are many California NPs that went to NP programs in other states, or attended online programs.

However, I recall that California may want to approve certain coursework and I can't remember if that is at the RN and/or MSN level. You can go to the California BRN website and do research there.

Yes, you take the national online certification for your specialty. That is the only exam required. Once you pass that, then you apply for your Calif NP license. And as you know, it can take quite awhile to get that license from Calif.

You can ask if there are any NPs who went to the schools you are interested in that are working in California here on this on this forum.

I went to Hopkins and many of my NP colleagues went to schools (public) in all different states. One of my NP colleagues is getting his post-master's PMHNP cert from Wilkes right now. Frontier grads get jobs in California for sure.

The schools you are interested in should also be able to answer this question. Ask them - it is also often on their website, as many have info that their degree is not accepted in certain states