ECPI & Texas Jobs??

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Specializes in Critical Care.

Please correct me if this is in the wrong area.

I just had a question regarding my school, accreditation, and landing a job in another state. I am nearly finished with my ADN from ECPI and am planning to move to Texas afterward.

I have been reading up a little bit, looking at hospitals and I noticed some don't specifically state that they accept the compact, some specifically say that they want a Texas RN license, some state that they want you to come from an accredited school. From my understanding once you had your RN, you have your RN and that's that regardless of the schools accreditation. Also thought that any state with a compact agreement basically had to accept you as an equal no matter which compact state you come from?

I have full intentions of actually obtaining my FNP online with Walden University as they have an RN -> MSN program that allows you to do so while working etc. So my plan was to move to Texas once I finished up my ADN and took my NCLEX and then continue on from there. Could someone possibly point me in the correct direction? I just don't understand it, no matter how much I read I feel like I am always finding conflicting information or just not getting a clear answer.

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Specializes in OR, Nursing Professional Development.

If you intend to move to TX before getting your first job, just apply for licensure in TX instead of the state you currently live in. If you apply for a compact license in your current state, as soon as you change your state of residency, you must apply for a license by endorsement as the license then becomes a single state license. Skip some paperwork and a lot of time.

You are correct that an RN license is a license regardless of the accredited or not status of the program; however, facilities can choose to have more restrictive requirements for applicants such as graduation from an accredited program.

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Specializes in Critical Care.
30 minutes ago, Rose_Queen said:

If you intend to move to TX before getting your first job, just apply for licensure in TX instead of the state you currently live in. If you apply for a compact license in your current state, as soon as you change your state of residency, you must apply for a license by endorsement as the license then becomes a single state license. Skip some paperwork and a lot of time.

Hmm, I guess I must not fully understand the NLC then. I was under the impression that as long as that state was an NLC state, then you could go to any other NLC state with no restrictions or extra paperwork.

Unless, I am correct in that understanding and the suggestion is merely for the fact that the hospitals I have currently seen specifically asked for a Texas licensure?

Thank you for the reply and information by the way!

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Specializes in OR, Nursing Professional Development.
26 minutes ago, NurseGuy92 said:

Hmm, I guess I must not fully understand the NLC then. I was under the impression that as long as that state was an NLC state, then you could go to any other NLC state with no restrictions or extra paperwork.

You can only hold a compact license provided your permanent residence is in the state in which you applied for it. If you apply for licensure in West Virginia, you could have a compact license provided your permanent legal residence remains in West Virginia. As soon as your permanent legal residence is no longer in WV, that license issued by WV can only be utilized in WV, even if it was previously a compact license. You would then need to apply for licensure by endorsement to your new home state. If that new home state is also a compact state, then you could once again have a compact license. Yes, the compact can be quite complex.

Quote

What if I move to another compact state?

When permanently relocating to another compact state, apply for licensure by endorsement and complete the Declaration of Primary State of Residence form within the application, which can be found on your board of nursing’s website.

You may start the application process prior to or after the move. You should not delay applying once you have moved. There is no grace period. If you are moving from a noncompact state applying to a compact state in advance of the move, you may be issued a single state license or your application may be held until you move and have proof of legal residency at which time you may be issued a multistate license.

https://www.ncsbn.org/nlc-faqs.htm

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Specializes in Critical Care; Cardiac; Professional Development.

Most of the hospitals in my area will only hire nurses from accredited institutions. This is very common in the major cities in Texas.

You got good advice above. Good luck!

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Specializes in Critical Care.
11 hours ago, Nurse SMS said:

Most of the hospitals in my area will only hire nurses from accredited institutions. This is very common in the major cities in Texas.

You got good advice above. Good luck!

Maybe I don't quite understand the full extent of "accreditation" then. I thought there were like multiple different kinds, some people liked some, some preferred others. However, now that I am thinking about it, if I am currently only completing my ADN, in order to sit for the NCLEX-RN doesn't it have to be accredited? Therefore....I am okay, wherever I would go (I think?).

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Specializes in OR, Nursing Professional Development.
32 minutes ago, NurseGuy92 said:

in order to sit for the NCLEX-RN doesn't it have to be accredited?

No. This is a common point of misconception. Accreditation is a voluntary action that goes above the minimum. There are 2 bodies that nationally accredit nursing programs: ACEN and CCNE.

In order to sit for NCLEX, your program must be approved by the state BON.

Accreditation is not the same as BON approval.

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Specializes in Critical Care; Cardiac; Professional Development.

Exactly as Rose Queen stated - the BON has a minimum level that must be attained to sit for the NCLEX, but those same standards are not sufficient to support continuing education/degree advancement. ACEN and CCNE accredit for a higher level of education and qualifications in and for the nursing program. Generally speaking, for-profit schools do not meet those higher standards and usually their credits do not transfer for the continuation of education.

Generally speaking hospitals want nurses to continue to advance in their education, particularly if they are at the ASN level. They also want to have ways of sorting through the huge glut of candidates who apply for positions just after graduation from nursing school to find the most qualified. This higher standard, being accredited by one of the above bodies, is one way to do that.

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Specializes in Critical Care.
10 hours ago, Rose_Queen said:

No. This is a common point of misconception. Accreditation is a voluntary action that goes above the minimum. There are 2 bodies that nationally accredit nursing programs: ACEN and CCNE.

In order to sit for NCLEX, your program must be approved by the state BON.

Accreditation is not the same as BON approval.

Okay, that definitely cleared up a lot. I was at work today talking to some of the nurses I work with and they were all either unsure or saying that it meant it was accredited haha. So I appreciate that greatly.

1 hour ago, Nurse SMS said:

Exactly as Rose Queen stated - the BON has a minimum level that must be attained to sit for the NCLEX, but those same standards are not sufficient to support continuing education/degree advancement. ACEN and CCNE accredit for a higher level of education and qualifications in and for the nursing program. Generally speaking, for-profit schools do not meet those higher standards and usually their credits do not transfer for the continuation of education.

So that's fairly frightening....I wish I had been a little more educated on this accreditation understanding before I proceeded with ECPI. I did some digging last night and it looks like their ADN is not accredited but the BSN is. The "continuing education" is what worries me a bit though, I had full intentions of completing the ADN here and then applying to Waldens RN->MSN program (or at the very least the RN->BSN) and finally achieving my educational goals as a nurse. Are you saying that it is potentially not possible of doing so due to the ADN program not being accredited.

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Specializes in Nursing Professional Development.

You'll have to check with Walden to see if they accept students with only ADN's from non-accredited schools directly into their Master's program. That is totally up to the school.

I know that some schools will accept students from non-accredited schools and others will not. Some will accept them, but only if certain stipulations are met (such as successful work experience) ... or they will offer a provisional acceptance, which is then reviewed after taking 1 full semester of classes to assure that the student can perform at the level expected before a full acceptance into the academic program. Each school is different.

But yes, accreditation can be a big deal for people who want to have the most job opportunities and/or pursue higher education.

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Specializes in Critical Care.

You all have been a plethora of knowledge and understanding for me. I really appreciate everyone's input. Now that I see how the conversation kind of formed into a different subject other than "Career" I apologize for that. But I can't thank you all enough for bringing these things to light for me. I wish I had been on here before choosing a school but I'm going to keep rolling with it (already over 1/2 way completed with ADN), cross my fingers and make adjustments as needed to achieve what I am after.

EDIT: I would just like to add that I just got off the phone with an advisor from Walden University and they do not require any special accreditation, just that you have sat for the NCLEX-RN and passed. In case anyone is curious or other students happen to take a peek at this topic.

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Specializes in Nursing Professional Development.

I'm glad you called Walden. Now you know for sure. I never understood why people would avoid calling a school to find out the answers to such questions.

Now you just have to do the same with hospitals as you start job hunting after graduation. It's usually better to talk with employers for yourself to find out what they require and what they don't.

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