Endorsing from Idaho with ABSN?

U.S.A. California

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If I complete my ABSN at an accredited university in Idaho and sit for the NCLEX in Idaho, will I encounter any issues endorsing to Calfornia? All of my labs have been real in person labs, and all courses have been at legitimate accredited schools. I am applying for my program now, and did not know that I may have to (or if I need to) consider the number of clinical hours included in the program? My ABSN is 12 months full time with a VERY heavy credit load and clinicals begin in the first semester. Thank you for any guidance at all. 

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As long as the school meets Californias requirements it shouldn't be an issue.  You need to apply to the CA BRN to find out.  

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SFBayAreaLVN said:

As long as the school meets Californias requirements it shouldn't be an issue.  You need to apply to the CA BRN to find out.  

Thank you so much for responding! I found the California requirements at:https://govt.westlaw.com/calregs/Document/I0AB87BA0095411EFB745E3F7EC85B8C4?viewType=FullText&originationContext=documenttoc&transitionType=CategoryPageItem&contextData=(sc.Default)

It looks like both the traditional and the accelerated programs miss the mark, it may be in how they word their course offerings, but it looks like I would be missing the geriatric clinical concurrent to the included theory, and possible a similar scenario with the pediatric clinical. Given the program is well established and many graduates leave the state, I'm shocked that it would have these deficiencies. My prereqs have been rigorous. I am meeting with the school for advising tomorrow and have reached out to the bureaus in Oregon and California, hopefully I am panicking without reason, I don't know how nitpicky either bureau is, and I'm at least confident that the program is at an actual brick and morter university, if that makes any difference. Hopefully if this is an actual deficiency there will be some way to address it, although at this early stage I cannot fathom what that would look like. Especially if the traditional track has the same deficiencies. I really appreciate your response!

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I know several who have completed ABSN programs and were able to be licensed in CA. 

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SFBayAreaLVN said:

I know several who have completed ABSN programs and were able to be licensed in CA. 

Did the ABSN grads you know get their degrees in Idaho?  The community college in this area clearly indicates their nursing program is not sufficient for either California or Oregon, but I cannot find that information on the ISU website. I have the current educational standards from the BRN and the differences are seemingly slight, but enough that I am very concerned and just hoping for the best if I can get through to the BRN and get any answers tomorrow. Because I completed in person labs for chem, micro, anat and phys 1 &2, and am going to a university program, it never even occurred to me that it would not meet California requirements, but it is possible that not all states have requirements as strong as California's. Thank you again for trying to help me out!

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Specializes in Vents, Telemetry, Home Care, Home infusion.

Cal. Code Regs. Tit. 16, § 1426 - Required Curriculum

Quote

(d) Theory and clinical practice shall be concurrent in the following nursing areas: geriatrics, medical-surgical, mental health/psychiatric nursing, obstetrics, and pediatrics. Instructional outcomes will focus on delivering safe, therapeutic, effective, patient-centered care; practicing evidence-based practice; working as part of interdisciplinary teams; focusing on quality improvement; and using information technology. Instructional content shall include, but is not limited to, the following: critical thinking, personal hygiene, patient protection and safety, pain management, human sexuality, client abuse, cultural diversity, nutrition (including therapeutic aspects), pharmacology, patient advocacy, legal, social and ethical aspects of nursing, and nursing leadership and management.

CA BON revised regs in 2023 California Required Curriculum

Not all states require concurrent theory and clinical - know my state PA does require it.  Since you are just starting program, maybe can have added clinical time in these areas to meet CA regs.

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NRSKarenRN said:

Cal. Code Regs. Tit. 16, § 1426 - Required Curriculum

CA BON revised regs in 2023 California Required Curriculum

Not all states require concurrent theory and clinical - know my state PA does require it.  Since you are just starting program, maybe can have added clinical time in these areas to meet CA regs.

Thank you so much for this. This is what I read that alarmed me when I compared it to the courses in the Idaho State ABSN. I am contacting the school first thing in the morning. The program has such a heavy load I can't imagine they will accommodate me, but their website claims their degree is accepted in California...and of course hasn't been updated since 2021. Hopefully there is a simple solution, my geographical situation is complex. But I didn't spend the past year working so hard and getting two degrees just to find out I'm applying to an ABSN that won't be accepted in California! I appreciate you taking the time to share this with me.

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ScubaRN26 said:

Did the ABSN grads you know get their degrees in Idaho?  The community college in this area clearly indicates their nursing program is not sufficient for either California or Oregon, but I cannot find that information on the ISU website. I have the current educational standards from the BRN and the differences are seemingly slight, but enough that I am very concerned and just hoping for the best if I can get through to the BRN and get any answers tomorrow. Because I completed in person labs for chem, micro, anat and phys 1 &2, and am going to a university program, it never even occurred to me that it would not meet California requirements, but it is possible that not all states have requirements as strong as California's. Thank you again for trying to help me out!

No one from NY, FL, and TX 

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SFBayAreaLVN said:

No one from NY, FL, and TX 

I am wondering if they endorsed prior to recent changes to California Code of Regulations, I will report back what I learn today, Thaks SFBayAreaLVN!

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NRSKarenRN said:

Cal. Code Regs. Tit. 16, § 1426 - Required Curriculum

CA BON revised regs in 2023 California Required Curriculum

Not all states require concurrent theory and clinical - know my state PA does require it.  Since you are just starting program, maybe can have added clinical time in these areas to meet CA regs.

Hi NRSKarenRN, are you able to help me understand how this is actually being applied? My school has stated that they have graduates who have licensed in California and Oregon. I was under the impression that recent changes to the code were to decrease the shortage of nurses in California by creating a path for students who had completed science courses without in-person labs. I am going to be calling the BRN this morning to better understand this, but the school has students who move from out of state for their program and return to west coast states to license. Just trying to reconcile all this before I move forward only to discover I am unqualified to license in California. The school will not in any way alter the program of study to add any additional clinical time for me. Are you able to tell me if the updated regulations add clinical semester hours that were not previously required? Thank you so very much!

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Specializes in Vents, Telemetry, Home Care, Home infusion.

Clinical hours are the same --they just removed science lab for out of state nurses

Quote

"approved school of nursing or nursing program shall meet a minimum of 500 direct patient care clinical hours in a Board-approved clinical setting with a minimum of 30 hours of supervised direct patient care clinical hours dedicated to each nursing area specified by the Board.: geriatrics, medical-surgical, mental health/psychiatric nursing, obstetrics, and pediatrics.

Best to email the CA BON if you have any other concerns,

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NRSKarenRN said:

Clinical hours are the same --they just removed science lab for out of state nurses

Best to email the CA BON if you have any other concerns,

I have spoken to both the Oregon and California boards today. I believe the issue comes down to the requirement for a minimum of 18 semester units of clinical hours concurrent to theory. I was told that the ABSN includes nearly 800 clinical hours. But the semester hours are below 18. I am waiting for specialists from both Oregon and California, and to hear back from the school with an actual written number of clinical semester hours in the ABSN vs BSN. They previously told me the number of clinical hours is the same in both programs, but when I count the Clinic and Lab credits on course plans for the 2 different programs, they definitely do not add up to the same number. Unfortunately, I am at this point relying on anecdotal information about student outcomes, and I do not have any facts I can inspect that show the ABSN being approved in specific states. Oregon initially replied that the school is on the approved list, but the specialist didn't seem to differentiate between RN and AP, so it's been escalated to a more specialized group. California couldn't speak to the program at all, beyond explaining what my options would be should I receive a denial based on academic deficiency. And of course the deadline for Spring cohort has passed. So I'm just very sad and still don't have answers that I don't feel like I should have been having to look for in the first place. 

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