License in Compact state to increase job chances?

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I'm in the penultimate semester of my ASN program and I'm starting to peek around job sites. I'm in a non compact state (Florida) and I am able to be highly mobile (no kids, family, or pets). Most available new grad positions are, not surprisingly, located outside of Florida and in compact friendly states. In this case, would it be worth while to also be licensed in a compact state to increase my chances of hire?

Any opinion or advice is readily welcomed!

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Specializes in Case mgmt., rehab, (CRRN), LTC & psych.

In a nutshell, I do not think that a compact license would be all that helpful in your situation. It will help somewhat, perhaps for the first 30 days of being in a new state, but you will still need to declare a home state.

For example, let's assume that you have a compact license for Arizona (your imaginary home state), but received job offers in Iowa. Even though Iowa and Arizona are both members of the Nursing Licensure Compact, you will still need to declare a home state for your license. If you decide to work in Iowa under your Arizona license, you can legally do so for only 30 days. After the 30 days has elapsed, you will definitely need to apply and pay for an Iowa nursing license in order to continue working legally in Iowa.

A compact nursing license is similar to a driver's license. Once you have moved to Iowa, you can drive under your Arizona license for 30 days, then you will need to obtain an Iowa driver's license in order to keep driving legally in your new home state. It is the exact same concept with a nursing license that is from a Compact state.

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Great! Thank you so much for the information. I was under the impression that you didn't need a "home state" which is why I was considering going this route. Yea, information!

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