Washington State and preceptorship?

anticoagulationurse · May 3, 2007

https://allnurses.com/forums/f179/washington-exclesior-preceptorship-212808.html

I was having a hard time finding a preceptor person/place as well, and I didn't want to have to leave my very good job to go work for free for 6 weeks somewhere. So, I looked into other ways around the issue. Since most other states don't have the preceptor requirement I thought of getting licensed in another state and endorsing my RN license to WA. I called the BON who told me I could do that but would have to prove 200 hours worked in that state before they would accept my application for endorsement. I took a temp travel job and moved away for 3 months to do so.

Come to find out this was incorrect info given to me by the WA BON and I would not have had to actually work out of state to be able to endorse into WA. Well, 3 months later, I just got home a couple of days ago. And FINALLY, I am licensed as an RN in WA. I tell you this story to warn you. You do not have to do the preceptor thing if you don't want to. I presume you were an LPN first? (If not, WA won't accept your app no matter what).

Here is what I would suggest, having paved the way and looking back with a straight story from the WA BON who has been seriously yanking me around for 7 months since I finished the CPNE:

Avoid the preceptorship
Apply for NCLEX for Minnesota (or another state of your choosing), they have low licensing fees and a very quick turn around time.
Simultaneously, apply to endorse your MN license to WA (https://fortress.wa.gov/doh/hpqa1/hps6/Nursing/documents/RN%20by%20Endorsement.pdf).
The only thing they will need is Verification of Original Licensure, which you mail to MN who then sends to WA.
You can take the NCLEX for any state here in WA, you would not have to go to MN to do so.
You would not have to work in MN before applying for endorsement to WA.

The reason this works is because WA has the preceptorship as a requirement before taking the NCLEX for WA. Well, if you take the NCLEX for a state without such requirement you are already an RN and to apply for licensure (endorsement) to WA the preceptor rule does not apply because you have already passed the NCLEX and are an RN elsewhere - preceptor or not!

It is a round-about way to get your license. But, it is honest and if you call the WA BON ahead of time they will confirm this will work fine. Well, they should! THey told me a different story, the result of which I am sharing with you to avoid the hardship the WA BON has caused me. When I spoke with one person at the WA BON she said two things which tells you what kind of people are working there: "As nurses we all have to do our time," and, "Frankly, we didn't think students would figure out the back door to get out of the preceptorship."

For more about my story read the link posted at top. Please PM me if you have questions. I would love to help, and also to assist others in avoiding error with the WA BON.