Samford state authorization: which states are open to NP students
Samford's September 3, 2025 disclosure says its nurse practitioner tracks meet the educational requirements for licensure in every state and DC. Enrollment is the narrower gate: Samford takes no NP applications from people who live in, or only hold a license in, 16 states. This page lists all 16, sets the other nursing programs' lists beside them, and explains what a move mid-program means.
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The 16 states closed to Samford NP applicants
Each Samford nurse practitioner program page has an Out-of-State Applicants table, and the NP licensure disclosure flags the same states with an asterisk. Samford currently accepts no NP track applications from anyone who resides in one of these states or whose only nursing license was issued by one:
- West: Arizona, California, Colorado, Montana, Nevada, Oregon
- Plains and Midwest: Iowa, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Wisconsin
- South: Louisiana, West Virginia
- Northeast: New Hampshire, New York, Pennsylvania
The table is identical on all six NP pages: the FNP MSN, FNP DNP and FNP certificate, and the PMHNP MSN, DNP and certificate. It applies whatever your entry point, ADN, BSN or MSN. Alabama and the other 33 states plus the District of Columbia are open. One small trap if you check the table yourself: Samford's pages spell Nevada as “Neveda”.
An asterisk in Samford's disclosure is an enrollment flag, not a verdict on the program. Samford says its alumni can still apply for licensure in those states; it simply takes no NP applications from people living there or licensed only there.
What the NP licensure disclosure actually says
Samford posts its disclosures on its Consumer Information page, one PDF per program. The NP statement, dated “As of September 3, 2025”, places every state and DC in one table headed Sufficient to Meet Licensure or Certification Requirements, with a link to each state's board.
The verdict covers the MSN and DNP nurse practitioner tracks. Samford says they are sufficient for licensure as a certified registered nurse practitioner and that it has checked the educational requirements in all states. No current Samford nursing disclosure marks any state as does not meet or not determined.
Two gaps are worth knowing. The FNP and PMHNP post-graduate certificates are not named in any disclosure, although both certificate pages carry the same 16-state table. And the Consumer Information page promises a review every May, yet the nursing PDFs still show 2025 dates.
Every disclosure also carries Samford's caveat: a state board still decides each application, and Samford cannot vouch for requirements outside its programs. If you plan to practice outside Alabama, Samford asks you to check with that state's licensing agency before you start.
Other Samford nursing programs follow other lists
The online RN to BSN, the DNP Nurse Leader and the nurse anesthesia DNP each follow their own state rules, and the two RN to BSN sources disagree with each other.
| Program | Disclosure | Licensure result | Enrollment limit |
|---|---|---|---|
| FNP and PMHNP, MSN and DNP | As of September 3, 2025 | Meets in all states and DC | 16 states closed |
| FNP and PMHNP certificates | Not named in any disclosure | Not published | Same 16 states |
| Nurse anesthesia DNP | As of August 28, 2025 | Meets in all states and DC | None published; multistate RN license required |
| BSN (NCLEX licensure) | No date in the text | Meets in all states and DC | Campus program in Birmingham |
| Online RN to BSN | Uses the BSN statement | See BSN | Two lists that differ (below) |
| DNP Nurse Leader | None published | Not published | 13 states; closed to applications |
Nurse anesthesia is the outlier: its statement has no asterisks and no out-of-state text, because Samford assigns the clinical sites and the handbook requires a multistate RN license. The nurse anesthesia DNP page covers that program's clinicals.
State by state: where Samford's lists differ
Seventeen states appear on at least one Samford nursing list. The grid sets each one against the NP table, both RN to BSN sources and the Nurse Leader page.
For the RN to BSN, the online program page lists Missouri but not Nevada, while the BSN disclosure asterisks Nevada but not Missouri. Treat both as closed until Samford's RN to BSN pathway coordinator tells you otherwise. The Nurse Leader page names 13 states and also says the program is not accepting applications at this time.
| State | NP tracks | RN to BSN page | BSN disclosure | Nurse Leader DNP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arizona | Closed | Closed | Closed | Open |
| California | Closed | Closed | Closed | Closed |
| Colorado | Closed | Closed | Closed | Closed |
| Iowa | Closed | Closed | Closed | Closed |
| Louisiana | Closed | Closed | Closed | Closed |
| Missouri | Closed | Closed | Open | Open |
| Montana | Closed | Closed | Closed | Closed |
| Nebraska | Closed | Closed | Closed | Closed |
| Nevada | Closed | Open | Closed | Closed |
| New Hampshire | Closed | Closed | Closed | Closed |
| New York | Closed | Closed | Closed | Open |
| North Dakota | Closed | Closed | Closed | Open |
| Oregon | Closed | Closed | Closed | Closed |
| Pennsylvania | Closed | Closed | Closed | Closed |
| West Virginia | Closed | Closed | Closed | Closed |
| Wisconsin | Closed | Closed | Closed | Closed |
| Wyoming | Open | Closed | Closed | Closed |
SARA and Samford's older state authorization list
Authorization to teach across state lines is separate from licensure. Samford's Consumer Information page says the university participates in the State Authorization Reciprocity Agreement through the Alabama Commission on Higher Education, which lets it offer distance education in member states with some restrictions tied to clinicals and internships.
Samford's separate State Authorization list is much older: its internal title reads “Updated 1-19-2020”. It has no rows for Delaware, Kentucky or North Carolina even though its text covers 49 member states, and its New York row says only fully online programs may be offered. It also notes that California sits outside SARA but that Samford qualifies for exempt status there. The current NP table, not this list, is what decides an application.
Some open states add a step of their own for out-of-state programs. Alaska's board, for example, asks APRN students from programs based elsewhere to apply for a preceptorship, and Washington expects Board approval before an out-of-state distance program places students. Each state guide sets out its own board's rule.
Moving during the program
Samford's Student Location Policy ties your state to the permanent address in Banner, which you keep current through the Samford Portal. That address decides which state's disclosure applies to you.
The graduate handbook adds two duties when you relocate: tell your program coordinator or director, and make sure the new state's clinical and distance-education rules are met. Your RN license has to be current and unencumbered where you practice and in every state where you rotate, and a clinical rotation request can be turned down on a state's rules. RN license requirements covers the license side.
If a program's licensure status changes for your state, Samford says it will email enrolled students within 14 days of learning of it.
One gap matters: Samford publishes nothing about an enrolled NP student who moves into one of the 16 closed states. The rule is written for applicants. Before you commit to a move, ask your program coordinator and Graduate Student Services in writing, then read clinicals outside Alabama and clinical rotation requests.
How we build placements around Samford's state rules
Every Samford search we run starts with two facts: where you live and where your RN license is valid.
- Check your state firstWe confirm your home state is open under Samford's current NP table and that your license covers each state where a rotation could happen.
- Search where the request can clearWe look for preceptors close to home in states where your license is valid, compare both sides of a nearby state line, and flag any board rule that could slow Samford's review.
- Prepare the requestYou get the preceptor, license and site details your clinical rotation request needs, early enough for a new affiliation agreement if the site requires one.
Tell us your state, license and Samford track through the placement request form and your placement advisor will map where your preceptor search should run.
Questions Samford students ask
Can I apply to Samford's FNP program if I live in California?
Not while California is your home. It is one of the 16 states on the NP table, and the rule covers anyone living in a listed state as well as anyone licensed only there. Samford's 2020 list mentions an exemption for California, but that concerns SARA, not the current NP application rule.
Does Samford accept NP students from Georgia, Tennessee, Mississippi and Florida?
Yes. All four states bordering Alabama are open under the NP table, which is why many Samford students live across the line. Your license still has to be valid in each state where you rotate. See the Georgia and Tennessee guides for how placements work there.
I live in an open state but my RN license is from New York. Can I apply?
The wording targets applicants who live in a listed state or whose only license comes from one. If you live in an open state and also hold a license valid there, you fall outside it, but the handbook still requires a license in your practice state and every clinical state. Confirm your case with Graduate Student Services first.
Can I do a clinical rotation in a state that is closed to applicants?
Samford's table governs who can apply, not where each rotation happens, and Samford has not published how it treats rotations in the 16 states. The handbook still applies: a valid RN license in that state, and a request that can be denied on state rules. Ask your program coordinator before a preceptor there invests time.
Who at Samford answers state eligibility questions?
For the NP tracks and other graduate programs, the NP disclosure points to the Director of Graduate Student Services. RN to BSN questions go to the RN to BSN pathway coordinator. Both are listed on Samford's program pages, and the Consumer Information page holds the current disclosure PDFs for every program.
Related pages
Last checked 2026-09-25
We check these pages against Samford's own program pages, plans of study, the 2026-27 Graduate Nursing Student Handbook and Alabama rules. Your course, your program coordinator and Graduate Student Services have the final word.
Samford says connections are essential. We are the connection.
Tell us your Samford track, where you live and when your next clinical course starts. We find preceptors near you who fit the course and prepare the details Samford needs to approve the rotation, including a new affiliation agreement where one is needed.
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NURG 723, family practice across the lifespan forNURG 724, psychiatric care forNURG 788 - Preceptor, license and site details ready for your clinical rotation request
- In your own community, anywhere Samford accepts you and your RN license is valid
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