Pursuant to 244 CMR 6.05, the Board shall approve the establishment and continuing operation of nursing education programs.
Nursing education programs offered by a parent institution that has a principle place of business outside of Massachusetts must:
(a) be offered by a parent institution that has parent institution accreditation;
(b) be designed to prepare and qualify a graduate to write the NCLEX-RN or NCLEX- PN;
(c) be approved to operate by the board of nursing or corresponding body in the state where the parent institution has its principle place of business;
(d) be located in a jurisdiction which maintains standards substantially the same as those required for an approved nursing education program in Massachusetts; and
(e) obtain Board approval of any didactic learning experiences or clinical learning experiences conducted in Massachusetts by submitting a completed application to the Board at least 6 months prior to the start of any such learning experiences. Such programs must demonstrate to the Board’s satisfaction that the program:
- has appointed faculty that meet requirements at 244 CMR 6.04(2)(b) or education policy 02-02;
- maintains written agreements with cooperating agencies utilized as clinical learning sites that meet requirements at 244 CMR 6.04(5)(f); and
- maintains faculty-student ratios of 1:10 or less in accordance with 244 CMR 6.04(5)(b).
Establishing an Out of State Nursing Education Program
Part A: Parent Institution Approval
Part A of the application establishes that the out of state parent institution meets the same standards that are required in Massachusetts. Part A must be submitted at least 6 months prior to the start of any clinical placement.
Download: Part A Out of State (PDF) | (DOC)
Part B: Nursing Program Student Clinical Placement Approval
Part B of the application is the Student Clinical Placement information and must be submitted for each clinical placement in Massachusetts no later than 30 days prior to any student clinical placement.
Students cannot participate in clinical placements in Massachusetts until the application has been approved by the Board and the nursing program has received an approval letter.
Download: Part B Out of State (PDF) | (DOC)
Related definitions from 244 CMR 6.0
- Accreditation:
- Institutional Accreditation means the formal recognition or acceptance of the parent institution by a regional or professional accrediting agency.
- Program Accreditation means the formal recognition or acceptance of the nursing education program by a specialized professional accrediting agency recognized as such by the United States Department of Education.
- Administrator means the Registered Nurse designated the administrative authority and responsibility for the nursing education program.
- Approval Status means the written legal recognition by the Board that a nursing education program is authorized to operate.
- Nursing Education Program (Program) means the unit within the parent institution which is intended, among other outcomes, to prepare and qualify a graduate to write the NCLEX-RN or NCLEX-PN.
- Parent Institution means the organization which has the legal authority to operate a nursing education program.