Louisiana nurses and Gonzaga: the DNP option and a firm out-of-state rule
Only residents of ten western states can enter Gonzaga's nurse practitioner master's, so a Louisiana nurse's Gonzaga option is the online Post-Master's DNP, which lists no residency limit; confirm eligibility with Gonzaga first. Louisiana adds a firm step: out-of-state programs need Board approval, sought six months ahead, before clinical experiences here.
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Start here: Gonzaga's programs from a Louisiana address
Gonzaga's NP tracks, the Second MSN among them, admit residents of ten western states only and hold every NP practicum in the student's licensing state. Louisiana carries "Meets" on Gonzaga's licensure table for the NP master's, a licensure determination separate from who is admitted. See the ten-state admission rule for Gonzaga's wording.
| Program | From Louisiana | Where practicum hours happen |
|---|---|---|
| MSN FNP | Requires residency in one of the ten western states | The western state of licensure |
| MSN PMHNP or Second MSN | Same residency requirement | The western state of licensure |
| Post-Master's DNP | No residency limit listed; confirm with Gonzaga | Indirect project hours with an agency liaison; a Louisiana setting may bring LSBN's rule into play |
LSBN's approval rule and Louisiana licensure
LAC 46:XLVII.3539 reaches programs run from another state at either level, undergraduate or graduate, and requires the Louisiana State Board of Nursing to sign off first when such a program wants to teach a course or hold a clinical experience inside Louisiana.
- QualifyThree credentials come first: regional accreditation, nursing accreditation from a national body the Board recognizes, and approval from the program's own state.
- Apply earlySix months or more before the start, the program writes to the Board naming agencies and units, enclosing syllabi, catalog, curriculum, a survey of each facility, faculty forms and licensing and certification exam results.
- Staff with Louisiana licensesAnyone teaching for the program in Louisiana carries Louisiana licensure as an RN, an APRN or both, holds a master's or doctorate in nursing and brings two or more years of clinical work.
- Report and superviseGraduate students go on the Board's clinical experience spreadsheet within two weeks of starting; faculty talk with preceptor and student every week and visit once per semester or quarter.
The Board's approval runs up to three years, renewable on petition.
Multistate RN licenses have been honored in Louisiana since the state implemented the compact in mid-2019. AANP puts Louisiana in its reduced-practice column, since state law keeps at least one element of an NP's practice under a regulated physician collaboration. The APRN Compact is not law here, and LPNs sit with a different board altogether, the Board of Practical Nurse Examiners.
Six months of lead time is the Board's minimum, so raise a Louisiana project setting with Gonzaga as early as you can.
A DNP project from New Orleans, Baton Rouge or Shreveport
The Post-Master's DNP is online, with virtual immersions and no required campus visits, for nurses holding a nursing master's in an advanced practice or leadership role. Project work forms its practicum: indirect care hours with an agency liaison in an organization you propose, and your MSN hours count toward the DNP's 1,000.
The New Orleans-Metairie metro counts 970,849 residents, Baton Rouge 888,699, Lafayette 423,758 and Shreveport-Bossier City 383,474 (Census, 2025). Willis-Knighton Health, FMOL Health, Ochsner Health, Baton Rouge General and LCMC Health anchor care across them, with public health work run through the state health department's Office of Public Health. They are examples only, with no Gonzaga arrangement implied.
Planning a move to the West
Louisiana nurses who want the NP credential face a long move: residency in one of the ten western states precedes any FNP or PMHNP application. Of those ten, California, Oregon, Nevada and Alaska sit outside the compact and issue their own licenses, so budget time for licensure there; the RN license for clinicals guide goes state by state. Practicum site visits happen at your clinic only in the Northwest four, meaning Washington, Idaho, Oregon and Montana. If you are already a Gonzaga student, speak with your program before you relocate.
Why Louisiana nurses choose us
A Louisiana project setting rewards an early start, so we move early: we identify organizations suited to your DNP project, find an agency liaison who meets Gonzaga's checklist, and gather the agency, unit and contact details a proposal needs well ahead of the term. For nurses moving west, we search the new state in person for NP preceptors fit to each Gonzaga course. Our how-it-works page walks through the service, and the form at the bottom starts your search.
Questions Gonzaga students ask
Can I enroll in Gonzaga's PMHNP program while living in Louisiana?
Gonzaga admits PMHNP and FNP students who reside in ten western states, and Louisiana is not one of them; NP practicums also follow the student's license. A Louisiana nurse who already holds a nursing master's can ask Gonzaga about the Post-Master's DNP, whose pages list no residency limit.
Does LSBN's out-of-state rule apply to graduate programs?
Yes. LAC 46:XLVII.3539 names both undergraduate and graduate programs under another state's administrative control, for courses and clinical experiences in Louisiana. How it reaches project-based DNP hours is for Gonzaga and the Board to answer, so raise it before committing to a Louisiana setting.
Do faculty of an out-of-state program need a Louisiana license?
Yes, under LSBN's rule. Someone teaching in Louisiana for a program from another state must carry Louisiana licensure (RN, APRN or both), have earned a master's or doctorate in nursing, and bring two or more years of clinical experience. In Board-approved APRN preceptorships, one faculty member may oversee at most nine students on a clinical day.
Is Louisiana a Nurse Licensure Compact state?
Louisiana has honored multistate RN licenses since implementing the compact on July 1, 2019. The APRN Compact is a different agreement, and Louisiana has not enacted it; AANP lists the state as reduced practice for nurse practitioners. While Louisiana is your home state, a multistate license issued there also covers practice in the other compact states.
Related pages
Last checked 2026-09-25
We check these pages against Gonzaga's catalog, FAQs, preceptor packets and Department of Nursing pages. Your course, the Graduate Nursing Student Handbook and Gonzaga's Clinical Placement Team have the final word.
Gonzaga asks you to find local preceptors first. Let us run that search.
Tell us your Gonzaga program, your practicum course and where you live and can travel. We find preceptors who fit the course and prepare the license, certification and site details your Practicum Site Placement Request needs, early in the semester before.
- Preceptors matched to the course: primary care across the lifespan for
NURS 661PtoNURS 664P, psychiatric care forNURS 661MtoNURS 663M, an agency liaison for the DNP - Credentials, license, board certification and site contact ready for your site request
- In Spokane, across Washington or wherever in the ten western states you are licensed
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