Louisiana and GW Nursing: where things stand
Louisiana is one of five states whose residents GW's online programs cannot accept, according to GW's State Authorizations page, and GW's FAQ names it as well. Louisiana's board asks out-of-state programs for six months' notice before any clinical there, and GW is absent from its approved list. Here is the detail, and who at GW can confirm your situation.
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GW's Louisiana position, program by program
Louisiana appeared on GW's list in 2017 alongside Alabama and North Dakota. A March 2025 version said GW could neither accept Louisiana applicants nor offer clinical assignments there, and today's page bars Louisiana applicants from every online program, citing clinical placement restrictions.
| Program | Open to Louisiana residents? | Louisiana in GW's disclosure |
|---|---|---|
| MSN FNP, AGPCNP or PMHNP | No | Does not meet |
| Post-BSN DNP NP tracks | No | Not yet determined |
| Post-master's NP certificates | No | Does not meet |
| MSN Nurse-Midwifery | No | Does not meet |
| Acute Care NP options | No | Residency in DC, Maryland or Virginia required |
| Leadership MSN and post-MSN DNP | No | Not listed on GW's disclosure pages |
The DNP's softer wording does not reopen admission, since the State Authorizations page governs whom GW accepts. Our state authorizations page places Louisiana among GW's other limits.
LSBN's approval process for schools from other states
Before a program run from another state can teach or place students in Louisiana, undergraduate or graduate, the Louisiana State Board of Nursing (LSBN) has to approve it under LAC 46:XLVII.3539. The school's request is due no later than six months before the first offering.
What the school sends LSBN
- A letter identifying every clinical agency and unit it plans to use
- Its curriculum, course syllabi and catalog
- A survey form for each clinical facility, plus faculty qualification forms
- Pass rates on NCLEX and certification exams
- Proof that its home state approves it, plus regional accreditation and a national nursing accreditor LSBN accepts
Approval lasts up to three years and is renewed by petition. For graduate students, a Board spreadsheet of clinical experiences follows within two weeks of the start. LSBN's list of out-of-state schools cleared for Louisiana clinical experience, revised through April 28, 2026, omits GW, though two other Washington, DC-area universities are on it.
Faculty and supervision rules that set Louisiana apart
Louisiana ties supervision to the state itself. An outside school's instructors in the state need Louisiana RN or APRN licensure, graduate nursing education and two or more years in clinical practice. Precepted clinicals require weekly contact among faculty, preceptor and student plus a site visit every term, and one faculty member's clinical-day load is capped at nine APRN students.
AANP groups Louisiana with the reduced-practice states, where some part of NP practice depends on a physician collaboration agreement. Louisiana offers no preceptor incentive in the sources we track. Big employers range from Ochsner Health and LCMC Health to FMOL Health, the Franciscan Missionaries of Our Lady system, with Willis-Knighton and Baton Rouge General as well. New Orleans-Metairie, at roughly 971,000 residents, edges out Baton Rouge as the largest metro, and Lafayette and Shreveport-Bossier City follow.
Relocating, and the license you hold
GW frames its limits around applicants and has no published policy for an enrolled student who moves into Louisiana. For online students, GW's disclosure pages go by where you live now, so relocating to Shreveport or Baton Rouge partway through is something to take to your program director first.
Louisiana's compact membership took effect July 1, 2019. As long as you still call Louisiana home, a Louisiana-issued multistate license covers practice in other compact states, and GW still wants an RN license valid wherever each rotation sits. Our RN license guide explains the details.
A willing Louisiana preceptor does not settle anything: the school needs LSBN approval first, and GW is missing from the Board's April 2026 list.
Why GW students with Louisiana ties choose us
If you are moving out of Louisiana before applying, or your address is changing during a GW program, we build the search around the state GW confirms for you. Your placement advisor matches each preceptor's license to that state, identifies the site's agreement signer and prepares a complete Site Prospector entry, so GW's review opens with everything it needs. Share your plans on the contact form.
Questions GW students ask
Why does GW's DNP disclosure say "not yet determined" for Louisiana?
GW's post-BSN DNP disclosure lists Louisiana, New York and several other states as not yet determined, while its MSN, certificate and midwifery pages say Louisiana does not meet requirements. GW gives no public reason for the difference. Either way, the State Authorizations page closes online admission to Louisiana applicants, so ask GW admissions directly.
Could GW be approved for Louisiana clinicals later?
GW's page says state authorization rules are always subject to change, and LSBN revises its approved list over time. Check the newest version of both before planning around Louisiana, and treat an answer from GW admissions as the deciding word for your application rather than an older page or a classmate's experience.
I live in Louisiana but could train in Texas or Arkansas. Does that help?
GW offers a train-elsewhere route only to New York applicants. Its Louisiana limit applies to applicants from the state wherever their clinicals would happen, and neighboring Mississippi sits on GW's restricted list too. If your address will change before you apply, discuss the timing with GW admissions first.
Do Louisiana's weekly faculty check-ins apply to GW students training in other states?
No. That LSBN rule governs out-of-state programs running precepted clinicals inside Louisiana. A GW student training elsewhere follows GW's own oversight, including the Clinical Experience Faculty assigned each term, plus whatever the host state itself requires. Louisiana's rule would come into play only if GW gained LSBN approval and placed students there.
Related pages
Last checked 2026-09-24
We check these pages against GW's Bulletin and GW Nursing's own program and clinical pages. Your course, CORE and GW's Clinical Placement Team have the final word.
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NURS 6230toNURS 6232, older-adult primary care for AGPCNP, psychiatric care for PMHNP - License, bio or CV and the site's agreement signatory ready for your CORE submission
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