Taking UTA nursing programs from Utah
Utah residents can choose from two UTA nursing programs on the university's map: the RN-to-BSN, taught online, and the Nursing Administration MSN. Utah's rule for out-of-state nursing programs, Utah Admin. Code R156-31b-609, covers clinical and practicum experiences without separating pre-licensure from graduate programs, and any Utah preceptor working with such a program needs a license from Utah or from a compact state.
Looking for a nurse leader in Utah?
Tell us your Administration course and your area. A placement advisor replies with how a search near Salt Lake City, Provo, Ogden, St. George or elsewhere would work.
Where Utah sits on UTA's map
Your MyMav mailing address decides which state UTA counts you in. UTA's map, checked September 23, 2026, shows:
| Program | Open to Utah residents? | Clinical component |
|---|---|---|
| RN-to-BSN | Yes | Two workplace courses (NURS 3315, NURS 4455), two community courses (NURS 3325, NURS 4465), a capstone (NURS 4685); no preceptor |
| MSN Nursing Administration | Yes | 90 hours each in NURS 5339 and NURS 5340; 45 each in NURS 5341 and NURS 5342; senior nurse leaders |
| MSN Nursing Education | No | 135 precepted hours in NURS 5362 |
| NP tracks and post-master's NP certificates | No | Precepted hours, 720 in the FNP track |
| DNP | No | Practice hours and a project site |
Utah's rule R156-31b-609 for out-of-state programs
Nurse licensing in Utah runs through the Division of Professional Licensing (DOPL) and DOPL's Board of Nursing and Certified Nurse Midwives. R156-31b-609 makes an out-of-state program satisfy both the Division and the Board before any of its students gain clinical or practicum experience at a Utah agency or institution.
The program must be approved by its home-state board and accredited by a U.S. Department of Education-recognized nursing accreditor. Its faculty must be employed by the program, meet accreditor and home-state standards, be affiliated with an institution of higher education, and hold a Utah or compact-state license if supervising face to face. The program also needs a plan for selecting and supervising faculty or preceptors and clinical sites.
Each year by August 1, the program reports to the Board how many students it placed in Utah, attests that face-to-face faculty and preceptors hold Utah or compact licenses, and verifies its accreditation. Nothing in our research shows whether UTA has met these requirements for Utah. Before a Utah practicum, get UTA's answer from its state authorization office at NursingSOA@uta.edu.
Choosing a nurse leader for the Administration practicum
Senior nurse administrators, working inside a healthcare facility, are who UTA expects you to learn from in this practicum. Across the Salt Lake City, Provo-Orem-Lehi, Ogden and St. George metros, MountainStar Healthcare (part of HCA Healthcare), University of Utah Health and Intermountain Health illustrate that setting; whether any of them takes UTA students is a question for the system and for UTA.
The practicum courses cover different ground: roles of the nurse administrator in NURS 5339, a management seminar with a community partnering project in NURS 5340, financial management in NURS 5341 and nursing operations in NURS 5342. Because Utah's rule requires a good-standing license from Utah or a compact party state for any preceptor an out-of-state program relies on there, check a leader's license before asking UTA to review them. Details are on the Administration MSN page.
Confirm your Utah preceptor's license status early. Utah's license rule covers each and every preceptor working with an out-of-state program.
RN-to-BSN work and licensing in Utah
RN-to-BSN students do not need a preceptor. Two courses use your own workplace. For the two community courses, public health work through the Utah Department of Health and Human Services or a local agency is one route; RN-to-BSN practice experiences explains each.
Compact status is simple in Utah: the Nurse Licensure Compact took effect there on January 19, 2018, which means RN practice in Utah is covered by a multistate license issued by Utah or by a compact state such as Texas. That satisfies UTA's rule that you hold a license valid in the state of your clinical work, explained on RN license for clinicals.
Moving to Utah as a UTA NP or Education student
UTA's map does not list Utah for the NP tracks, NP certificates, DNP or Education MSN, though AANP rates Utah full practice and Utah signed the APRN Compact into law on March 24, 2022. That compact is not operating until seven states enact it. Completion, the MSN handbook says, may only occur in a state where the college can operate. Students who relocate to one that isn't approved risk a delayed or denied placement, being required to do clinicals in Texas or an approved state, withdrawal, or not finishing the degree. Email NursingSOA@uta.edu before the move; out-of-state clinicals has the detail.
Why Utah Administration students choose us
Our Utah searches are built around R156-31b-609. We look for nurse leaders whose licenses satisfy Utah's preceptor rule and whose roles fit your Administration course, confirm NursingSOA@uta.edu's answer on the rule before anyone is contacted, and prepare the details UTA's clinical team reviews. If a preceptor steps away, we pick the search back up. UTA approves the preceptor and site on a request that is ready for it. Tell us your course.
Questions UTA students ask
Do graduate practicums fall under Utah's out-of-state program rule?
R156-31b-609 applies whenever an out-of-state program sends students to a Utah agency or institution for clinical or practicum experience, and graduate programs are treated no differently from pre-licensure ones. Whether UTA has satisfied the Division and Board for Utah placements is not something our research shows, so ask NursingSOA@uta.edu.
Does my Administration preceptor in Utah need a license?
Under Utah's rule, any preceptor who works with an out-of-state program's students in Utah must hold a good-standing license issued by Utah or by a party state of the Nurse Licensure Compact. An older UTA syllabus accepted Administration preceptors with a master's in nursing, healthcare administration or business. Where those point different ways, ask UTA before you ask the leader.
Can I move to Utah partway through UTA's FNP program?
Utah is not listed for any NP track on UTA's map, so the handbook's unapproved-state rule applies to you there, and Utah's full practice environment for NPs does not change UTA's list. Write to NursingSOA@uta.edu before signing a lease or accepting a job, and ask where your remaining FNP clinicals could happen.
What yearly report does Utah expect from an out-of-state program?
The Board receives it by August 1 each year from any out-of-state program with students in Utah. The report counts the students placed in Utah facilities, confirms current accreditation, and attests that every face-to-face clinical faculty member and preceptor holds a Utah or compact license. That is the school's filing, not yours.
Related pages
Last checked 2026-09-23
We check these pages against UTA's own sources. UTA's current handbook and your course faculty have the final word.
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- Matched to your track's population and setting
- Paperwork prepared the way UTA's clinical team expects it
- In person near you, or a virtual option where your course allows it
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