Mississippi and USU's online FNP: the IHL question
USU's FNP and its other admitting nursing programs are open to Mississippi residents. In Mississippi, out-of-state nursing programs with clinicals in the state fall under Mississippi's Board of Trustees of State Institutions of Higher Learning, known as IHL, rather than the Board of Nursing. USU's published lists don't mention an IHL review, so it's a question to put to your coordinator early.
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Who oversees nursing programs in Mississippi
Mississippi splits the job. Licensing nurses and approving practical nursing programs is the Mississippi Board of Nursing's role; IHL sets the standards for RN degree programs. According to IHL, nursing programs from other states, undergraduate or graduate, that hold clinicals in Mississippi are expected to satisfy the state's standards.
For IHL, a clinical practicum held in Mississippi counts as physical presence. IHL Nursing Education has to review the program (IHL allows up to three months for this), and the program needs either SARA participation or non-SARA distance-education authorization through MCCA. IHL's procedures manual (August 2024, Appendix S) asks programs controlled from outside Mississippi to request the review at least four months before starting.
Where USU stands: it participates in NC-SARA, which covers the SARA piece. Mississippi isn't on USU's Board of Nursing list of states with extra filings or approvals on file, and our research found no record either way of an IHL review. Ask your Clinical Placement Coordinator before you commit to a site, ideally when you name preceptors six months out.
Programs and hours for Mississippi residents
| Program | Can Mississippians enroll? | Required hours |
|---|---|---|
| MSN Family Nurse Practitioner | Yes | 540, split 135 each over FNP592, FNP594, FNP596, FNP597 |
| MSN Nurse Educator | Yes | 100, MSN578 |
| MSN Health Care Leadership | Yes | 100, MSN587 |
| RN-to-BSN | Yes | 90, NUR378 and NUR499 |
| DNP | Yes | 1,000 post-baccalaureate |
IHL's expectations cover undergraduate and graduate programs alike, so an RN-to-BSN practicum or an MSN residency in Mississippi raises the same review question as the FNP. USU's general rules for clinicals outside your home state are on our out-of-state clinicals page.
A Mississippi-licensed physician behind every NP
Mississippi is reduced practice in AANP's rating, meaning an NP works in a board-approved collaboration with a Mississippi-licensed physician or dentist. USU doesn't list dentists among FNP preceptors. It accepts board-certified NPs and licensed MDs and DOs with a year's experience, and at least 135 of your 540 hours must be with an NP.
A preceptor's limit is two students at a time, NP students from other schools included, and hours logged while that ratio is exceeded don't count. Our preceptor requirements page has the full list. No Mississippi preceptor incentive appears in our research.
Licensing: IHL's standard and the compact
Under IHL's standards, anyone in an APRN clinical course after licensure, or in a graduate clinical course outside the APRN tracks, needs an unencumbered RN license covering the state that hosts their clinicals, a standard out-of-state programs must meet as well. USU asks for that too, plus liability insurance active in the same state.
Mississippi's Nurse Licensure Compact participation runs from January 19, 2018. Per the Board, a nurse with a compact state as primary state of residence who remains in good standing may practice in the other compact states, and no employer can require a license from a remote state. Mississippi hasn't enacted the APRN Compact. More on our license page.
Jackson, Gulfport-Biloxi, Hattiesburg and greater Memphis
Jackson, at roughly 610,000 people, is the largest metro wholly inside the state; Gulfport-Biloxi has roughly 431,000 and Hattiesburg roughly 158,000, while about 278,000 Mississippians live in the Memphis metro. Baptist Memorial Health Care, which is based in Memphis and runs Mississippi Baptist Medical Center in Jackson, is one major system; North Mississippi Health Services, the University of Mississippi Medical Center, Singing River Health System and Forrest Health are others. These names indicate where students search rather than where USU has seats, and inpatient hours never count.
Near Memphis, the city's own practices are in Tennessee, so hours there need USU's agreement, and USU can't promise a licensing board will accept hours done outside your state of residence. Plan to drive within Mississippi instead.
Why Mississippi students choose us
A placement advisor looks across your part of Mississippi for an NP or physician in an outpatient practice that suits your USU course, and helps you prepare the packet OFE and your Program Director review. When a preceptor pulls out, we go straight back to searching. IHL and other state reviews are USU's to handle, and USU approves every placement. Send us your course and town.
Questions USU students ask
Does the Mississippi Board of Nursing approve USU's FNP clinicals?
No. The Board of Nursing approves practical nursing programs, and RN degree programs fall under IHL standards, so IHL is the body that reviews out-of-state programs holding clinicals in Mississippi. USU's published state lists don't say whether USU has completed that review. Your Clinical Placement Coordinator is the person to ask.
How long does an IHL review of an out-of-state nursing program take?
IHL says up to three months, and its August 2024 procedures manual sets a four-month lead: a program run from outside Mississippi should request the review at least that far ahead of clinicals. The request is the program's job, not yours, but it's a reason to raise Mississippi with your coordinator well before USU's own six-month deadline for naming preceptors.
Can I take USU's RN-to-BSN from Mississippi?
Yes. Mississippi residents can take the RN-to-BSN, whose 90 practicum hours are split between NUR378 and NUR499 at a community agency serving vulnerable populations, under an agency leader you find. Your RN license has to be active in whatever state hosts the practicum. Details are on our RN-to-BSN practicum page.
Does a Mississippi clinic need a contract with USU before I start?
Yes, unless USU already has an Affiliation Agreement with it; your CPC checks that first. For a new agreement, OFE sends the contract straight to the site and handles the legal review, and USU says to allow at least 4 to 6 months. The agreement is separate from IHL's program review, so a signed contract doesn't settle the IHL question on its own.
Related pages
Last checked 2026-09-23
We check these pages against USU's own catalog, handbooks and disclosures. USU's current handbook and your Clinical Placement Coordinator have the final word.
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