Doing your UC clinicals in Kentucky
Kentucky is open to every UC nursing program, and Kentuckians can enroll in the acute care and certificate tracks UC keeps for tri-state residents. UC will consider a physician assistant preceptor here, and there's no extra UC form or supplemental background check. Two cautions: Norton Healthcare goes through your Clinical Site Coordinator (CSC) first, and Tennessee, over the southern line, is closed to UC.
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UC programs a Kentucky student can take
Kentucky residents can enroll in every UC nursing program, because Kentucky is one of the three states UC's residency-limited tracks accept.
| UC program | Kentucky clinicals | Kentucky note |
|---|---|---|
| Online MSN: FNP, AGPCNP, Nurse-Midwifery, WHNP, Nursing Education | Allowed | PA hours possible with CSC approval |
| FNP and PMHNP post-master's certificates | Allowed | Packet deadlines match the MSN |
| BSN-to-DNP tracks and post-MSN DNP | Allowed | Same rules as the MSN tracks |
| AGACNP: MSN, DNP, certificate | Open to Kentucky residents | Weekly labs in Cincinnati |
| AGPCNP and PNP-AC certificates | Open to Kentucky residents | Clinicals stay in the tri-state area |
| Online RN-to-BSN | Allowed | Kentucky RN license for non-compact preceptors |
Students near Bowling Green sometimes eye Nashville. UC allows no clinical activity in Tennessee, so keep your sites on the Kentucky side or in another open state.
What the Kentucky Board of Nursing expects
KBN says outright that programs based outside Kentucky don't need its approval, even with no Kentucky campus; its approval work covers prelicensure programs that start in the state. KRS 314.101 also exempts a nurse from elsewhere on a clinical rotation here, provided the school belongs to SARA or holds a license from Kentucky's postsecondary education council.
The licensing weight falls on your preceptor. For online MSN and DNP APRN programs, KBN expects anyone supervising students on Kentucky soil to carry unencumbered Kentucky RN and APRN licenses, though a compact-state resident can pair a multistate RN license with the Kentucky APRN one. UC's Preceptor Guide lets stricter state rules override its own, so list those licenses on the Preceptor Application.
An older rule, 201 KAR 20:062, says an APRN program secures its students' preceptors. Nothing we reviewed says it binds programs based elsewhere, so plan on UC's approach: you find the preceptor and your CSC vets them.
Who can precept a UC student in Kentucky
Kentucky makes UC's short list of physician assistant preceptor states. Each PA is weighed individually and the hours are capped; for nurse-midwifery students the cap is 20 hours, all in ANW8006 and only with program director approval. Ohio and Indiana don't get that option. The PA preceptor rules explain the limits.
AANP rates Kentucky reduced practice. Prescribing there runs on two collaborative agreements with a Kentucky physician practicing in a same or similar specialty: the CAPA-NS covers non-controlled drugs and the CAPA-CS controlled substances, and after four years either may be ended or exempted. We found no Kentucky incentive for NP preceptors: KBN's precepting credit form tells APRNs not to submit it.
Where Kentucky students look
Northern Kentucky belongs to the Cincinnati metro, and St. Elizabeth Healthcare lists UC among its eight partner nursing programs. NP students go through St. Elizabeth Physicians, which needs a contract separate from the hospital's, with Clinician Nexus onboarding at least 14 days before you start. The tri-state Kentucky and Indiana page covers the river crossings.
Louisville, Lexington and Bowling Green hold most of the rest, with UK HealthCare, UofL Health, Baptist Health and Norton Healthcare among the large systems. UC coordinates Norton directly, so tell your CSC before you contact anyone there. None of these names means a site has agreed to host UC students.
Licensing, and how we help
UC wants an RN license valid where you train. Kentucky has honored multistate licenses since January 19, 2018, so a Kentucky license or a compact license from your home state covers a Kentucky site, as the RN license guide explains. Kentucky hasn't enacted the APRN Compact.
We look for Kentucky preceptors who hold the licenses KBN expects and meet UC's rules, then help you finish the Preceptor Application before your packet deadline. UC approves the result.
Questions UC students ask
Can I ask a Norton Healthcare NP to precept me?
Not before your CSC knows. Norton is one of the systems UC wants to hear about first, because UC coordinates with it directly. Tell your CSC which Norton practice or clinician you have in mind and wait for the go-ahead before reaching out. Once cleared, the usual packet deadline and affiliation steps apply.
My preceptor lives in Ohio but works in Covington. Which licenses do they need?
KBN says a preceptor overseeing an online APRN student in Kentucky needs a Kentucky APRN license. Ohio is a compact state, so their multistate RN license handles the RN side, but the Kentucky APRN license is still required. List both on the Preceptor Application.
Do Kentucky clinicals need a supplemental background check?
Not for Kentucky itself: it isn't among the 18 states in UC's handbook that add a state check. If you live in Ohio, though, UC's fingerprint-based check still applies to you as an Ohio resident. A Kentucky site can also run its own onboarding screening, which is separate from UC's Critical Requirements.
Does 201 KAR 20:062 mean UC has to find my Kentucky preceptor?
Don't count on it. The rule says an APRN program secures preceptors, but the version we reviewed doesn't say it covers a program based in another state, and KBN says out-of-state programs don't need its approval. UC's rule stands: you find the preceptor, and your CSC can answer concerns.
Related pages
Last checked 2026-09-24
We check these pages against UC's own sources. Your Clinical Site Coordinator, your course faculty and UC's current documents have the final word.
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