Lewis practicums outside Illinois
Lewis allows clinical placements beyond Illinois but cautions that Lewis itself, the host state or Illinois licensing boards may have to sign off first, and it enrolls online graduate nursing students from 18 jurisdictions only. Check your program's state table, talk to your advisor and your state board before you commit, and keep Lewis's alternative in mind: an Illinois RN license and a practicum in Illinois.
Plan a practicum in your state
Tell us your state, your Lewis track and your next practicum course.
Lewis's policy on placements beyond Illinois
The graduate catalog has a policy titled "Clinical, Practicum, Student Teaching, and Internship Placements Outside of Illinois." Under it, an out-of-state placement can require added approval from the university, the host state or Illinois licensing boards, and students are asked to consult an academic advisor in their program and the relevant licensing agencies before one begins.
The same policy adds that the learning experiences built into Lewis's graduation requirements align with Illinois academic experiences only. Read together, the message is that an out-of-state practicum is possible but not automatic, and the checking belongs before the semester, not in the middle of it.
Lewis publishes no state-by-state clinical rules, fees or contract terms. The rest of this page gathers what Lewis does publish and what the nearest state boards say.
The 18 jurisdictions Lewis enrolls from
Lewis's graduate nursing disclosures, created in March 2026 and linked from its accreditation and licensure page, mark enrollment "Yes" in the same 18 places for every graduate nursing program, sixteen states plus Washington, D.C., and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
- Illinois and its authorized neighbors: Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan and Wisconsin.
- Further away: Alabama, Connecticut, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Maine, Massachusetts, Mississippi, New Jersey, New Mexico, Rhode Island, Virginia, Washington and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
The other 34 states are marked "No", including Illinois's neighbors Iowa and Missouri, along with California, Florida, New York, Ohio and Texas. Lewis says it is a SARA member but gives no reason for those refusals. The state authorization page walks through each program's table.
When enrollment says Yes but licensure says No
Each NP table has a second column, "Meets Licensure Requirements," and it does not always agree with the first. Within the 18 enrollment jurisdictions, Lewis marks a few as not meeting licensure requirements, and the list depends on your route.
| Lewis route | Enrollment Yes but licensure No |
|---|---|
| MSN NP tracks and BSN to DNP NP tracks | Hawaii, Indiana, Massachusetts, Mississippi |
| Post-master's CAS NP certificates | Connecticut, Indiana, Massachusetts, Mississippi |
| School Nurse, MSN and non-degree | Every jurisdiction except Illinois |
| DNP, Nursing Education, Healthcare Systems Leadership, MSN/MBA | No licensure column: Lewis says these lead to no separate state license |
Hawaii and Connecticut flip between the certificate and MSN versions, with no explanation from Lewis. Each NP table also warns that licensure eligibility does not settle whether clinical rotations can happen in a given state. If your state sits on either list, raise it with graduate admissions before you enroll.
What neighboring state boards say
With no state rules from Lewis, the boards themselves are the next source. Here is what each neighboring board publishes about out-of-state programs and preceptors.
| State | Lewis NP MSN table | Board guidance on out-of-state programs |
|---|---|---|
| Indiana | Enrollment Yes; licensure No | The board approves programs leading to initial RN or LPN licensure and says it does not review graduate programs; no approval step for out-of-state graduate programs was found |
| Wisconsin | Enrollment Yes; licensure Yes | Out-of-state schools of nursing, graduate level included, must be approved by the Wisconsin Board of Nursing; preceptors need a Wisconsin license or privilege to practice there |
| Michigan | Enrollment Yes; licensure Yes | No rule found requiring out-of-state programs to seek approval before placing students; NP specialty certification requires a Michigan RN license |
| Kentucky | Enrollment Yes; licensure Yes | Out-of-state programs need no Kentucky board approval; faculty and preceptors overseeing online APRN students need Kentucky RN and APRN licenses, with faculty in compact states needing only the APRN license |
Board rules change, so treat this as a starting point and read the board's own page. The state guides for Indiana and Wisconsin go further, and every state guide is listed in one place.
The Illinois license option
Lewis's graduate FAQ offers out-of-state students a plain alternative: obtain an Illinois RN license and complete the practicum in Illinois. For nurses who live near the state line, in northwest Indiana or southern Wisconsin for example, that can be the simpler route.
Illinois sits outside the Nurse Licensure Compact. A multistate license issued by Indiana, Wisconsin or Kentucky therefore stops at the state line. Plan on the Illinois license itself before an Illinois agency clears you.
Lewis's RN license rules differ by program. MSN admission accepts a license from Illinois or from where you practice, BSN to DNP wants Illinois and/or the state of your practicum, and the DNP wants the residency state. The RN license page covers each.
One wrinkle: Illinois's Nurse Practice Act, at 225 ILCS 65/50-15(b)(10), permits nursing within a program of study by an RN licensed in another U.S. jurisdiction who is enrolled in a graduate nursing program in Illinois, under clinical supervision set by the school and the health care organization. Lewis's own guidance speaks only of the Illinois license, so ask the Clinical Placement Office before relying on that clause.
Planning an out-of-state practicum
- Read your route's tableFind your state in the disclosure for your exact route, MSN, CAS or BSN to DNP, and note both columns.
- Talk to Lewis firstRaise the placement with your academic advisor, as the catalog asks, and with graduate admissions if you have not enrolled yet.
- Read the state board's rulesLook for approval steps for out-of-state programs and license rules for preceptors.
- Match your license to the locationHold an RN license valid where the practicum happens, and look for a preceptor licensed in that state.
- Find the preceptor and siteIdentify someone whose practice fits the course, with the agency's agreement contact in hand, since a site new to Lewis will need an agreement.
- File and allow extra timeSubmit the contract request early enough for any state step on top of Lewis's review and the agency's onboarding.
Our placement desk searches wherever Lewis enrolls you and your license is valid, and flags any state rule that could slow a request. Start with your state and track.
Questions Lewis students ask
I live in Iowa or Missouri. Can I enroll in Lewis's online NP program?
Lewis's 2026 disclosures mark both states "No" for enrollment in every graduate nursing program. Its FAQ does describe an option for out-of-state students to get an Illinois license and complete the practicum in Illinois, but it does not say whether that opens enrollment from a state marked No. Ask graduate admissions before you apply.
What if I move to another state partway through the program?
No Lewis rule says you must report a move, yet the catalog puts the job of watching licensure requirements, and raising changes with Lewis, on you. A move can change which license your clinicals need and whether Lewis can enroll you there at all. Talk to your advisor before you move, not after.
Can I do a DNP residency outside Illinois?
The DNP asks for an RN license in the state where you plan the residency, which happens in person at the selected practice setting. Lewis's DNP disclosure lists enrollment authorization only, since the degree leads to no separate state license. The catalog's out-of-Illinois placement policy still applies, so clear the location with your advisor first.
Does a compact license let me do clinicals in Illinois?
No. Compact privileges reach only member states, and Illinois is not one, so a multistate license from any compact state does not cover Illinois clinicals. For an Illinois practicum, plan on an Illinois RN license, the route Lewis's FAQ describes for out-of-state students.
Why does Lewis mark my state Yes for enrollment but No for licensure?
Lewis gives no reasons. Its tables use a simple legend, Yes for approved and No for not approved, and a footnote warning that clinical rotations can face limits even where licensure is possible. If your state shows No for licensure, ask graduate admissions what it means for your license after graduation and for clinicals during the program.
Related pages
Last checked 2026-09-25
We check these pages against Lewis's own catalog, program pages and FAQ, its contract portal and Illinois law. Your course, your track coordinator and the Clinical Placement Office have the final word.
Lewis asks you to identify your preceptor. We do the searching.
Tell us your Lewis program, where you live and when your next practicum starts. We find preceptors near you who fit the course and prepare every detail the contract portal asks for, so your request goes in complete.
- Preceptors matched to the practicum: primary care for
NURS 61100andNURS 61800, acute care forNURS 62500, psychiatric care forNURS 63300 - Preceptor, license and site details ready for your preceptor contract request
- In your own community, anywhere Lewis enrolls you and your RN license is valid
Start your placement plan
Program, city and start date is all we need to begin.