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Maryland Board of Nursing 
Patricia A. Noble, MSN, RN, Executive Director
Nancy D. Adams, MBA, RN, President

Nursing Licensure

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General Information || Endorsement  || Examination (NCLEX) || E-Mail Us

Preceptorship for Nursing Programs - Clinical Rotation 

Effective September 22, 2008, COMAR 10.27.01.01.C has been amended to allow out-of-state programs which are NOT substantially equivalent to the Maryland program to conduct their direct patient care clinical learning experiences either concurrently with or after the theoretical learning experience. Arranging clinical preceptorships must be approved by the Maryland Board of Nursing prior to implementation. 

Clinical experience includes, but is not limited to:

  1. Nursing care of families and clients throughout the life span in a variety of care settings that require nursing measures appropriate for either the maintenance or restoration of mental and physical health. 

  2. The following nursing foci: Medical, Gerontologic, Surgical,  Psychiatric, Pediatric, and Obstetrical

Contact Patricia Kennedy at 410-585-1903 or pkennedy@dhmh.state.md.us for questions and concerns

arrow bullet The Board can send applications for licensure only by US mail, not by e-mail. If you use e-mail or telephone to request an application, you need to include your name and mailing address.

General Licensure Information

arrow bullet Approved Refresher Courses [PDF]

arrow bullet How To Change From An Inactive License To An Active License: Information About Nursing Refresher Courses

arrow bullet Supplemental Renewal Form for Nurses [PDF] - also required when changing a license from Inactive to Active.

arrow bullet Renewal And Verification Information For Currently Licensed Registered And Practical Nurses

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Licensure By Endorsement  

arrow bullet Instruction Sheet  for RN/LPN licensure by Endorsement

arrow bullet Verification of Maryland Licensure to Another State (NURSYS)

arrow bullet Note for Temporary License Applicants

The Maryland Board requires applicants for Temporary Licenses to use a Permanent Mailing Address when completing the application for licensure. This is especially important for licensees who are not going to reside in Maryland for an extended period of time. 

arrow bullet Request an Application for Licensure by Endorsement

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Licensure By Exam (NCLEX)

Candidates for licensure who have been unsuccessful with the NCLEX licensure examination can schedule to re-take the examination in 45 days. [PDF]  A reschedule application is sent with all NCLEX failure results

For security reasons, the Examination Unit accepts only original documents from primary sources. The Examination Unit cannot use copies of documents for licensure.

Graduates of nursing schools in Puerto Rico or outside the United States must meet the Spoken English requirement. The Board of Nursing does not accept invalid Spoken English scores. The Educational Testing Service (ETS) has advised the Board that Test of Spoken English (TSE) scores are not valid after two years. ETS will send valid TSE scores to the Board upon the applicant’s request. 

Nurses Educated WITHIN the United States

arrow bullet NCLEX-PN Application Instructions For Graduates Of Schools Within The United States

arrow bullet NCLEX-RN Application Instructions  For Graduates Of Schools Within The United States

Nurses Educated OUTSIDE the United States

arrow bullet Outline of the licensure process for foreign educated nurses

arrow bullet International Application Instructions for Graduates of Schools Outside the United States

arrow bullet  PROCESO PARA OBTENER LA LICENCIA DE ENFERMERIA EN MARYLAND (RN o LPN)

arrow bullet Oral Proficiency Interview (ILA OPI): Frequently Asked Questions [PDF]

arrow bullet Oral Proficiency Interview (ILA OPI): Application form [PDF] New dates added through March 2010. 

arrow bullet Request an Application for Licensure by Exam

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E-Mail Us With Questions

Click on the e-mail address to send a message. If you use a web-based e-mail provider (i.e. Hotmail, Yahoo, Juno Webmail, etc.), copy and paste the e-mail address into the 'TO:' field of your service.

Questions about licensure by endorsement Cheryl Smith
cherylesmith@dhmh.state.md.us
Questions about licensure by exam or to request application materials to take the NCLEX Donna Aversa
daversa@dhmh.state.md.us

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Last update: November 20, 2009
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Copyright © 1999 - 2009 Maryland Board of Nursing

Martin O'Malley, Governor
Anthony Brown, Lt. Governor
John Colmers, Secretary

Department of Health & Mental Hygiene - www.dhmh.state.md.us