Professional Licensure and State Authorization

A jurisdiction’s professional licensing boards often require applicants for licensure to meet multiple requirements, including specific educational requirements. An institution’s program might meet all of the educational requirements in one jurisdiction, but not another (for example, an applicant might need to complete an additional class).

Federal regulations (34 CFR 668.43(a)(5)) require James Madison University to disclose whether its licensure-related degree programs meet or do not meet U.S. jurisdictions’ (states and territories) educational requirements for licensure or if JMU has not yet determined the status. JMU must provide public disclosures and, when warranted, deliver an individualized personal disclosure to a current or prospective student. The office of Online Strategy maintains jurisdiction-by-jurisdiction information for current and prospective students on its state authorization web pages and manages the process of determining if an individualized disclosure is warranted and if so, ensuring that it is delivered to the individual. 

The primary purpose of this regulation is to avoid misrepresentation of an educational program: potential and current students should know in which U.S. states and territories, i.e., “locations,” their degree or certificate will or will not be recognized as meeting the degree or certificate requirement of a state’s professional licensing board.

See JMU's public disclosures at https://www.jmu.edu/online/state-authorization/student-policies/licensure.shtml#Index.