Choosing a state of licensure?

[BiffTheFlashRogers]

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Hey guys!

How does someone go about deciding which state to get their licensure in once they pass the NPTE? How difficult is it to get your license changed to another state? Can you only hold one license at a time? How often do people end up working at clinical sites they had spent time at? Do you need to decide on a state of licensure prior to receiving a job offer?

I have a few different ideas of what I would like to do after graduation. My number one goal would be to move to Boston and get a job in that area, but I am well aware of how difficult it is becoming to get jobs in major metropolitan areas. I will still give that a shot, but would not want to get my MA licensure, not get hired anywhere near Boston, and get stuck living in Worcester/Springfield or somewhere else like that (no offense to anyone from around there, just not my favorite places). Another part of me would love to move somewhere south (VA/DE/NC) because I know that there appears to be quite a bit of demand down there, am familiar with the area, absolutely hate winters, and would like to be relatively close to my parents when they retire and head south. Staying in the Syracuse area, where I will be attending school, is also something I would strongly consider. There are other options that interest me as well, but I basically just do not want to end up staying in the Albany are where I have lived my entire life.


I don't start school until June but have been thinking about this a lot lately. I'm sure I will figure more out about this in school and tried searching this forum, but at the moment I'm still in the dark. Hopefully someone here can shed some light on this topic.

Thanks!

 

[Apollo#1585...]

From what I've gathered it's not difficult its just time consuming in some states (paperwork wise, waiting for state to respond) Varies per state time wise and cost wise. usually a few hundred bucks that some companies will reimburse.

***NOT A DPT. just read a lot of forums on this place and that's what I've gathered from it.

 

[Bluecase]

If you pass the NPTE you can get any state license you just have to pay the fee and wait for the paperwork to go through (some states being way worse than others). You can hold multiple state licenses at the same time. Just keep them active by paying for them.

HOWEVER - some CEUs are only valid for one state and not others so you would potentially need an insane amount of continuing ed credits to keep all of the licenses happy in case you ever got audited - not a chance you want to take. Each state will ask what other states you hold licenses in and if you have ever lost your license for any reason when you apply and re-apply each cycle

 

[BiffTheFlashRogers]

Great, thank you both for your answers!

 

[truthseeker]

you can be licensed in as many states as you want. I worked in Kansas City so had to have licenses in both Kansas and Missouri since we had clinics in both states. I moved to MN and had to go through the bureaucratic process of getting letters of recommendation, transcripts etc . . . to get my license. I think some states allow reciprocity, i.e. just accepting that another state did the investigations necessary to prove that you are capable PT and essentially taking their word for it. MN is not one of those states.