The US Department of Education requires that any academic program that leads to a license for a profession must provide direct disclosures to prospective and enrolled students about whether the program does or does not meet the education requirements for licensure in the student’s location (34 CFR 668.43(a)(5)(v).
Students located in any state or territory where a program does not meet licensure requirements must sign an attestation statement on their intent to seek licensure in a place where the program meets, OR the program cannot enroll the student. A direct disclosure can be shared via email in response to a prospective student inquiry and should be included in an acceptance email or welcome packet.
Sample Direct Disclosure Language:
(this can be used as a template to craft messages to students)
Online & On-campus Licensure or Certification Programs
University of Minnesota academic programs are designed to prepare students to apply for applicable licensure or certification in Minnesota. If you plan to pursue licensure or certification in a state other than Minnesota, please review state educational requirements for licensure and certification and state licensing board contact information on the UMN Online: Professional Licensing Boards website.
The University of Minnesota makes every effort to ensure state licensure and certification information is current; however, state requirements may change. Please contact the applicable licensing board(s) in the state where you may want to pursue licensure or certification before beginning an academic program to verify whether a program meets educational requirements for licensure or certification in the state.
The University of Minnesota generally does not offer licensure or certification programs to students located in a state where the program does not meet educational requirements to apply for licensure or certification unless the students sign an attestation statement before being admitted to the program.
Student Attestations for Professional Licensure Programs
Federal regulations require UMN to determine a student's location and ensure that the program they wish to enroll in meets the educational requirements for professional licensure or certification in that state. If the program does not meet the requirements for the state in which the student is located but intends to seek employment in a state for which the program satisfies the requirements, the regulations allow UMN to enroll them if they attest they understand the limitations of the academic program. To ensure compliance, UMN requires students to confirm their intended work location and complete an attestation process if they are in a state where the program does not meet licensure requirements. The attestation process is designed to help students make informed decisions about their education and career. The attestation also serves as a crucial tool to ensure that students engage in the decision-making process with full awareness and consent.
To view a list of UMN’s professional licensure programs and details about the states and territories where these programs meet the educational requirements for licensure or certification, please visit the University Directory of Program Licensure / Specialized Accreditation Information page.
When do these attestation instructions apply?
These instructions apply if:
- A prospective student seeking to enroll in a professional licensure or state certification program on or after July 1, 2024,
- A prospective student is located outside Minnesota (and not moving to Minnesota for classes),
- A prospective student is enrolling in a program that does not meet licensure requirements in their current state, but
- The prospective student intends to work in a state where the program does meet licensure requirements.
Why is completing an attestation necessary?
Students must complete an attestation to:
- Identify the state or territory where they plan to work after graduation.
- Acknowledge that their program may not meet the licensure or certification requirements in the state where they live at the time of application.
- Confirm the students intention to pursue employment in a state or territory where the program meets the licensure or certification requirements.
- Acknowledge that UMN has provided guidance on licensure or certification requirements.
Sample attestation statement
The Office of Distributed Learning provides the language in this example as guidance for academic units to use in crafting attestation statements that are appropriate for their contexts and record keeping procedures.