Immunizations and life-support cards TTUHSC expects before clinicals
Before you register, TTUHSC's Office of Institutional Health has to approve your immunization records: hepatitis B, MMR, varicella, influenza and a TB test every year. Every student also keeps BLS current, and each clinical track adds its own card before the first population-focus clinical course: ACLS for FNP and AGACNP, PALS for the pediatric NP tracks, NRP and EFM for nurse-midwifery.
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The requirements in one table
TTUHSC's list has two halves. Immunizations are cleared once before registration and then kept current, with TB screening repeated every year. Certifications depend on your track, and each one has to be in hand before the first population-focus clinical course, the point where precepted hours begin.
The table follows the 2026-27 Student Handbook's "SON Requirements" section and the MSN catalog.
| Requirement | Who needs it | Timing TTUHSC states |
|---|---|---|
| Hepatitis B series | All students | Approved by the Office of Institutional Health before registration |
| MMR | All students | Approved before registration |
| Varicella (two doses or a titer) | All students | Approved before registration |
| TB screening | All students | At entry and every year; a two-step skin test if none in the past 12 months |
| Influenza | All students | On the handbook's immunization list |
| COVID-19 | Only where a clinical partner requires it | Not a School of Nursing requirement |
| BLS | All students | Kept current; AHA recommended now, AHA only from May 1, 2027 |
| ACLS | FNP and AGACNP students (MSN, certificate, BSN to DNP FNP) | Before the first population-focus clinical course; current for NURS 6660, NURS 6541 and NURS 7660 |
| PALS | Pediatric Primary Care and Pediatric Acute Care NP students | Before the first population-focus clinical course |
| NRP and an EFM course | Nurse-Midwifery students (MSN and certificate) | Before the first population-focus clinical course |
Immunizations and the Office of Institutional Health
TTUHSC sends immunization records to its Office of Institutional Health, home of the Immunization Coordinator, and approval comes before registration. That order matters: an unfinished hepatitis B series or a missing varicella titer can hold up your courses, not only a rotation.
The hepatitis B series takes time to complete, so start early if your records have gaps. MMR and varicella sit beside it on the list, with two doses or a titer accepted for varicella, and influenza rounds it out.
TB is the item that recurs. TTUHSC asks for screening at entry and every year after, plus a two-step skin test if you have had none in the previous 12 months. Put the renewal date on the same calendar as your clinical terms, because a lapse partway through a practicum is an avoidable problem. The clearance steps that run alongside these records are covered in background checks and drug screens.
COVID-19 and exemptions: the site decides
The School of Nursing leaves COVID-19 off its own required list, but the handbook adds that clinical partners may require it. Graduate students arrange their own sites, so the answer can change from one rotation to the next: a small clinic may not ask, while the next hospital might.
Exemptions work the same way. TTUHSC's program pages warn that clinical sites may not accept a vaccination-exemption affidavit, which can leave a student unable to complete clinical rotations and "could delay or prevent clinical site placement and/or graduation." If you hold an exemption, raise it at the start of the preceptor search, when there is still room to choose a different facility.
An exemption TTUHSC has on file does not bind a clinical site. Ask each facility about its vaccine policy before you commit to it.
BLS for every student, and the 2027 change
Every TTUHSC nursing student keeps a current BLS card. The 2026-27 catalog accepts BLS from either the American Heart Association or the American Red Cross, then sets a cutoff: "Effective May 1, 2027 the School of Nursing will only accept American Heart Association BLS."
Some program pages, including the AGACNP page, already list AHA alone. The catalog is TTUHSC's stated official record, so Red Cross cards remain acceptable there until that date. If your card expires anywhere near May 2027, renewing through the American Heart Association satisfies both versions at once.
The Student Handbook points the same way, recommending AHA for all students. Where TTUHSC's sources differ, the catalog is the one it names as official, and your course faculty settle how a rule applies to your term. If you are unsure whether the card you hold will carry you through every clinical course, ask before the term begins rather than on the first shift.
Track cards: ACLS, PALS, NRP and EFM
ACLS belongs to the FNP and AGACNP tracks. The MSN catalog requires FNP students to hold it before the first population-focus clinical course, and it returns as a prerequisite: "ACLS must be current" for the FNP Practicum (NURS 6660) and, in the BSN to DNP FNP plan, for NURS 6541 and NURS 7660. A card that expires mid-program needs renewing before those courses; the FNP clinical courses guide shows where they fall.
PALS is the pediatric card. Both the Pediatric Primary Care and Pediatric Acute Care NP tracks require it before their first population-focus clinical course, as the pediatric NP clinical courses guide explains.
Nurse-midwifery students complete NRP and an electronic fetal monitoring (EFM) course before their first population-focus clinical course, alongside the one year of birth support experience that track requires. The nurse-midwifery practicums page walks through that sequence. The PMHNP entries reviewed here name no track-specific card, though BLS applies to everyone.
How we keep your file and your site in step
TTUHSC's staff and faculty approve every preceptor and facility; we make sure the placement we bring you fits the file you hold. Before proposing a site, we confirm what it asks of students, including its stance on COVID-19 vaccination and exemptions, so a mismatch shows up during the search rather than at onboarding.
That care is why TTUHSC students choose us. We find a preceptor near home who fits your course, prepare the preceptor's license, certification and practice details for the electronic preceptor agreement, and check your card expiration dates against the terms your hours fall in. When a TB result or card is set to lapse mid-rotation, you hear about it early enough to renew without losing clinical days, and if a preceptor steps away, our backup preceptor search starts at once. See when your first clinical course arrives, then use the form below to start.
Questions TTUHSC students ask
Does TTUHSC require the COVID-19 vaccine for nursing students?
Not as a School of Nursing rule. The Student Handbook leaves COVID-19 off the school's own list and notes that clinical partners may require it. Because graduate students arrange sites in their home areas, each facility's policy is what decides, so ask about it before you agree to a rotation there.
When do TTUHSC FNP students need ACLS?
Before the first population-focus clinical course, according to the 2026-27 MSN catalog. It must also be current for the FNP Practicum, and BSN to DNP FNP students need it current for Primary Care II and their FNP Practicum. Check the expiration date against your whole plan of study, not only the first course.
Can I use an American Red Cross BLS card at TTUHSC?
For now, the catalog accepts American Heart Association or American Red Cross BLS, but from May 1, 2027 the School of Nursing will accept only AHA cards. Some program pages already list AHA alone. If you are renewing soon, taking the AHA course removes any question.
Who reviews immunization records at TTUHSC?
The Office of Institutional Health, where the handbook places the Immunization Coordinator. Records need its approval before you register for courses. Keep your own copies of vaccine records, titers and TB results in one place, so you can answer a clinical facility's onboarding request the same day it arrives.
Do TTUHSC PMHNP students need ACLS or PALS?
TTUHSC's catalog and program pages tie ACLS to the FNP and AGACNP tracks and PALS to the pediatric NP tracks. The PMHNP entries name neither, while BLS applies to every student. A clinical site can still set expectations of its own, so confirm with your course faculty before a rotation begins.
Related pages
Last checked 2026-09-26
We check these pages against TTUHSC's catalog, Student Handbook, program pages and licensure disclosures. Your course faculty, your program director and the plan of study for your cohort have the final word.
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