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The South Dakota Board of Nursing (phone: 605-362-2760, [email protected]), under the umbrella of the South Dakota Department of Health, grants approval for qualified registered nurses to work as advanced practice nurses (APN) in the following categories:
- Certified Nurse-Midwife (CNM)
- Certified Nurse Practitioner (CNP)
- Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist (CRNA)
- Clinical Nurse Specialist (CNS)
To be approved to work as an APN in South Dakota, you must hold a valid, unencumbered South Dakota RN license.
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- If you are a graduate of a Board-approved school of nursing, you must apply for licensure by examination by completing and submitting the RN Examination Application.
- If you hold a nursing school diploma from another state, territory or foreign country, and the Board determines the requirements from that nursing school are the same as the requirements of schools in South Dakota, you must apply for licensure by examination by completing and submitting the RN Examination Application.
- If you are an RN licensed to practice in another state, territory, or foreign country, you must apply for licensure by endorsement by completing and submitting the RN Nurse Licensure by Endorsement. *
*Nurse Licensure Compact
South Dakota is part of the Nurse Licensure Compact. The Compact offers practice privileges in all compact states for registered nurses licensed in any one of the compact states (Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Delaware, Idaho, Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Carolina, North Dakota, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, and Wisconsin). An RN license issued by a Compact state is valid for practice in all other Compact states, including South Dakota, unless it is clearly designated as being valid only in the state where it was issued.
Step 1. Get Your Graduate Degree
CNP and CNM Education Requirements
To work toward an APN license as either a CNP or CNM in South Dakota, you must complete an advanced practice nursing graduate program that is accredited by a nationally recognized accrediting agency approved by the United States Department of Education. The graduate program must specifically prepare you to function in the advanced practice role of either a nurse practitioner or a nurse midwife.
CNS Education Requirements
To work toward a CNS license in South Dakota, you must complete a graduate program in nursing accredited by a nationally recognized accrediting agency that is approved by the United States Department of Education. The graduate program must specifically prepare you to function in the clinical nurse specialist role, and it must include a clinical practicum that provides for integration of the following functions:
- Provide advanced nursing assessment, nursing interventions, and nursing care management in a clinical specialty area in a variety of settings by integrating education, research, consultation, and leadership in a clinical role
- Utilize advanced nursing skills and knowledge to coordinate and manage nursing care challenges in a number of settings, disciplines, and agencies and throughout the lifespan in a clinical specialty area
- Work in collaboration with a licensed physician to order and dispense medical equipment or therapeutic devices, or refer clients to other qualified licensed healthcare providers as needed
Any CNS who graduated after November 1, 1996, must show evidence of a graduate degree in nursing with a clinical component, as well as evidence of clinical practice totaling at least 520 hours in a 12-month period or an accumulation of a minimum of 1,040 hours in the last three years preceding licensure.
CRNA Education Requirements
To work toward a CRNA license in South Dakota, you must complete an approved program of nurse anesthesia accredited by the Council on Accreditation of Nurse Anesthesia Educational Programs.
Prescriptive Authority Requirements
- Certified nurse practitioners (CNPs) and certified nurse midwives (CNMs) in South Dakota may only prescribe medication within a collaborative agreement with a sponsoring physician. Prescriptive authority requires coursework in Advanced pharmacology including pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics, and pharmacotherapeutics.
CRNAs and CNSs are not granted prescriptive authority in South Dakota.
Step 2. Earn Your National Certification
After you complete your graduate education, you are then eligible to take an exam to become nationally certified in your general area of specialty:
- Certified Nurse-Midwife (CNM)
- Certified Nurse Practitioner (CNP)
- Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist (CRNA)
- Certified Nurse Specialist (CNS)
The South Dakota Board of Nursing recognizes the following national certifying bodies who grant certification in general areas of specialty, as well as patient population, setting, and disease type specialty:
- National Board of Certification and Recertification of Nurse Anesthetists
- Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist
- American Nurses Credentialing Center
- Family Nurse Practitioner
- Adult Nurse Practitioner
- School Nurse Practitioner
- Gerontological Nurse Practitioner
- Pediatric Nurse Practitioner
- Acute Care Nurse Practitioner
- Clinical Nurse Specialist (community health, child and adolescent psychiatric and mental health, adult psychiatric and mental health, home health, gerontology, and medical/surgical
- Pediatric Nursing Certification Board
- Pediatric Nurse Practitioner
- American Academy of Nurse Practitioners
- Adult-Gerontology Primary Care NP
- Adult Nurse Practitioner
- National Certification Corporation
- Women’s Health Care Nurse Practitioner
- Neonatal Nurse Practitioner
- American Association of Critical Care Nurses
- Clinical Nurse Specialist
- The American Midwifery Certification Board
- Certified Nurse-Midwife
Note: If you were originally licensed as either a CNP or a CNM in South Dakota before June 26, 1996 or as a CNS before July 1, 1996, and have never submitted certification evidence to the Board for licensure purposes, you are exempt from the certification requirement.
Step 3. Apply for Your Certificate
Certified Nurse-Midwife
The following steps are required for the completion of your South Dakota CNM application:
- Complete Form 1 of the Certified Nurse Midwife Licensure application.
- If you are licensed as an RN in a Compact state, you must provide a copy of the license with your application (a copy of your South Dakota RN license is not required).
- Complete the Transcript Request Form 2 (included in the application) and send it directly to the Registrar of the institution where you received your certified nurse-midwife graduate education. The transcript must include the degree awarded and the date, and it must be sent directly to the Board. Copies of transcripts are not accepted. Contact the Registrar’s office to determine if there are additional fees charged for this service.
- Complete the Education Verification Form 3 (included in the application), and send a copy of it to each college or university where you earned credit toward your graduate or post-graduate nursing degree. The Dean or Director of the program must then complete the remaining questions on the form verifying your education, and send the completed form directly to the Board.
- Complete the top section of the Certification Verification Form 4 (included in the application) and send it to the American Midwifery Certification Board (formerly known as the American College of Nurse Midwives). The American Midwifery Certification Board will then complete it and send it directly to the Board.
- If you intend to practice with an overlapping scope of advanced practice nursing and medical functions, you must apply for a collaborative agreement with a physician licensed in South Dakota by completing the Nurse-Midwife Collaborative Agreement found at the end of the application (if you are already certified as a CNM in South Dakota and want to apply for a Collaborative Agreement, complete this form). The Collaborative Agreement must be filed and approved by the Joint Board of Nursing & Medical and Osteopathic Examiners (Boards). Collaborative Agreement renewal is not required with licensure renewal and it remains in effect until a new Collaborative Agreement is submitted. The application must be signed by the collaborating physician(s).
Temporary CNM Permit
If you are applying for a temporary permit, you must also complete Form 5 (included in the application packet. If you expect to be employed as a CNM before your permanent license is issued by the Boards, a temporary permit is required.
Temporary permits cannot be renewed. They can only be issued if: (a) you are awaiting the results of your first national certification exam after the completion of your education program (temporary permit by examination); or (b) you are currently certified as a CNM in another state or territory (temporary permit by endorsement). A CNM working under a temporary permit may use the designation CNMapp.
Along with your CNM license application and temporary license application, you must either:
- Provide documentation from the American Midwifery Certification Board that you are either eligible to take the exam or are awaiting the results of your first exam (for licensure by examination applicants)
- Provide a copy of your current certificate card from the American Midwifery Certification Board (for licensure by endorsement applicants)
Submit all applicable documents, along with your completed and signed CNM application, and application fee payment by check or money order payable to the “South Dakota Board of Nursing ($100 for a standard application or $125 for a temporary permit) to the South Dakota Board of Nursing, 4305 South Louise Avenue, Suite 201, Sioux Falls, SD 57106-3115.
Certified Nurse Practitioner
The following steps are required for the completion of your South Dakota CNP application:
- Complete Form 1 of the Certified Nurse Practitioner application.
- If you are licensed as an RN in a Compact state, you must provide a copy of the license and include it with your application (a copy of your South Dakota RN license is not required).
- Complete the Transcript Request Form 2 (included in application) and send it directly to the Registrar of the institution where you received your APN graduate education. The transcript must include the degree awarded and the date, and it must be sent directly to the Board. Copies of transcripts are not accepted.
- Complete the Education Verification Form 3 (included in the application), and send a copy of it to each college or university where you earned credits toward your graduate or post-graduate nursing degree. The Dean or Director of the program must then complete the remaining questions verifying your education, and send the completed form directly to the Board.
- Complete the top section of the Certification Verification Form 4 (included in the application) and send it to the Board-approved national certification organization where you obtained your national certification (Board-approved certification organizations include: the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners, the American Nurses Credentialing Center, the National Certification for Obstetrics, Gynecology and Neonatal Nursing Specialties, and the Pediatric Nursing Certification Board). The organization must then complete it and send it directly to the Board.
- If you intend to practice with overlapping scope of advanced practice nursing and medical functions, you must apply for a collaborative agreement with a physician licensed in South Dakota by completing the Nurse Practitioner Collaborative Agreement found at the end of the application (if you are already certified as a CNP in South Dakota and want to apply for a Collaborative Agreement, complete this form). The Collaborative Agreement must be filed and approved by the Joint Board of Nursing & Medical and Osteopathic Examiners (Boards). Collaborative Agreement renewal is not required with licensure renewal and it remains in effect until a new Collaborative Agreement is submitted. The collaborating physician(s) must sign the application.
Temporary CNP Permit
If you are applying for a temporary permit, you must also complete Form 5 (included in the application). If you expect to be employed as a CNP before your permanent license is issued by the Boards, a temporary permit is required.
Temporary permits cannot be renewed. They can only be issued if: (a) you are awaiting the results of your first national certification exam after the completion of your education program (temporary permit by examination); or (b) you are currently certified as a CNP in another state or territory (temporary permit by endorsement). A CNP working under a temporary permit may use the designation CNPapp.
Along with your CNP license application and temporary license application, you must either:
- Provide documentation from a Board-approved certification organization that you are either eligible to take the exam or are awaiting the results of your first exam (for licensure by examination applicants)
- Provide a copy of your current certificate card from the appropriate Board-approved certification organization (for licensure by endorsement applicants)
Submit all applicable documents, along with your completed and signed CNP application, and application fee payment by check or money order payable to the “South Dakota Board of Nursing ($100 for a standard application or $125 for a temporary permit) to the South Dakota Board of Nursing, 4305 South Louise Avenue, Suite 201, Sioux Falls, SD 57106-3115.
Clinical Nurse Specialist and Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist
The following steps are required for the completion of your South Dakota CNS or CRNA application:
- Complete Form 1 of the Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist and Clinical Nurse Specialist application.
- If you are licensed as an RN in a Compact state, you must provide a copy of the license and include it with your application (a copy of your South Dakota RN license is not required).
- Complete the Transcript Request Form 2 (included in your application) and send it directly to the Registrar of the institution where you received your graduate education. The transcript must include the degree awarded and the date, and it must be sent directly to the Board. Copies of transcripts are not accepted. Contact the Registrar’s office to determine if there are additional fees charged for this service.
- Complete the Education Verification Form 3 (included in your application), and send a copy of it to each college or university where you earned credit toward your graduate or post-graduate nursing degree. The Dean or Director of the program must then complete the remaining questions on the form verifying your education, and send the completed form directly to the Board.
- Complete the top section of the Certification Verification Form 4 (included in your application), and send it to one of the Board-approved national certification organizations where you obtained your national certification (Board-approved certification organizations include: the National Board of Certification and Recertification of Nurse Anesthetists, the American Association of Critical Care Nurses (CCNS exam), the American Nurses Credentialing Center, and the National Certification Corporation for OB, GYN & Neonatal Nursing Specialties). The appropriate organization must then complete it and send it directly to the Board at. Note: Request for verification through the NCC and the ANCC can be done through their websites.
CNS and CRNA Temporary Permit
If you are applying for a temporary permit, you must also complete Form 5. If you expect to be employed as a CNS or CRNA before your permanent license is issued by the Boards, a temporary permit is required.
Temporary permits cannot be renewed. They can only be issued if: (a) you are awaiting the results of your first national certification exam after the completion of your education program (temporary permit by examination); or (b) you are currently certified as a CNS or CRNA in another state or territory (temporary permit by endorsement). A CNS working under a temporary permit may use the designation CNSapp, and a CRNA working under a temporary permit may use the designation CRNAapp.
Along with your CNS or CRNA license application and temporary license application, you must either:
- Provide documentation from a Board-approved certification organization or from the Dean/Director from your graduate education program that you are either eligible to take the exam or are awaiting the results of your first exam (for licensure by examination applicants)
- Provide a copy of your current certificate card from one of the Board-approved certification organizations (for licensure by endorsement applicants).
Submit all applicable documents, along with your completed and signed CNS/CRNA application, and application fee payment by check or money order payable to the “South Dakota Board of Nursing ($100 for a standard application or $125 for a temporary permit) to the South Dakota Board of Nursing, 4305 South Louise Avenue, Suite 201, Sioux Falls, SD 57106-3115.
CNS/CRNA Criminal Background Check Requirements
A Criminal Background Check is required for all CRNA and CNS applicants who do not hold a South Dakota RN license and are not completing an application for a South Dakota RN license.
In order to complete a Criminal Background Check, you must submit a full set of fingerprints with your completed application for a state and federal criminal background check. Contact the South Dakota Board of Nursing (605-362-2760) to request a Criminal Background Check packet.
Once you have received your fingerprint cards from the Board, you can contact your local law enforcement agency for fingerprinting. Once you have completed the fingerprinting process, send them, along with a check or money order in the amount of $43.25 made payable to the “South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation,” to the Board at: South Dakota Board of Nursing, 4305 South Louise Avenue, Suite 201, Sioux Falls, SD 57106-3115. Any fingerprint cards that are bent, folded, stained, smeared, stapled or otherwise tampered with will be rejected.
Your application for a temporary CRNA or CNS license will not be processed until the fingerprint cards are received. In addition, you will not receive a permanent license until the FBI has received your fingerprint results (approximately 12 weeks).
Collaborative Agreement Requirements for CNPs and CNMs
In order to enter into a collaborative agreement as a CNP or a CNM and begin performing an overlapping scope of advanced practice nursing and medical functions, including prescriptive authority, you must submit all collaborative agreements for review and approval from the Joint Board of Nursing & Medical and Osteopathic Examiners (Boards). You must also keep your current collaborative status agreement on file with the Boards at all times.
To maintain a collaborative agreement with a physician, you must collaborate by direct personal contact with a collaborating physician no less than twice each month, unless otherwise stated in your collaborative agreement. Direct personal contact means that both your and the physician must be on site and available for the purposes of collaboration. When the physician is not available for direct personal contact, he or she must be available by telecommunication.
In addition to establishing direct personal contact at least twice a month, the physician must be physically present at your practice location at least every 90 days, unless otherwise noted in the collaborative agreement. A secondary physician may be named in the collaborative agreement if the primary physician will be temporary unavailable to satisfy the direct personal contact requirements.
CNM Collaborative Agreement Scope
If you are a CNM performing under a Collaborative Agreement, your advanced practice nursing and medical functions may include:
- The management of the prenatal and postpartum of the mother and baby
- The management and direction of the birth
- Providing the appropriate health supervision during all phases of the reproductive lifespan, including family planning services, menopausal care, and cancer screening and prevention
- Prescribing appropriate medications and provisions of drug samples or a limited supply of appropriately labeled medications for no more than 30 days for those under the care of the CNM
Controlled Substances Requirements
As a CNP or CNM in South Dakota, you may only prescribe, dispense and administer controlled substances if you currently possess:
- A current collaborative authorizing prescriptive authority, with controlled substances, with a sponsoring physician
- A South Dakota Controlled Substances registration through the South Dakota Department of Health
- A Federal Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) registration
In addition, as a CNP or CNM in South Dakota, you may only prescribe controlled substances to any given patient for 30 days or less. You may seek two options for a controlled substance registration:
- Act as an agent of an institution using the institution’s DEA number to prescribe, dispense or administer controlled substances
- Seek independent state registration and Federal DEA registration in all schedules, using your own DEA number
All applications for a Controlled Substances Registration must be completed through the South Dakota Department of Health. Do not return any applications to the Board of Nursing.
Step 4. Renewing Your License
All South Dakota Advanced Practice Nurse licenses (CNM, CNP, CNS and CRNA) are renewed biennially. You can renew your APN license by completing the Advanced Practice Nurse License Renewal. Your APN license will expire on the same date as your South Dakota RN license. If you hold an RN license from a Compact state, your APN license will expire on your second birthday after the date of issuance of your APN license.
You must hold an active, unencumbered RN license to be eligible for renewal. Along with your completed application for renewal, you must provide:
- Written evidence of current certification with one of the national organizations
- A renewal fee of $70 (or $160 if you are renewing both your RN and APN licenses) as a check or money order made payable to the “South Dakota Board of Nursing”
- A copy of your RN license if you are licensed in one of the Compact states
All forms must be postmarked by the expiration date of your license, or it will lapse. If any information is incorrect, incomplete or illegible, your application renewal may be delayed.
Submit all applicable documents, along with your completed and signed APN renewal application and related fees to the Board at: South Dakota Board of Nursing, 4305 South Louise Avenue, Suite 201, Sioux Falls, SD 57106-3115.
APN License Inactivation
To inactivate your RN and/or APN license(s), you must complete page 5 of the Advanced Practice Nurse License Renewal and pay a fee of $10 as a check or money order payable to the “South Dakota Board of Nursing,” for each license you wish to make inactivate.
Send the fee and completed application to the South Dakota Board of Nursing, 4305 South Louise Avenue, Suite 201, Sioux Falls, SD 57106-3115.
Once the Board has received your application, you will receive notification of your inactive status.
APN License Reactivation after Inactivation
To apply for APN license reactivation after a period of inactivation, you must pay the renewal fee of $70 (or $160 if you are renewing both your RN and APN licenses) as a check or money order payable to the “South Dakota Board of Nursing” and complete the Reactivation of Inactive Advanced Practice Nurse Licensure. In addition, you must file evidence showing your employment status during the preceding 6 years (if your APN license has been inactive for more than 6 years, you must apply for reinstatement).
Send the fee, evidence of employment, and completed application to the South Dakota Board of Nursing, 4305 South Louise Avenue, Suite 201, Sioux Falls, SD 57106-3115.
Lapse and Reinstatement of APN License
If you fail to maintain an active status for your APN license, or you fail to secure an inactive status, your license will lapse. If you want to reinstate your lapsed license, you must submit a satisfactory explanation to the Board regarding your failure to renew. You must also pay the renewal fee of $260 for both RN and APN renewal ($90 RN renewal fee, $50 RN reinstatement fee, $70 APN renewal fee, and $50 APN reinstatement fee) or $120 for APN renewal ($70 APN renewal fee and $50 APN reinstatement fee) as a check or money order payable to the “South Dakota Board of Nursing”, and complete the Reinstatement for Lapsed Advanced Practice Nurse Licensure.
In addition, you must file evidence showing your employment status during the preceding 6 years and provide written evidence of current national certification. If you intend to perform the overlapping scope of advanced practice nursing and medical functions, you must also submit a new Collaborative Agreement.
Send the fee, evidence of employment, and completed application to the South Dakota Board of Nursing, 4305 South Louise Avenue, Suite 201, Sioux Falls, SD 57106-3115.
Advanced Practice Nurse Associations in South Dakota
There are a number of professional organizations that support APNs in South Dakota:
- South Dakota Nurses Association
- South Dakota Association of Nurse Anesthetists
- Nurse Practitioner Association of South Dakota
- South Dakota Emergency Nurses Association
South Dakota Nurse Practitioner Salary
On average, an NP in South Dakota earns $103,080 per year – a very good living in this state. What’s more, those in the top 10 percent report grossing $130,540 annually. So, there’s room to climb.
Registered Nurse Salary
RNs make more than South Dakota’s median household income: $60,960 per year. Those who have climbed to the top 10 percent report earnings of $79,900 per year or better. Both ends of the spectrum will produce a comfortable life in SD.
Nursing Instructors and Teachers Salary
If training the next generation of nurses appeals to you, consider a career as a nursing instructor. In SD, these professionals earn an average of$69,880 per year.
Nurse Administrator Salary
(Includes Nurse Managers, Directors, and Chief Nursing Officers)
Imagine yourself shifting into management? This decision will pay off. In SD, nurse administrators make an average of$107,850 a year. Work your way into the top 10 percent, and you’ll be earning more than $149,330 annually.
Nurse Anesthetists Salary
Nurse anesthetists are, arguably, the best-paid nursing professionals in SD. On average, anesthetists make $190,660 per year in this state. The top 10 percent make well over the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ reporting threshold of $208,000 per year. The sky’s the limit.
2020 US Bureau of Labor Statistics job market trends and salary figures for 1) Nurse Anesthetists, Nurse Practitioners, Nurse Midwives; 2) Medical and Health Services Managers (Nurse Administrators); 3) Registered Nurses; and 4) Postsecondary Nursing Instructors and Teachers reflect state data, not school-specific information. Conditions in your area may vary. 2019 US Census Bureau figures for state median household income provided for comparison. Data Accessed December 2021.