NP Applicants: Evidence of Practice

If you are not a recent nursing graduate and CNO asks you to provide evidence of recent nursing practice, it must include:

• past position(s) in nursing (e.g., staff nurse, researcher, educational instructor)
• practice setting(s), as applicable (e.g., long-term care, acute care hospital, in-patient unit)
• patient population(s) (e.g., geriatrics, paediatrics)
• evidence of registration in the relevant jurisdiction(s)
• job description(s)

CNO will assess all information you provide to determine if you meet the evidence of practice requirement.

Nurse Practitioner applicants must meet the same evidence of practice requirement as other applicants, with one exception: they must demonstrate evidence of practice in an advanced practice nursing role.

This can be done by completing one of the following:

• meeting the educational requirement for registration as an NP in the requested specialty (Adult, Paediatrics or Primary Health Care) within the previous 3 years

or

• practising in a clinical NP role. This must have included direct interaction with client population(s) for each desired specialty certificate. The applicant must have used advanced nursing knowledge and decision-making skills in health assessment, diagnosis and therapeutics when treating those clients

or

• having an evaluation that the Registration Committee approves. You will be required to complete a supervised clinical practicum as an NP within your desired specialty. As well, you must successfully complete any additional training, experience, examinations or assessments the committee identifies.

For NP applicants, CNO considers if your recent nursing practice includes:

• clinical practice within your desired specialty

and

• a nursing role within that specialty that required you to use advanced knowledge and decision-making skills in assessment, diagnosis and therapeutics, when treating patients. 

START
Did you complete NP education that meets the nursing education requirement within the last 3 years?			YES	Requirement met
NO
Within the past 3 years, have you practised in a clinical NP role in the specialty in which you seek registration? Practical experience in a clinical NP role includes: direct interaction with client population(s) consistent with the specialty certificate for which you seek registion and using advanced nursing knowledge and decision-making skills in health assessment, diagnosis and therapeutics when treating those clients			YES	Requirement met
NO
Has CNO received other information about: your experience within the past 3 years your nursing education/other courses taken within the past 3 years as an NP in the specialty in which you seek registration, and determined it meets the evidence of practice requirement?			YES	Requirement met
NO		YES
Have you or will you return to another jurisdiction to practise as an NP in the specialty in which you seek registration?
NO
Will you complete additional education as an NP in the specialty in which you seek registration, as CNO directs?			YES	Requirement met
NO
Your application will be reviewed by the Registration Committee.

Additional education for meeting evidence of practice requirement 

Applicants who don't meet the evidence of practice requirement have the option to complete additional education.

NP applicants must complete a supervised clinical practice with a client population that is relevant to the desired NP specialty certificate (i.e., adult, paediatrics, and/or primary health care).

The supervised clinical practice must:

• be reflective of the NP role in Ontario
• include a client population relevant to the desired specialty certificate
• involve advanced knowledge and decision-making skills in health assessment, diagnosis and therapeutics when treating clients
• apply the NP core competencies
• be supervised by an NP

Once you complete the required education, your educational facility must send a document (e.g., transcript) to CNO confirming you have completed the supervised clinical practice. This should include an assessment of your practice applying the NP core competencies and achieving learning objectives. CNO must receive this information in a sealed envelope bearing the educational facility’s letterhead, seal or stamp.

Page last reviewed June 14, 2021