Rivier nursing accreditation: ACEN for the programs, NECHE for the university
Rivier University's nursing programs are accredited by ACEN, the Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing, and the university itself by NECHE, the New England Commission of Higher Education. ACEN's most recent decision for each Rivier nursing program is continuing accreditation. Here is what each body covers, and how accreditation connects to your certification exam and APRN license.
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What ACEN accredits at Rivier
ACEN accredits Rivier's nursing programs in Nashua at five levels, and its most recent decision for each is continuing accreditation. Rivier's Nursing & Health Professions department page lists them.
| Program level | Accreditor | Most recent decision |
|---|---|---|
| ASN | ACEN | Continuing accreditation |
| BSN | ACEN | Continuing accreditation |
| MSN | ACEN | Continuing accreditation |
| Post-master's certificate | ACEN | Continuing accreditation |
| DNP | ACEN | Continuing accreditation |
The listing runs by program level rather than by track. Rivier's master's tracks, the three NP tracks plus Nursing Education and Leadership, are part of its MSN program, and the FNP, PMHNP, AG-ACNP and Nursing Education certificates are its post-master's certificates.
Rivier reports the status, not a review calendar. For the dates of past or upcoming reviews, ask the Division of Nursing & Health Professions or look Rivier up in ACEN's own directory.
What continuing accreditation tells you
Continuing accreditation is the decision an accreditor reaches when a program that already holds accreditation is reviewed again. For you, it means Rivier's nursing programs came through their most recent ACEN review accredited. Keep a copy of the department page's accreditation statement with your program records, since certification and licensing applications can ask about your program long after you finish.
It says nothing, on its own, about clinical placements. Accreditation assigns no preceptors or sites. Under Rivier's graduate Practicum Placement Policy, identifying a qualified preceptor stays with the student, with faculty and the Clinical Practicum Coordinator helping and graduate faculty making the final call on each site. The finding your own preceptor guide covers what that asks of you.
NECHE covers the whole university
NECHE, the New England Commission of Higher Education, accredits Rivier University as an institution, and the 2026 program sheets name it. Where ACEN looks at the nursing programs, NECHE's accreditation covers Rivier as a whole, including courses outside nursing.
Both layers apply to the same program. The AG-ACNP plan in the 2025-26 catalog includes BUSS 559 Healthcare Finance, and the Leadership in Health Systems Management track mixes 14-week nursing courses with seven-week business courses. ACEN accredits the nursing program those courses belong to, and NECHE accredits the university that grants the degree. On a form, the two answer different questions: one asks about the college, the other about the nursing program. NECHE answers the first and ACEN the second.
ACEN, not CCNE
Rivier cites ACEN for nursing accreditation, and CCNE does not appear on its pages. When a form, employer or board application asks for your nursing program's accreditor, the answer is ACEN.
Job postings and certification forms sometimes ask for a program accredited by CCNE or ACEN. Rivier's programs meet the ACEN side of that line. List ACEN with Rivier University and the program level, and point to the department page if you are asked for proof.
The question also comes up in the preceptor search. A clinician deciding whether to take a student sometimes asks about the school, and the short, accurate answer is ACEN for nursing and NECHE for the university, with continuing accreditation as ACEN's latest decision.
Accreditation, certification and your APRN license
Accreditation is a gate for licensure. New Hampshire's APRN rule, Nur 302.04, asks for completion of an accredited graduate APRN program recognized by NCSBN in the specialty, followed by national certification from an NCSBN-recognized certifying body. Other states set their own terms, and each state's board decides eligibility for its own license.
The certification each Rivier track points to
- FNP: the national FNP exam, through AANP or ANCC according to the Handbook.
- PMHNP: the PMHNP-BC exam.
- AG-ACNP: AGACNP-BC, through AACN or ANCC according to the catalog.
- Nursing Education: the NLN's CNE exam, open to graduates after they finish the teaching experience it requires.
The RN license your practicum needs, and the New Hampshire APRN steps after graduation, are on the RN license page.
Where the New Hampshire Board of Nursing fits
The New Hampshire Board of Nursing plays a different role for graduate programs. OPLC lists post-licensure programs such as RN-BSN and RN-MSN among those the Board does not regulate or oversee, and the Board's program-approval chapter, Nur 600, covers RN and LPN programs. For NP graduates, New Hampshire looks to accreditation and national certification instead.
On the pre-licensure side, Rivier's Handbook says its undergraduate graduation requirements match those of the New Hampshire State Board of Nursing, and that graduates are prepared to take the NCLEX-RN in New Hampshire. Graduate students are prepared for the national certifying exams in their specialty.
Accreditation is not state acceptance or site access
Three separate things decide where and how you can train, and accreditation is only one of them. Rivier's State Guide is about enrollment: program by program, it marks the states Rivier can take students from, and it is an acceptance guide rather than a licensure determination. Rivier is also a member of NC-SARA, which concerns distance education across state lines.
Site access runs through contracts. Every placement needs an agreement between Rivier and the site, covered on affiliation agreements, and some health systems limit students to schools they already work with: Dartmouth Health's own page says it accepts students only from currently affiliated schools or programs.
How we put Rivier's standing to work for you
When a preceptor asks about the school, we answer with Rivier's own published facts: ACEN continuing accreditation at the program level, NECHE for the university, the track's practicum hours and what Rivier's Preceptor Request Form will ask of them. For the source, we point them to the Division's own page.
That, with a complete request package and a site in a state Rivier accepts, is how we move a preceptor from interested to approved with less back-and-forth. Graduate faculty make the final call; we make sure what reaches them is ready. Here is how our search runs, and the form below starts it.
Questions Rivier students ask
Is Rivier's nursing program ACEN or CCNE accredited?
ACEN. The Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing accredits Rivier's ASN, BSN, MSN, post-master's certificate and DNP programs in Nashua, and its most recent decision for each is continuing accreditation. Rivier cites ACEN only for nursing. The university as a whole is accredited by NECHE, the New England Commission of Higher Education.
Is Rivier's online FNP program accredited?
Yes. The FNP is a track within Rivier's MSN, and the FNP certificate is one of its post-master's certificates; ACEN accredits both levels, with continuing accreditation as the most recent decision. Graduates can sit for the national FNP certification exam through AANP or ANCC, which New Hampshire's APRN rule requires alongside an accredited program.
When is Rivier's next ACEN review?
Rivier reports its ACEN status, continuing accreditation for each program level, without a review calendar on its program pages. For the date of the most recent decision or the next scheduled review, ask the Division of Nursing & Health Professions or look up Rivier in ACEN's own directory of accredited programs.
Does the New Hampshire Board of Nursing approve Rivier's NP programs?
Not in the way it approves pre-licensure programs. OPLC lists post-licensure programs among those the Board does not regulate, and its program-approval chapter covers RN and LPN programs. For an APRN license, New Hampshire instead requires an accredited graduate program recognized by NCSBN in the specialty, national certification and a current RN license.
Is Rivier University regionally accredited?
Rivier University is accredited by NECHE, the New England Commission of Higher Education, the accreditor for colleges and universities in New England. That institutional accreditation sits alongside ACEN's accreditation of the nursing programs. Rivier's 2026 program sheets name NECHE, and the Nursing & Health Professions department page lists ACEN.
Related pages
Last checked 2026-09-26
We check these pages against Rivier's own Nursing Student Handbook, program sheets, catalog, academic calendar and State Guide. Your program of study, your course faculty, your Program Director and the Clinical Practicum Coordinator have the final word.
Rivier asks you to identify a qualified preceptor. We make that the easy part.
Tell us your Rivier track, where you live and which semester your next practicum starts. We find preceptors who meet your track's rules, check early whether the site can contract with Rivier, and prepare everything the Preceptor Request Form asks for, well ahead of August 1 and December 1.
- Preceptors matched to the track: an MD, DO or FNP in outpatient family practice for
NURS 511, a psychiatrist or PMH-certified NP forNURS 521, a hospitalist or intensivist forNURS 638P - Preceptor license, credentials and CV ready for the Preceptor Request Form, with the site's contact details for the contract
- In your own area, in New Hampshire or any state Rivier's State Guide accepts
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