Clarkson health and safety requirements in Qualified First/Verified
Clarkson College now tracks health and safety compliance in Qualified First/Verified, which took over from CastleBranch in mid-2026. You order your background check and any drug test there, upload immunizations, licenses and training, and meet an initial deadline each term; while you are out of compliance, clinical is off the table.
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From CastleBranch to Qualified First/Verified
Clarkson switched vendors in 2026. Its health and safety FAQ page carried the heading "CastleBranch (myCB) FAQs" in every archived copy through June 6, 2026, and by late September it read "Qualified First/Verified FAQs." The account setup page now says: "Students needing to complete health and safety requirements will be required to create an account in Qualified First/Verified."
Older documents still say CastleBranch, including the graduate handbooks from 2020 to 2022, the Graduate Nursing Resources page into July 2025 and the fee list in the 2025-26 catalog. Read those mentions as history. The setup page's web address still ends in "mycb-account-setup," a leftover from the old vendor.
The rule behind the platform lives in the catalog. Policy SW-7 in the 2026-27 catalog says students who fall out of health and safety compliance "will not be allowed to attend clinical."
How the platform works
Clarkson describes Qualified First/Verified as "a secure, online platform that allows students to order a background check, drug test (if required by your program), and Document Manager (to-do list)." Each program has its own package code, which Clarkson sends by email, and the link to the platform sits in MyCC, the student portal described on the student systems page. A 2026 user manual is posted on Clarkson's site.
Ordering opens after census day, which on the 2026-27 calendar falls on Aug. 31, 2026 for fall, Jan. 19, 2027 for spring and May 24, 2027 for summer. A name change has to be made in Qualified First/Verified and repeated on any other placement platform you use; the FAQ lists My Clinical Exchange, Clinicians Nexus and Exxat by way of example.
The checklist
Clarkson's health and safety pages list what the requirements can include. Your program's package decides the exact list, so work from your own Document Manager to-do list rather than a classmate's from a different program.
Items Clarkson's requirements can include
- Immunizations and titers
- A background check
- The Nebraska Child/Adult Abuse and Neglect Central Registry Check
- A drug test, where your program requires one
- American Heart Association BLS, plus ACLS or PALS where required
- "Licensure/Certification for RN, APRN & ARRT"
- A physical exam
- HIPAA training
- Bloodborne pathogen training
- Proof of health insurance
The license item matters twice for graduate students. Clarkson's MSN admission rule calls for an unencumbered RN license that is effective in your state of practice or wherever the clinical experience takes place, so make sure the license you upload covers your training state; the RN license guide explains the compact and the out-of-state cases.
Deadlines each term
Clarkson's setup page gives each term an initial compliance deadline: Jan. 30 in spring, May 30 in summer, Sept. 30 in fall. Those run separately from the agreement due dates on the clinical deadlines calendar, which come months earlier.
| Term | Classes begin | Census day (ordering opens after) | Initial deadline |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fall 2026 | Aug. 20, 2026 | Aug. 31, 2026 | Sept. 30, 2026 |
| Spring 2027 | Jan. 7, 2027 | Jan. 19, 2027 | Jan. 30, 2027 |
| Summer 2027 | May 13, 2027 | May 24, 2027 | May 30, 2027 |
Notice how tight spring and summer are: eleven days from census day to the spring deadline and six in summer (our count). The FAQ tells students who are struggling to meet a deadline to contact their program director or clinical administrator, and it is better to do that before the date than after.
What being out of compliance costs you
The consequence is immediate. Per Clarkson's FAQ, a student who is out of compliance is barred from classes, from registration and from clinical, and the online campus page adds that some programs may block access to certain Canvas courses for students who are non-compliant.
For an NP student that means missed clinical days in a course that expects half its hours by midterm. Put every expiry date, from BLS to your RN license, on your calendar before the term begins, so nothing lapses in the middle of a rotation.
An approved preceptor and a completed agreement do not override compliance: if Qualified First/Verified shows you out of compliance, clinical stops until it is fixed.
Health systems add onboarding of their own
Clarkson's package is the College's list; large sites keep their own. CHI Health's non-employee attestation for Nebraska covers a background check, a sex offender check, the Nebraska adult and child abuse check, TB testing, MMR, varicella, hepatitis B depending on the role, a drug screen and a flu shot. Clarkson's 2025 resources page added Iowa Mandatory Reporter training for everyone at CHI and Epic training for students placed at Nebraska Medicine, and Children's Nebraska lists prerequisite training on its own page.
Ask for a site's onboarding list as soon as it agrees to host you. Several of the systems Clarkson students use most take requests through a separate placement platform, and the My Clinical Exchange guide covers that route.
How we keep compliance from delaying your start
Clarkson students choose us for placements that begin on schedule. When we confirm a preceptor, we also ask the site what onboarding it requires beyond Clarkson's package, from system training to extra screenings, and give you that list with the site details so you can finish both before your first clinical day.
If a site's onboarding will take weeks, you know at the start and can weigh it against other options we have found. We line your start up with the calendar so the agreement, the compliance deadline and your first shift fall in the right order. See how it works for our full process, or use the form below.
Questions Clarkson students ask
Does Clarkson still use CastleBranch?
No. Clarkson moved to Qualified First/Verified in mid-2026: its FAQ page was still headed CastleBranch in June 2026 and carried the Qualified First/Verified name by September. Handbooks, resource pages and fee lists from 2025 and earlier mention CastleBranch because they predate the switch.
When is the Clarkson health and safety deadline for fall?
Sept. 30 is the initial fall deadline on Clarkson's Qualified First/Verified page, with Jan. 30 for spring and May 30 for summer. Ordering opens after census day, which was Aug. 31 in fall 2026, so the fall window runs about a month.
Can I do clinical hours while a document is waiting for review?
The published rule is simple: students out of compliance cannot attend clinical, under Policy SW-7 and the Qualified First/Verified FAQ. How a pending item is treated is a question for the Compliance office, so ask before your first scheduled day and warn your preceptor early if a review may hold you up.
Where do I find my Qualified First/Verified package code?
Clarkson emails each student the package code for their program, and the platform link sits in MyCC. The 2026 user manual on Clarkson's site walks through setting up the account. If the code has not arrived, ask the Compliance office.
Do I need the Nebraska abuse registry check if I live in another state?
It is on the list of items Clarkson's requirements can include, and your program's package decides whether it applies to you. Check your Document Manager to-do list, and ask the Compliance office if an item looks missing or unexpected for your program.
Related pages
Last checked 2026-09-27
We check these pages against Clarkson College's own catalog, program pages and published nursing documents. Your course faculty and Graduate Nursing advisor have the final word.
Clarkson asks you to find your preceptor. We make the search the easy part.
Tell us your Clarkson track, your city and your next clinical course. We line up preceptors who fit the NRS course and Clarkson's rules, gather the details the site and preceptor agreement asks for, and flag early whether the site needs a new affiliation agreement.
- Preceptors matched to the course: all-ages primary care for FNP, acute care units for AGACNP, psychiatric providers for PMHNP
- License, experience and site details checked against Clarkson's rules before the agreement is filed
- Every clinical course planned in sequence, close to home in a state where Clarkson's graduate nursing meets requirements
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