LicensingAtlas is built to be cited. A single wrong fee or requirement would poison that trust, so every page follows the same discipline.
1. Official sources first
Facts — fees, required hours, exam rules, renewal cycles, continuing-education hours, issuing boards — come from the state board or agency that publishes them, read directly from its website or official documents. We do not paraphrase requirements from memory, from other websites, or from AI summaries.
2. Source-or-silence
If a specific fact cannot be confirmed from an official source, the page omits it rather than guessing. Every data-backed page names the exact official pages its facts came from, in a “Sources & verification” block at the bottom.
3. Dated, not just written
Requirements change. Every page records the date it was last verified against its sources, and that date drives the page’s freshness signal. Pages are re-checked on a schedule, and the date moves forward only when the facts are re-confirmed.
4. A reference, not advice
We state what a state requires, categorically. We do not give personalized legal or career advice, and we do not run quizzes that tell you which credential to pursue — that would be advice, not reference.
5. Providers are steps, never rankings
Some requirements are met through a training or exam-prep provider. When we link one, it is disclosed as an affiliate link and presented as a compliance step — never as a “best course,” never ranked, never reviewed. Our revenue comes from display advertising and disclosed affiliate links, never from lead generation or selling your information. See our affiliate disclosure .