Clinical NP

Georgetown University is one school that I know who offer clinical placement. An initiative was approved that any school renewing its CCNE in 2020 will have to begin finding placement for its students. See link below. I mentioned this to one school I was applying to and they confirmed even though they don’t offer placement now, but will have to next year.

University of Southern California provides placement but $$$$.

Yes there are! Always pick a program that puts you in clinical rotations.

1 hour ago, traumaRUs said:

This does not mean that the SCHOOL must find your preceptors.

AACN has clarified this already, under the Executive Summary of Changes to 2018 CCNE standards:

"While the following statement is not new to the 2018 Standards, the elaboration to Key Element III-H specifically states, “Clinical practice experiences are provided for students in all programs, including those with distance education offerings.” Please note, this key element does not prohibit programs from allowing students to play an active role in identifying clinical practice experiences, but if a student is unable to find an appropriate clinical practice experience, the program is ultimately responsible for providing this."

Oregon Health & Science U and Seattle U both find preceptors for students to the best of my knowledge.

The reputable schools provide preceptors. I went to Hopkins and they took care of all that. All the Univ of California and California State Colleges and Universities do so as well. If a school does not find preceptors, that is a big red flag IMHO.

100% find a program that provides preceptors. It is an absolute joke that schools do not provide this. I attend a brick and mortar school and they do not. Trying to find a preceptor in an area oversaturated with NP, PA, and med students is a nightmare. I hand my school thousands of dollars while I do all the work trying to find something. It is a disgrace. In hindsight, I would NEVER attend a program that does not provide placement.

Seems like even reputable schools down in Texas don’t find placement for you. I’ve done research over several Texas universities. Moving across the nation for NP school isn’t an option either. This is discouraging!

I have mixed feelings on this. I was just accepted to a very reputable brick and mortar. They made it clear in my in person interview that they preferred I find my own and how did I feel about that? I prefer it. While I want my education from them, I live a bit away and work for a completely different hospital system that doesn’t provide that level of education. I have a good network. I researched who would be willing to work with me and how that paperwork would go, what kind of notification and response time was required, before I was even accepted.

I have already experienced the BSN “we do clinical placement for you” and I didn’t like it. I had no control over who I was learning from, my time, the specialty or the where. It was awful being controlled like that.

Now, if I really ran into trouble or needed help my program will help me. However, I prefer to learn within my current employer’s system because it is within that system I prefer to stay. They are also doing my tuition reimbursement. Thankfully my current employer’s system is wide and far reaching into the community with several hospitals, clinics and practices, so I have plenty to choose from.

Bottom line is that when it comes to graduate school, imho, you have no business applying if you do not have all of this very well thought out. Any program can work for you, but if you need to be hand held at the graduate level there may be a problem. There are exceptions to this based upon programs and specialties being more stringent than others. I, myself, prefer having a choice and being encouraged to take my own education by the horns so to speak. It is a golden opportunity to network on your terms at the same time you learn.

@ZenLover

I think most programs that secure clinical placements will allow for some flexibility for students to secure their own preceptors. My program, on paper, tells students not to find their own preceptors. But in practice some students still find their own, and the school will then vet the preceptors and sites. My program also takes our preferences into consideration (eg, practice setting and location). I actually don't want to stay in the system where I currently work and I also don't think I can learn as much. So it's good that my program is able to find a place that fits my needs.

I agree that prospective students need to do their research. Unfortunately some NP programs do mislead students into thinking that they provide preceptors.

@umbdude

You bring up good points. I think the other reason my perspective is so different is because while I live in a very populated area, it is not “over-saturated” with providers or schools churning out providers. I am, however, willing to move to a more remote area later as well. I think things maybe a little easier on the east coast than the west, with perhaps the exception of Florida. The area of the country and the caliber of the program will definitely change your experience. People say ”where you graduate from” doesn’t matter, but it does....maybe not as much as people personally knowing your work style/ethic, but at least as much.

At the end of the day there are a lot of factors to consider and it is a huge investment of time and money to pursue further education in this country.