How to find a preceptor for your clinical rotation

When to start your search

Many schools ask students to secure a preceptor one to two terms before the clinical course begins. That lead time is there for good reasons: your faculty need to review and approve the preceptor, your school and the site need an affiliation agreement, and you need to finish the site’s onboarding before your first day. Starting early gives every one of those steps room to move at its own pace.

A simple rule works well: as soon as you know which clinical course comes next, read its requirements in your handbook and begin your search. If your program has several clinical courses, you can often ask one preceptor about more than one term, or line up the next preceptor while you are still in the current rotation.

What schools look for in a preceptor

Your faculty approve every preceptor, including the ones students find, so it helps to know their checklist before you ask anyone. Most schools look for:

• An active, unencumbered license in the state where your clinical hours will take place, not only in the state where the preceptor lives or trained.
• National board certification where the profession certifies, such as an NP certified in your population focus.
• Experience in the role, usually one to two years, so the preceptor is settled in practice and ready to teach.
• A specialty and patient population that match your course. NP students precept mainly with NPs in their population focus, and many programs also approve physicians or PAs for part of the hours.
• A setting that sees the kinds of patients and visits your course objectives call for, in person or by telehealth where your program allows.
• Time and interest in teaching, because a good preceptor explains their thinking, lets you take an active part and gives honest feedback.

Supervisor qualifications in other programs

Counseling, social work, behavior analysis and PA programs use their own titles and their own national rules. These are the main ones:

Where students look

The strongest leads usually come from people who already know your work. Start close to home and widen the circle:

• Your own clinical network: NPs, physicians and PAs you have worked beside as a nurse, and managers who know your practice.
• Past employers and the clinics or units where you trained before, which often welcome students they already know.
• Professional associations: state NP associations, specialty organizations and local chapters, including their meetings and conferences.
• Your school’s preceptor list or clinical placement office, which may know of sites with current agreements.
• Classmates and graduates of your program, who can tell you which preceptors enjoyed teaching students.
• Health systems’ student placement offices, which coordinate students across their clinics.
• Placement services that connect students with preceptors, if your school accepts placements arranged that way.

How to reach out

A short, professional message gets the best response. Clinicians are busy, so give them everything they need to say yes in one read. A phone call or a visit can follow once they reply.

A simple example: “Hello [name], I am a family nurse practitioner student looking for a preceptor for my primary care course, which runs from [start date] to [end date]. I need [number] clinical hours and can plan my days around your clinic schedule. My school provides a preceptor orientation, the evaluation forms and a faculty contact for any questions. Would you be open to a short call this week?” Fill in the brackets with your own details and keep the rest just as short.

1. 1Say who you areYour name, your program and your population focus or specialty, in the first line.
2. 2Give the course detailsThe course name, the start and end dates, and the hours you need.
3. 3Show what the school providesOrientation for the preceptor, the evaluation forms, a faculty contact, and what your school expects of a preceptor.
4. 4Make the next step easyAsk for a short call and offer two or three times, or invite them to reply with a good time.
5. 5Follow up onceIf you have not heard back in a reasonable time, send one polite follow-up, then move on to your next lead.

Once someone says yes

Move quickly while the conversation is fresh. Send a thank-you, then share what your school needs:

• Your school’s preceptor packet, which often includes a preceptor agreement or form and a statement of the preceptor’s responsibilities.
• A request for the preceptor’s CV or résumé, which your faculty review as part of approval.
• Their license number and board certification, so your school can verify both.
• The name and email of the person at the site who handles student agreements, such as a practice manager or administrator.
• Your proposed dates and schedule, so everyone works from the same plan.

Questions to ask at a first call

A short first call helps you both see whether the placement fits. Good questions include:

• Which days and hours could I be in clinic, and how do they fit your schedule?
• What patients and visit types do you see most often?
• How do you like students to present a patient to you?
• Will I be able to document in the electronic health record?
• Does the site have its own onboarding, such as a badge, EHR training or orientation modules?
• Who signs student agreements here, and has the site hosted students from my school before?
• Do you have time away planned during my course dates?

Keep a backup

Plans change: preceptors move to new practices, clinic schedules shift and sites update their student policies. Keeping a second option warm means a change never slows you down. When a second clinician shows interest, thank them and ask whether you may keep in touch for this or a later term.

If your plan changes, tell your clinical coordinator right away. NP programs keep a plan for finding new sites when a student’s site becomes unavailable, and your coordinator can help you move to your backup quickly.

Questions students ask