Shape your experience and create a foundation for success

It depends. You’ll likely want to find a placement in your community or within reasonable travel distance. Large urban cities and areas with multiple nursing programs can make this difficult. To that end, think broadly and creatively as you plan your search including having to travel or possibly spend the night.

Consider using social media to aid in your search. Join local nurse practitioner groups and state nursing associations on Facebook and LinkedIn and utilize direct messaging on both platforms. For PMHNPs, consider joining the local therapists’ groups in addition to NP groups. Not only will these be places to seek placements for your first clinical course, they will ultimately be great sources of referrals when you graduate.

You may also try visiting a potential site/preceptor. Approach this initial visit as an “interview” and an excellent opportunity to “sell” your abilities/interest for becoming a leader in the organization or nurse practitioner. 

Don’t forget to take advantage of professional relationships in the workplace, community groups, church, etc. to connect you to someone who may be able to serve as a preceptor or personally introduce you to someone who may be available.

Clinics, health departments, mobile clinics or private offices that offer primary care family practice or internal medicine are acceptable sites. There are other options, such as retail health, if at least 50% is primary care. For PMHNPs, consider outpatient clinics, integrated clinics, inpatient psychiatric facilities, corrections facilities, schools and drug and alcohol recovery centers. 

During the clinical courses, you need 150 each trimester. You should expect to spend one or two, 8-to-10-hour days at the site during each week of the term. 

The Clinical Coordination Team will meet with you to provide support and assistance in your search for clinical/practicum experiences. 

Yes, you can use the same preceptor. A request for placement must still be submitted in preparation for each trimester of clinical/practicum coursework. 

While we have a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with OhioHealth, OhioHealth also requires submission of a separate application and resume each term. Ohio students who list at least one specific preceptor they have been in contact with on their application have a higher chance of acceptance than those who do not.

The required organizational paperwork is available upon request by contacting the Clinical Coordination Team at clinicals@franklin.edu. 

We are affiliated at CVS Minute Clinic, though they require a separate application and have specific application submission windows. Visit their website to learn more.

You will want to identify an opportunity within your place of employment or in your community. Please review the DNP handbook has additional ideas. Once you identify a unit within your organization that is not your unit, where you can conduct your quality improvement project, consider who might be eligible and willing to be your preceptor. Someone with a master's or doctorate in a healthcare field within the organization, possibly the director of quality or the Chief Nursing Officer, a director on the unit or a DNP, could serve as your preceptor. You will need to speak with that person and obtain their contact email, phone number and address at the organization.

Practicum hours vary by the DNP course you are taking. Please refer to your DNP course syllabi to determine how many practicum hours in addition to hours included within the course are required. Practicum information by course is also included in the DNP handbook.  

Your Scholarly Project Advisor, your instructors and the Clinical Coordination Team will meet with you to provide support and assistance in your search for your practicum experiences. Your Scholarly Project Advisor, your instructors and the Clinical Coordination Team will meet with you to provide support and assistance in your search for your practicum experiences. 

While we have a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with OhioHealth, OhioHealth also requires that the student meet with Dr. Teresa Wood to receive initial approval to develop the project at the site. The student and Dr. Wood will determine who the preceptor will be for the student. Again, the quality improvement project may not be conducted on the unit where the student currently works. Once the Scholarly Project Proposal is reviewed by Franklin reviewers, the proposal is submitted for OhioHealth review and approval through the EBP Committee before proceeding with project initiation.