Spring Arbor clinical systems

How a Spring Arbor clinical rotation comes together

Updated September 24, 2026 · Reviewed by the Spring Arbor Preceptor placement team

A preceptor you find in your home state, forms due weeks ahead, faculty approval, a four-day residency and a string of seven-week courses stand between you and your first clinical day. Each guide below takes one piece, names it the way SAU does, and says what SAU publishes and what it leaves to your program.

Find my preceptor Chat now

Get your placement plan

Tell us your Spring Arbor track and where you live. A placement advisor replies with what your preceptor and site need to look like for Spring Arbor to approve them.

How a Spring Arbor clinical rotation comes together. A preceptor you find in your home state, forms due weeks ahead, faculty approval, a four-day residency and a string of seven-week courses stand between you and — Every Spring Arbor nursing clinical system in one place: finding a preceptor, SAU's paperwork and approval, the residency, compliance, hours and each course.

Where to begin

Start with the placement process, which walks the whole path in order. Then read finding your own preceptor and the clinical paperwork guide, because those two decide whether your first clinical course starts on time.

If a date is already close, go straight to need a preceptor fast. If you are not sure your state is open to SAU nursing students, check state authorization first.

What these guides rely on

Each guide cites Spring Arbor's own pages: the online program pages, the FAQ, the state authorization page and the 2023-24 Graduate Catalog, which is the latest full graduate catalog SAU makes readable to the public. Where SAU's pages disagree or stay silent, the guide says so and tells you who at SAU to ask.

Placement and approval

Clinical placement processHow SAU online nursing students get from a first preceptor search to a first clinical day: who finds the site, who approves it, and what has to happen when.Finding your own preceptorSAU says online NP students choose their own preceptor in their home state. What that means day to day, how the wording changed, and the help SAU lists.Clinical partner networkSince 2026, SAU's FNP and PMHNP pages mention help securing placements and a clinical partner network. Which tracks carry the line and what it leaves out.Preceptor requirementsSAU preceptor rules by track: a certified NP, physician or PA for NP practicums, a master's-prepared nurse too for NUR 780B, and what SAU leaves unpublished.Clinical paperwork and the four-week ruleThe clinical agreement, affiliation and preceptor verification forms in SAU's catalog, the four-week deadline, and what to gather before you seek signatures.Affiliation agreementsHow to check whether a clinical site already has an affiliation agreement with SAU, why a missing one slows approval, and what to ask the site and program.Preceptor and site approvalSpring Arbor faculty approve every preceptor and site for every rotation. What they review, what follows approval, and what tends to hold a decision up.Clinical timelineWhen SAU online nursing students should start the preceptor search, how semesters and seven-week courses shape clinicals, and the lead times to plan around.Clinical hours at your employerSAU publishes no rule on doing clinical hours where you work. The general rules that still apply, and what to settle with your program and employer first.Asking a preceptorHow to ask a clinician to precept your SAU rotation: SAU's own search tips, what to put in the first message, and honest answers to what preceptors ask.State authorizationSAU's nursing programs aren't authorized in AL, AZ, LA or NY; Washington is residents only; the DNP page adds Mississippi. What that means for clinicals.Who to ask at SAUWhich SAU role handles which clinical question: School of Nursing, Health, and Sciences leaders, your faculty, your advisor and the Student Success Coach.

Residency, portal and logs

NUR 602R campus residencyNUR 602R is Spring Arbor's four-day campus residency. When it falls, what the head-to-toe check-off covers, and why you must pass it before clinicals.MySAU, Brightspace and SAU emailWhere Spring Arbor's MySAU Portal, Brightspace (D2L) and SAU email fit into your clinical courses, and why some SAU pages still say Blackboard.The 7-1-7 scheduleSpring Arbor's 7-1-7 format means one seven-week course at a time with a week off between. Here is how practicum courses run alongside that rhythm.Clinical hour logsHow Spring Arbor counts a clinical hour, where students report logging hours (Typhon), and how to keep a log that holds up to a late-program audit.Clinical evaluations and gradingHow SAU clinical faculty oversee your preceptor-led practicum, what they send your preceptor, and how Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory grades and repeats work.

Clearance and compliance

Clinical compliance checklistEverything Spring Arbor asks you to clear before a practicum: RN license, insurance, background check, drug test, CPR, TB, immunizations and HIPAA training.Background check and drug testSpring Arbor asks for a federal-level background check and a drug test before your first practicum, then every year. What is published and what to ask.Student liability insuranceSpring Arbor's catalog asks graduate nursing students to carry their own liability insurance for the whole enrollment. What to check before you buy.Immunizations, TB and trainingWhat Spring Arbor asks for before clinicals on TB testing, immunizations, titers, health insurance, OSHA and HIPAA training, and what it leaves unnamed.RN license for clinicalsSpring Arbor asks for an unrestricted RN license in your state of practice. What that means for your clinical state, compact licenses and moving mid-program.

Courses and hours

Clinical hours by trackClinical hours for every Spring Arbor online nursing track, from the FNP's 625 to the 125-hour NUR 780B, with course numbers and where SAU's pages disagree.Clinical prerequisitesThe four courses Spring Arbor's 2023-24 catalog puts before any practicum, the extra gates for NUR 780M and 780K, PMC rules and the open NUR 628 question.NUR 680: FNP and AGPCNP practicumNUR 680 at Spring Arbor: the FNP 2/4/4 and AGPCNP 2/2/4 credit splits in the 2023-24 catalog, who may precept, and the 680N and 680G certificate versions.NUR 780M: PMHNP practicumNUR 780M, Spring Arbor's PMHNP practicum: two semesters toward 500 hours in the 2023-24 catalog, the several placements SAU asks for, and NUR 770M.NUR 780K: PNP-PC practicumNUR 780K, Spring Arbor's PNP-PC practicum: two semesters toward 500 hours in the 2023-24 catalog, preceptors within PNP scope, and the NUR 702 gate.NUR 780B: EDU/MBA practicumNUR 780B at Spring Arbor: 125 direct-care hours for Nurse Educator and MSN/MBA students, who may precept, and why the 2023-24 catalog does not list it.NUR 660: Nurse Educator internshipNUR 660 at Spring Arbor: 150 internship hours in the 2023-24 catalog (50 direct care, 100 in education), its prerequisites, and what SAU leaves unclear.NUR 880: DNP practicum hoursNUR 880 at Spring Arbor: how the online DNP reaches 1,000 post-baccalaureate hours, who takes the three 1-credit courses, and what the live page leaves out.PMC hour transferWhich earlier clinical hours count toward a Spring Arbor post-master's certificate: a 125-hour cap, up to 375 for AGNP-to-FNP, and none for Nurse Educator.

FAQ

Questions Spring Arbor students ask

Why do some guides cite the 2023-24 catalog?

The current Spring Arbor catalogs sit behind a human-verification screen, so the 2023-24 Graduate Catalog is the latest full graduate catalog that can be read and quoted. Course numbers and credit splits come from it. Check your current course list in Brightspace or with your advisor.

Which guide should I read first?

The placement process guide. It lays out the whole sequence from your first search to your first clinical day and links to the guide for each step, so you can see where you are and what comes next.

Do these guides replace my program's instructions?

No. They explain what Spring Arbor publishes. Your program director, advisor and the current catalog have the final word, and SAU's faculty approve every preceptor and site.

Last checked 2026-09-24

We check these pages against Spring Arbor's own published sources. SAU's nursing faculty and current catalog have the final word.

Placement desk

More preceptor leads, sooner, for your SAU clinicals.

Tell us your Spring Arbor track, where you live and when your clinical course starts. We look for a preceptor and site that fit SAU's rules for your track and help you get the paperwork in on time.

Matched to your track: FNP, AGPCNP, PMHNP, PNP, Nurse Educator or DNP
Clinical agreement, affiliation and preceptor verification forms ready early
In your home state, near where you live

Start your placement plan

A placement advisor replies with what an SAU-ready preceptor and site look like for you.