Spring Arbor MSN/MBA: a preceptor for the 125-hour practicum
Spring Arbor's online MSN/MBA carries one clinical requirement: 125 direct-care hours in NUR 780B, the practicum it shares with the Nurse Educator track. You arrange a local preceptor, who may be an NP, physician, PA or master's-prepared specialty nurse, and program faculty approve them. The practicum is newer than the 2023-24 catalog, which listed no clinical course for this degree.
Find your NUR 780B preceptor
Tell us your practicum term and location, and a placement advisor will look for a direct-care preceptor who fits SAU's list.
01The dual degree at a glance
The dual degree runs 61 credits on SAU's current page, with 125 clinical hours, six intakes a year and a timeline of two years and ten months. Like the other MSN tracks, it includes one four-day campus residency in the second year. Featured MBA courses include MBA 617 Leadership in Business, MBA 631 Accounting for Managers and MBA 661 Marketing for Managers, and the FAQ lists seven concentrations on the business side, Healthcare Administration among them.
SAU's MSN program guide says the degree prepares graduates for the AONL Certified Nurse Manager exam, the ANCC Nurse Executive exam, or both. It is also SAU's only leadership option at the master's level; there is no stand-alone nursing leadership MSN.
| Item | 2023-24 Graduate Catalog | Current program page |
|---|---|---|
| Credits | 63 (27 nursing foundation plus 36 MBA) | 61 |
| Clinical course | None listed | NUR 780B, 125 direct-care hours |
| Residency | NUR 602R in the nursing foundation | One four-day campus residency in year two |
| Length | Not stated | Two years and ten months |
02Why a business degree has a direct-care practicum
The course is titled the EDU/MBA Clinical Practicum, and SAU describes it the same way for both tracks that use it: 125 hours in a direct care setting, arranged with a local preceptor whom program faculty approve, with regular contact from SAU clinical faculty who oversee the experience. Nothing on the MSN/MBA page frames it as management shadowing, so plan on patient-facing time.
Because the 2023-24 catalog showed no clinical course for this degree, graduates from a few years ago may tell you there is none. Go by the current page and your Brightspace course list. The NUR 780B practicum page covers objectives, timing and faculty contact for both the MBA and educator versions.
03Who can precept NUR 780B for MSN/MBA students
SAU's live wording opens NUR 780B to certified NPs, physicians and PAs, and also to a master's-prepared nurse working in a specialty field. That fourth option is the one many MSN/MBA students can lean on, since MSN-prepared nurses work in a wide range of specialty units and clinics.
What SAU doesn't publish matters as much. There is no stated minimum of years in practice, no rule on whether a preceptor can be your own manager or colleague, and no limit on telehealth. Ask faculty those questions before you secure a yes. The preceptor requirements page sets the tracks side by side, and the employer clinical site page covers doing hours where you work.
After approval, faculty take over part of the communication: SAU's clinicals post describes them sending the preceptor the rotation's objectives and planned progression, then keeping in regular touch. Let your preceptor know to expect that, so the first message from SAU doesn't land unannounced.
04Before the practicum: prerequisites and residency
SAU's current pages attach four prerequisites to NUR 780B: the residency (NUR 602R), advanced health assessment (NUR 602), advanced pharmacology (NUR 618) and advanced pathophysiology (NUR 612). MSN/MBA students take the same clinical foundation courses as the NP tracks before the practicum opens.
Those four days on the Spring Arbor, Michigan campus fall in year two and end in a head-to-toe check-off tied to the assessment course. Push the residency back and the practicum moves with it. The MSN residency page explains the visit, and the clinical compliance page covers the license, insurance, background check and health records you need before day one.
Numbers on this page mix SAU's live pages with the 2023-24 catalog; your Brightspace course list is the final word.
05SAU's help, and a partner line this track doesn't carry
SAU's 2026 promise to work with students on securing placements, with a clinical partner network behind it, is limited to the FNP and PMHNP pages. Neither the MSN/MBA page nor its RN-entry version mentions it, so plan around the FAQ's plain rule: you pick your own preceptor, in your home state.
SAU's standing help still counts. The SAU Online program director can share providers who volunteered to take SAU students, and SAU's clinicals post describes checking nearby sites for existing affiliation agreements, staff guidance with a document checklist, and a Student Success Coach. Questions the coach can't settle go to the leadership title covering this degree, the Director of DNP and MSN-EDU/MSN-MBA Programs. Ask early, since the coach can point you to the right person well before your practicum term.
06State notes for MSN/MBA students
MSN/MBA students face the same four exclusions as every SAU nursing track: Alabama, Arizona, Louisiana and New York. The practicum needs a current, unrestricted RN license in its state, and the FAQ assumes a preceptor near home. DC and the territories go unmentioned, which is worth a question before you plan hours there.
Washington needs care. SAU's footnote says its Washington approval covers the Master of Science in Nursing programs for Washington residents. Washington's board published a June 2026 list that names five SAU MSN tracks and one certificate but leaves out the MSN/MBA. If you live there, ask SAU to confirm in writing that NUR 780B can run in Washington before you recruit a preceptor. The state authorization page sets out the full list and its 2026 changes.
07Why MSN/MBA students choose us for NUR 780B
- Confirm the targetWe check your practicum term and home area and note which of SAU's four preceptor types you can realistically reach.
- Search direct-care settingsA placement advisor contacts master's-prepared specialty nurses, NPs, physicians and PAs near you who could supervise 125 hours.
- Ready the approval packetWe collect the preceptor's CV, license and credentials, site details and the agreement and verification forms for faculty review.
- Cover a withdrawalIf the preceptor drops out before you finish, we look for a replacement for the hours left.
Faculty rule on each preceptor and site, and the NUR 780B packet they review from us is complete. If you already have a willing preceptor in mind, we put our full effort into the paperwork instead of the search. Tell us your term through the form below.
Questions Spring Arbor students ask
Does the Spring Arbor MSN/MBA have clinical hours?
Yes. The current program page lists 125 clinical hours, completed in NUR 780B, a direct-care practicum with a local preceptor approved by program faculty. The 2023-24 catalog showed no clinical course for the MSN/MBA, so older advice may say otherwise. Check your own course list in Brightspace.
Can my nurse manager precept my MSN/MBA practicum?
Possibly. SAU accepts master's-prepared nurses working in a specialty field for this practicum, and the hours must be in direct care. SAU doesn't publish rules on precepting by your own supervisor or at your employer, so ask program faculty before you rely on it. They approve every preceptor.
Is NUR 780B about leadership or patient care?
SAU describes it as 125 hours in a direct care setting, the same wording used for the Nurse Educator track. No leadership-specific objectives are published. Your syllabus and program faculty will set the objectives, which faculty send to your preceptor once approved.
Does the RN-to-MSN/MBA need more clinical hours?
No. SAU's RN-to-MSN/MBA page lists 95 credits and the same 125 clinical hours. The residency moves to the third year for RN-entry students, so the practicum comes later in a longer program. Our RN-to-MSN page covers the bridge timing. Plan the search for the later years.
How long does the Spring Arbor MSN/MBA take?
The current page says two years and ten months, with six intakes a year and one four-day residency in year two. NUR 780B can't begin until the residency and the other prerequisites are passed, so the practicum falls in the later part of the program. Your advisor can place it on your plan of study.
Related pages
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.
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.