Guides for your practicum
Clear answers on clinical hours, preceptors, paperwork and your first day, checked against the official standards, and how to use your OnPracticum portal.
Your practicum
What every placement involves, whatever your program.
- What is a practicum? Clinical placements explainedWhat a practicum, clinical rotation or field placement is in nursing, counseling, social work, ABA and PA programs, who is involved and how you are evaluated.8 min read
- How to find a preceptor for your clinical rotationWhen to start your preceptor search, what schools look for in a preceptor, where to look, how to reach out, and what to send once a clinician says yes.7 min read
- How many clinical hours you need, by programClinical hour minimums for NP, DNP, counseling, social work and behavior analysis students, what counts as an hour, and how to plan them across terms.6 min read
- Documents you need before clinicals startThe immunizations, TB screening, BLS card, background check, drug screen, HIPAA training and site onboarding clinical sites ask for, and how to stay organized.7 min read
- Clinical affiliation agreements: what students need to knowWhat a clinical affiliation agreement is, who signs it, what it usually covers, how long it can take, and what you can do to keep your placement moving.7 min read
- Your first clinical day: how to prepareHow to prepare for your first clinical day: what to confirm and bring, how to agree goals with your preceptor, present a patient with SNAPPS and log the day.8 min read
- Logging clinical hours and getting evaluations signedHow to log clinical hours, what each entry records, how preceptor sign-off works, and how to prepare for your midterm and final evaluations with confidence.7 min read
- Telehealth and virtual clinical hours: what countsWhether telehealth clinical hours count, which specialties suit virtual care, what makes a virtual hour count, and how to set up a private, HIPAA-ready space.6 min read
- Choosing a clinical site for your specialtyHow to choose a clinical site for your specialty: the right patients, enough volume, a preceptor with time to teach, and the settings that suit each program.6 min read
- Practicum glossary: the terms students hearPlain definitions of 40 practicum terms, from preceptor and affiliation agreement to IGRA, direct care hours, field education, SNAPPS and supervised fieldwork.7 min read
Your OnPracticum portal
Signing in, your placement order, your preceptor’s details, your Dropbox and your settings.
- Getting started with your OnPracticum portalHow to create your OnPracticum account from your link, sign in, use the four tabs, follow your next steps and get help, on a computer or on a phone.6 min read
- Your placement order, step by stepWhat your OnPracticum placement order shows, the eight steps from Booked to Completed, what each step means for you and what you do at each one along the way.6 min read
- Your preceptor’s details and your school’s preceptor formWhat your OnPracticum order shows about your preceptor at each step, every line your school’s preceptor form asks for, their documents and how to fill it in.6 min read
- Sharing paperwork in your OnPracticum DropboxHow to send practicum paperwork through your OnPracticum Dropbox: what to send, adding a note, files up to 5 MB, clear file names, team files and removing one.5 min read
- Your settings, your school portal login and signing inHow to update your details and program in OnPracticum Settings, add your school portal login, handle one-time codes, sign in and reset a forgotten password.5 min read