Create your account from your link
Your account starts with the link your placement manager sends you, usually by text. The link opens a short form called Create your account, and every line on it is required. It takes a few minutes, and it only needs to be done once, because the link works a single time.
- 1Open the linkTap or click the link your placement manager sent you. The form opens on the right of the page on a computer, and below the heading on a phone.
- 2Fill in each lineEnter your name, a personal email, your phone, the state and ZIP where you need your hours, your school and your program. If a line already shows your details, check that it is right.
- 3Choose a passwordPick a password of at least 8 characters, with a number or symbol. Select Show beside the box if you want to check what you typed.
- 4Select Create my accountYour account is set up and your portal opens right away, so you can look around straight after.
What the account form asks for
Each line helps your placement manager reach you and start your placement in the right place. Here is what to enter, and why it matters:
| Line on the form | What to enter |
|---|---|
| First name and last name | Your name as your school knows it, so your paperwork and your placement match. |
| Email address | A personal email, such as Gmail, Outlook or iCloud. It is your login and where you are reached, so a school address can’t be your login. |
| Phone number | A mobile number, for your placement manager and time-sensitive updates. |
| State for your hours | The state where you need to complete your clinical hours, chosen from the list. |
| ZIP code | The five-digit ZIP code of the area where you need your hours. |
| School | The name of your school. |
| Program | Your degree and specialty, for example MSN, Family Nurse Practitioner. |
| Password | At least 8 characters, with a number or symbol. You use it with your email every time you sign in. |
Signing in after that
Once your account exists, you sign in at onpracticum.com. The Student sign in card sits on the first screen of the page. Enter your login email, which is the personal email you chose on the form, and your password, then select Sign in. Your portal opens on the Overview.
If you can’t remember your password, select Forgot password? on the sign-in card. You enter the email or phone you sign in with, and an email arrives with a link to set a new one. When you are finished, Sign out sits at the top right of your portal, beside your name.
The top of your portal
The top of your portal welcomes you by name and shows your current placement at a glance. You see its hours, the city and state, the step it has reached and a bar of the eight steps, with the steps already done filled in. A line beside the welcome tells you where your order stands, and each step shows there the moment it happens.
Two buttons sit under the welcome: one takes you straight to your order, and Dropbox opens your paperwork. Before your first order is set up, the top tells you that your placement manager opens it once your details are confirmed, and your first order appears there as soon as they do.
The four tabs
Everything in your portal sits under four tabs. A small number beside a tab tells you how many items it holds, so you can see what needs you without opening each one.
| Tab | What you find there | The number beside it |
|---|---|---|
| Overview | Your next steps, your current placement and how to ask a question. | Steps still for you to do |
| Orders | Each placement order, its eight steps and your matched preceptor’s details. | Orders that are open |
| Dropbox | Paperwork you send and files your placement team places for you. | Files in your Dropbox |
| Settings | Your details, your program and your school portal login. | No number |
Your next steps on the Overview
The Overview opens first each time you sign in. Its main card, Your next steps, lists what is done and what is left, with a count of the steps already complete. Each step that needs you has a button that takes you to the right tab:
- Create your account: already done, with the email you signed in with.
- Add your school portal login: in Settings, so the team can work on your clinical application with you.
- Send your placement paperwork: in your Dropbox, such as affiliation forms, school approvals, your license and health records.
- Your preceptor match: your placement manager matches your preceptor, and once they do, the step shows their first name and facility.
Your placement card and getting help
Beside your next steps, the Your placement card shows your current order: its hours and place, the setting, the window for your hours and the order number, with the bar of eight steps underneath. Select Open your order to see everything about it on the Orders tab.
Questions about your placement have a simple home: reply to any message from your placement manager and they pick it right up. For practicum paperwork, use your Dropbox, and add a short note so the team knows what each file is for. If you need help while creating your account, reach out to the placement manager who shared your link with you.
Using your portal on a phone
Your portal works the same on a phone as on a computer, in your phone’s web browser, with nothing to install. On a phone, the four tabs sit along the bottom of the screen, where your thumb reaches them, and each keeps its icon and its number.
Cards stack one above the other on a narrow screen, and where the bar of eight steps is too narrow for every label, one line names your step instead, such as Step 3 of 8: Matched. Everything else, from sending a file to your Dropbox to opening your preceptor’s details, works in the same way.
Questions students ask
How do I create my OnPracticum account?
Open the link your placement manager sent you and fill in the Create your account form. Select Create my account, and your portal opens right away.
Can I use my school email as my login?
No. Your login email is also where you are reached, so it needs to be a personal email such as Gmail, Outlook or iCloud.
My link says it can’t be opened. What do I do?
The link works once, so if you have already created your account, select Sign in instead and use your email and password. If you haven’t, reach out to the placement manager who sent it.
Where do I sign in next time?
At onpracticum.com, on the Student sign in card, with your login email and password.
Why don’t I see an order yet?
Your placement manager opens your first order once your details are confirmed. It appears on your Overview and your Orders tab the moment they do.
Is there an app to download?
No download is needed. Your portal opens in your phone’s web browser, with the four tabs along the bottom of the screen.
How do I ask a question about my placement?
Reply to any message from your placement manager, and they pick it right up.