The Kent State clinical placement process, from state check to final evaluation

How the Kent State graduate path is built

Kent State splits the work between you and the college. The MSN Student Handbook AY 2025-2026 makes identifying a qualified preceptor your job, treats the choice as shared among student, faculty and preceptor, and gives final approval to your practicum faculty and concentration coordinator. MSN, post-master's certificate and DNP students all work under that rule.

Think of the path as three phases. Eligibility checks come first and can be finished months ahead. The search and approval stretch follows, and most delays begin there. The term itself comes last, when hours, logs and evaluations run on fixed clocks. Each practicum course repeats phases two and three, so an AGACNP student with four practicums walks that loop four times.

Much of the fine print, the Graduate Student Guide for Practicum Placements among it, sits inside the GSN Canvas course. Because that course is behind login, this page tells you what lives there rather than quoting it.

Phase two: orientation, search and approval

You control this stretch least, so give it the most lead time. The agreement and faculty approval decide whether your hours count.

1. Attend the mandatory orientationYour concentration coordinator announces it, and it falls four to six months ahead of the opening practicum course. Our first practicum orientation plan turns that window into a monthly timeline.
2. Identify a preceptor and siteThe search is yours, with coordinator help during the semester before your first practicum. Our guide to finding your own preceptor shows how that support works.
3. Match Kent State's preceptor criteriaCheck each candidate against the baseline and concentration rules in Kent State preceptor requirements before sending a name for review.
4. Respect agency contact rulesSome agencies bar students from reaching preceptors directly. Read the instructions for no-direct-contact agencies in GSN Canvas before any outreach.
5. Confirm the affiliation agreementYour hours need a site covered by a current College of Nursing affiliation agreement. New agreements are negotiated by the college with the facility, and Kent State publishes no lead time.
6. Earn final approvalPracticum faculty and your concentration coordinator approve the preceptor and site. Practicum courses also need special approval before you can register.

During the term: logs, absences and evaluations

Once hours begin, three clocks run at once. Time logs and case logs go into Typhon within 15 days of each practicum day. An absence needs a makeup plan reported to both your preceptor and your faculty. A clinical incident needs an incident report filed as soon as possible.

At 75 practicum hours per credit, a 2-credit practicum means 150 hours, or about 10 contact hours a week across the semester. Your preceptor's schedule sets yours, so a lost week is hard to recover near the end of the term.

Evaluations close the course. Your preceptor submits the final evaluation in Typhon, and you evaluate both the preceptor and the site while faculty review the logs. Your preceptor's verdict goes on file without setting the course grade alone, while conduct failures at a practicum site can earn an F for the whole course.

Where the process usually stalls

Most delays come from steps that run on someone else's calendar. A new site's affiliation agreement is the biggest, because no lead time is published and your hours stay uncounted until it is current.

Concentration rules catch students next. A PMHNP student needs a psychotherapy-experienced mental health provider for Practicum I and a prescriber for Practicum II, so one preceptor rarely covers the sequence. An AGACNP final practicum spans two or three unfamiliar specialties of at least 50 hours each.

Compliance lapses are the quiet third. An immunization that expires mid-term halts your hours until it is renewed, even with an approved preceptor waiting.