The UTRGV clinical placement process, step by step

Q: Can I begin clinical hours before my UTRGV site is approved?

No. In NURS 6347 you may file the preceptor agreement once the course coordinator has approved the site, and the PMHNP syllabi say clinical cannot start until your clinical faculty clears it. For a brand-new site, the Clinical Request Form itself ties the start of clinical practice to the agreement being authorized. Build your start date around those approvals.

Updated September 27, 2026 · Reviewed by the UTRGV Preceptor placement team

UTRGV's current FNP syllabi have you arrange your own preceptor: pick from the approved list in Brightspace or request a new site, get the course coordinator's approval, and file the signed preceptor agreement at least a week before your first clinical day. PMHNP certificate students follow a parallel path in their home state, cleared by an assigned clinical faculty member. Both are below, with the DNP and BSN in brief.

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1 weekminimum lead time for the signed preceptor agreement and weekly time report in NURS 6347

8required clinical forms listed in the Spring 2026 NURS 6613 syllabus

Numbered steps. The FNP path, step by step: 1 Buy Typhon access; 2 Start with the approved list; 3 Or request a new site; 4 Get the site approved; 5 File the agreement a week ahead. — The FNP path, step by step: 1 Buy Typhon access; 2 Start with the approved list; 3 Or request a new site; 4 Get the site approved; 5 File the agreement a week ahead.

Who arranges the preceptor: what UTRGV publishes

For the FNP courses, UTRGV's newest public syllabi give the job to the student. The Spring 2026 NURS 6305 syllabus describes its clinical hours as arranged by the student and points to a list of approved preceptors kept in Brightspace, and NURS 6347 accepts only sites the university has approved. UTRGV's older Graduate Nursing Student Guide (2023-24, now archived) worded it more broadly, calling preceptor recruitment a task for "the faculty and the student".

The PMHNP certificate carries a real conflict. UTRGV's live flyer, dated June 2025, lists preceptor placement assistance without saying what it covers. The graduate FAQ, removed and last archived in May 2025, answered the placement question with a no: the student was to secure a site in their state of residence for UTRGV's clinical advisors to approve. The flyer is current, so ask the program what its assistance includes; our PMHNP assistance guide compares the two.

The DNP sources name no one as the finder of the project site; they list the forms the student hands in. The School assigns BSN students to clinical agencies.

Whichever path is yours, our placement desk finds a preceptor who says yes, suits the course and meets UTRGV's published rules, starting with the approved list.

The FNP path, step by step

These steps come from the 2025-26 FNP syllabi. MSN-FNP and post-master's FNP certificate students take the same clinical courses and forms.

Buy Typhon accessThe MSN requires each student to purchase access to Typhon, UTRGV's clinical tracking system. One purchase lasts the whole program; see the Typhon guide.
Start with the approved listOpen the list of approved preceptors and affiliated sites in your Brightspace course. Each syllabus labels it differently, which the approved list guide untangles.
Or request a new siteIf your preceptor works somewhere with no agreement, the Spring 2026 NURS 6613 forms list gives the Clinical Request Form through DocuSign and Typhon data sheets for an NP, a PA or a physician.
Get the site approvedIn NURS 6347 you send a clinical preceptor request by the course deadline (June 12 in the Summer 2025 calendar), then wait for the course coordinator to approve your sites.
File the agreement a week aheadOnce your sites are approved, you have until one week before your first clinical date to hand in the signed Student/Preceptor Agreement and the Mandatory Weekly Time Report, with the course objectives attached for your preceptor.
Work, log and reportNURS 6612 asks for 16 hours a week and NURS 6613 for 24, each across two 7-week rotations. Your preceptor signs your logs every week, and you may not finish ahead of schedule unless you have a legitimate reason and the course coordinator agreed beforehand.
Close out the courseEight forms close out NURS 6613 in its Spring 2026 syllabus, from the evaluations of you, your preceptor and your site to both preceptor agreement forms, the time report and your liability insurance.

The PMHNP certificate path, step by step

These PMHNP steps come from the archived FAQ, the School's PMHNP guidelines for the Clinical Request Form (archived 2024 and 2025) and the 2025-26 NURS 6476 and NURS 6620 syllabi. The certificate is fully online, so your site is in your home state.

Find a site near homeThe archived FAQ rules out your own workplace and suggests phoning a potential preceptor, setting up an interview and bringing your CV. Only an ABPN-certified psychiatrist or an ANCC-certified PMHNP qualifies; see preceptor requirements.
Take the request form to the siteShow the facility your program acceptance letter and hand it the Clinical Request Form. Once the site has filled in its part, the form goes back to UTRGV's graduate nursing office and your PMHNP faculty.
Let the School negotiateThe PMHNP unit contacts the person named on the form, and graduate program staff tell you when negotiations are finished. Allow 30 to 90 days for a complete request.
Join your clinical groupBefore NURS 6475 and NURS 6476 begin, the program assigns you to a clinical group, several weeks ahead, which stays together until graduation under an assigned clinical faculty member. Hours begin in the fall, your second semester.
Get cleared in week oneIn week one of NURS 6476 you upload the signed pre-clinical forms to Typhon, among them the preceptor data sheet, added only after all parties sign it. Clinical cannot start until your clinical faculty approves the site; NURS 6620 repeats the rule.
Log, evaluate and verifyHours go into Typhon, where faculty and preceptors can review them. NURS 6476 ends with evaluations in both directions, and the archived guide adds a preceptor letter verifying your clock hours.

FNP and PMHNP side by side

The two routes share Typhon and the Clinical Request Form; almost everything else differs.

UTRGV clinical placement steps by program (2025-26 syllabi and archived School documents)
Step	FNP (MSN and post-master's)	PMHNP certificate
Where the site is	Texas in practice (Edinburg campus, Texas RN license)	Your state of residence
Who finds it, in UTRGV's words	Student, per Spring 2026 `NURS 6305`; archived guide: faculty and student	Archived FAQ: student; live flyer: assistance, undefined
Starting point	Approved list in Brightspace	A home-state site approved by clinical advisors
New site	Clinical Request Form via DocuSign plus a Typhon data sheet	Clinical Request Form, followed up by the PMHNP unit
Who approves	Course coordinator (`NURS 6347`)	Assigned clinical faculty
Paperwork before hours	Preceptor agreement and weekly time report, a week ahead	Pre-clinical forms and preceptor data sheet in Typhon, week one
Hours	605 across `NURS 6347`, `NURS 6612`, `NURS 6613`	520: `NURS 6476` 220, `NURS 6620` 300
Oversight	Random faculty site visits	Clinical faculty online; no site-visit statement found

The FNP column assumes a Texas site because the program meets on the Edinburg campus and admits only nurses holding a Texas RN license; no written UTRGV rule says so. Course-by-course figures are on clinical hours.

The DNP and the BSN in brief

The online DNP builds its practice work into project courses. NURS 8211 (Fall 2025) implements the project at an approved site, grades 100 hours of clinical logs and calls for at least four meetings with your DNP project faculty advisors. In the first two weeks of NURS 8512 (Spring 2026) the IRB proposal goes in together with the site paperwork: any outstanding affiliation agreement forms, the data sheet on your physician or DNP-APRN preceptor and the signed preceptor agreement. Who locates the DNP site is left unsaid in UTRGV's sources; see DNP project hours.

BSN students are assigned to agencies by the School. Some partner facilities use My Clinical Exchange or CB-Bridges, and UTRGV tells BSN students to register only when their clinical faculty asks.

What UTRGV does not make public

Several pieces of the process live only inside Brightspace or with faculty. When one matters to you, ask your course coordinator or clinical faculty, not a classmate with an older copy.

The approved preceptor and affiliated site list itself.
The Preceptor Orientation Packet, which the archived guide says each preceptor must receive before any clinical experience starts.
The preceptor agreement, student commitment form, Typhon data sheets and Mandatory Weekly Time Report.
What the PMHNP flyer's placement assistance consists of, and which titles serve as UTRGV's clinical advisors.
A program-wide deadline for naming a preceptor; only course calendars carry dates.
A written rule that FNP clinicals must be in Texas, and the DNP's total practice hours.

Where our placement desk fits

We check the approved list for preceptors with room for your course, and when it falls short we find one at a new site and gather the facility and preceptor details the Clinical Request Form asks for. Starting a semester early leaves room for the agreement window.

Before your first day we make sure your preceptor has read the course objectives, knows the weekly hours and is ready to sign the agreement and time report. If a preceptor drops out partway through, your placement advisor starts on a replacement right away. UTRGV faculty approve every site; we hand them a preceptor who fits and a file with nothing missing. How it works shows our side, and the request form starts it.

Questions UTRGV students ask

How far ahead should a UTRGV NP student line up a preceptor?

UTRGV publishes no program-wide deadline, only course dates such as the NURS 6347 preceptor request due in June of the Summer 2025 term. A new site can need 30 to 90 days for its agreement, and the preceptor agreement is due a week before hours. Our advice, not a UTRGV rule: start a full semester before the course.

Can I begin clinical hours before my UTRGV site is approved?

No. In NURS 6347 you may file the preceptor agreement once the course coordinator has approved the site, and the PMHNP syllabi say clinical cannot start until your clinical faculty clears it. For a brand-new site, the Clinical Request Form itself ties the start of clinical practice to the agreement being authorized. Build your start date around those approvals.

Does UTRGV place FNP students with preceptors?

UTRGV's current FNP syllabi say students arrange their own preceptors and sites, working from the approved list in Brightspace, with faculty approving the choice. The archived 2023-24 guide called preceptor recruitment a shared job of faculty and student. The only placement assistance line in UTRGV's public material is on the PMHNP flyer.

What happens if my UTRGV preceptor drops out mid-semester?

The public syllabi describe no separate replacement procedure, so treat the newcomer like any new preceptor: let your course coordinator or clinical faculty know immediately, use the approved list or a Clinical Request Form, and file a fresh agreement before logging hours. Your placement advisor starts the replacement search as soon as you tell us.

Where are the preceptor forms for my UTRGV clinical course?

Inside Brightspace. FNP syllabi point to the course's forms area (older copies call it the Blackboard forms tab), and PMHNP forms sit in the program's toolbox. None of them are on UTRGV's public website. Preceptor agreement and forms explains what each one is for.

UTRGV systemApproved preceptor listUTRGV posts approved preceptors and affiliated Evergreen sites in Brightspace. What the list is, why a listed site can still decline, and when to look past it.UTRGV systemClinical Request FormHow UTRGV's Clinical Request Form sets up a new clinical site: the fields, standard and non-standard agreements, the 30 to 90 day wait, and who does what.UTRGV systemPMHNP placement assistanceUTRGV's PMHNP flyer offers preceptor placement assistance; its archived FAQ said students secure their own site. What each says, what to ask, and how we help.UTRGV systemPreceptor agreement and formsUTRGV's preceptor agreement, student commitment, orientation packet, Mandatory Weekly Time Report, evaluations and PMHNP hours letter: what each does and when.UTRGV systemWho does whatThe UTRGV roles behind your clinicals, by title: course coordinator, clinical faculty, lab instructor, program coordinators, graduate staff and DNP advisors.Placement helpHow it worksHow our placement desk works with UTRGV NP students: your course first, the approved list, new-site paperwork, Typhon and compliance, and a fast replacement.

Last checked 2026-09-27

We check these pages against UTRGV's own catalog, course syllabi, School of Nursing pages and Texas Board of Nursing rules. Your course faculty and the School of Nursing have the final word.

From the approved list or a brand-new site, we find the preceptor who fits.

Tell us your UTRGV program, where you live and when your next clinical course starts. We line up a willing preceptor who fits the course and UTRGV's rules, and hand you the details the Clinical Request Form, the affiliation agreement and the preceptor agreement ask for, well before the semester.

Family practice preceptors for NURS 6612 and NURS 6613, and two NP sites for NURS 6347
Board-certified psychiatric preceptors for NURS 6476 and NURS 6620, in your home state
Across the Valley and Texas, from McAllen and Brownsville to San Antonio, Houston and beyond
A replacement lined up fast if a preceptor drops

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