YSU clinical compliance: the checklist to clear before your first practicum
Youngstown State University's graduate handbook says no clinical experience begins until every compliance requirement is satisfied and an approved preceptor agreement is on file. The core items are BLS, required immunizations, an annual drug screen and an annual criminal background check, plus ACLS for AGACNP students and a YSU ID badge. All of it goes into Exxat at least 30 days before your first practicum and has to stay current after that.
Keep compliance and preceptors on one calendar
Tell us your first practicum term. We line up preceptors early and track the dates that could hold you back.
The rule behind the checklist
Two conditions gate every clinical day at YSU: your compliance requirements are satisfied, and an approved preceptor agreement sits on file. The handbook makes you responsible for both, together with any affiliation agreement the site needs. It also sets the timing. Every required document goes to Exxat at least 30 days before your first clinical practicum, then stays current for the rest of the program. Put plainly, a preceptor found in time helps little if an expired card keeps you off the unit, and a spotless Exxat record helps little without an approved preceptor.
One protection comes from YSU rather than from you. The handbook says YSU provides professional liability (malpractice) insurance for students in approved clinical experiences, one more reason every site and preceptor needs approval before your first hour.
The current checklist
The 2026-27 graduate handbook, revised in August 2026, names the items below. The detailed immunization list moved into Exxat, under School Resources on the Health Requirements tab, and YSU no longer posts it publicly.
Required before clinicals (2026-27 handbook)
- Current Basic Life Support (BLS) certification.
- Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS) certification for AGACNP students, obtained before clinical courses begin.
- Required immunizations, per the list in Exxat.
- A drug screen, repeated every year.
- A criminal background check, repeated every year.
- A YSU Graduate Nursing ID badge: upload a photo to the Y Card, and the badge is mailed to your Banner address during your first didactic course. Without it you are not eligible to begin practicum.
- An active Exxat account, kept for the whole program.
- An approved preceptor agreement on file for the practicum.
The catalog repeats the ACLS rule for both the MSN AGACNP and the post-master's AGACNP certificate; the AGACNP hours guide explains how it fits that track. How the system itself works is covered in the Exxat guide.
What the archived handbook spelled out
The 2022-23 graduate handbook, superseded but still hosted by YSU, listed details the current one moved into Exxat. Use it to anticipate what you will be asked for, not as the rule: the live list in Exxat governs.
| Item | What the 2022-23 handbook asked for |
|---|---|
| Tuberculosis testing | A two-step test on admission, then yearly testing |
| Vaccines | Hepatitis B, MMR, Tdap, influenza and varicella |
| Physical | A history and physical exam |
| Drug screen | A 10-panel screen with a negative result |
| Background check | Ohio BCI and FBI fingerprinting, yearly, through the vendor; other states' checks vary |
| COVID-19 vaccine | Left to each practicum site's policy |
The vendor then was CastleBranch; the current handbook routes compliance through Exxat. If you live in Pennsylvania, West Virginia or Michigan, ask which state background check YSU wants, since the archived handbook warned that the requirement varies from state to state.
Annual upkeep through five practicums
Clearing the list once is only the start. The drug screen and background check are annual, the archived TB rule was annual, and BLS and ACLS cards expire on their own cycles. Five 7-week practicums fill most of a year, so one or more renewals can land in the middle of the sequence.
- List every expiration dateSet each item's expiry beside the start and end dates of all five practicum terms from the academic calendar.
- Renew in the gap between termsYSU's accelerated terms leave a short break between them. Use it for renewals, and upload the new record the same week.
- Check the site's own listHospitals can require items YSU does not, such as their own orientation modules or vaccine policies; the archived handbook already left COVID-19 vaccination to the site.
- Recheck with each preceptor submissionWhen you send a preceptor's details two months ahead, confirm your own record will still be current on the last day of that practicum.
Term start and end dates are in the academic calendar guide.
Costs to plan for
YSU publishes no amounts for Exxat, background checks, fingerprinting or drug screens, and its graduate handbook does not say who is billed for each. Plan on covering them yourself unless orientation tells you otherwise. The archived handbook had students complete fingerprinting through the vendor, and the current RN to BSN handbook notes that certifications a site requires may come at a cost to the student.
Sentinel U is a separate required purchase for NP students, due before the first semester and kept active through the program. If your employer pays for BLS or ACLS renewal, time the class so the card stays valid through your final practicum. On the other side of the ledger, YSU's malpractice coverage for approved clinical experiences is one cost you do not carry.
License and hospital rules on top of YSU's list
YSU also requires a current, unencumbered RN license in the state where you practice and complete practicum hours, and hospitals often add their own conditions. Cleveland Clinic and Nationwide Children's, for example, ask for an active Ohio RN license, and several Ohio systems require an affiliation agreement with the school before any student arrives. These are site rules, separate from YSU's checklist, and they can take longer to satisfy than anything in Exxat. Ask each hospital for its student onboarding list as soon as your preceptor agrees, because some systems fix application windows months before the rotation.
Out-of-state students should expect an extra layer: the archived handbook said background checks vary by state. The RN license guide covers YSU's license rules in full.
How we help you clear it on time
Compliance and preceptor approval run on separate clocks, and a late item on either can cost you a practicum term. Your placement advisor builds one calendar with both: the 30-day Exxat cutoff, each annual renewal, the two-month preceptor deadline for all five practicums, and whatever onboarding each hospital adds. If a renewal would fall in the middle of a term, we point it out while setting the preceptor's dates, when there is still room to move it.
We send reminders ahead of each date and secure preceptors early, so by the time your practicum approaches, the preceptor is settled and compliance is the only list left to finish. Request a placement or read how it works.
Questions YSU students ask
Do YSU FNP students need ACLS?
The 2026-27 handbook names ACLS for AGACNP students only; FNP students keep current BLS along with the other core items. A particular clinical site can still ask for more than YSU does, so check the site's onboarding list once your preceptor is confirmed and before you register for the practicum.
Will YSU accept the background check my hospital employer ran?
YSU's graduate handbook does not say so; it calls for an annual criminal background check filed in Exxat. The RN to BSN handbook does allow a signed statement of compliance through employment for sites that require screening, but that rule is written for RN to BSN students. Graduate students should ask clinical faculty before relying on an employer check.
Do post-master's certificate students complete the same compliance items?
In substance, yes. The handbook's Exxat and compliance rules cover all graduate nursing students, certificate applicants must meet the same admission requirements as the matching MSN concentration, and the catalog requires ACLS before practicums for the post-master's AGACNP. Ask clinical faculty whether any records from your earlier program can be reused.
Can I start a practicum while one compliance item is still pending?
No. The handbook says clinical experiences may not begin until all compliance requirements are satisfied, and it separately blocks practicum without the YSU ID badge. YSU's malpractice coverage is also written for approved clinical experiences, another reason to wait for full clearance before your first shift with a preceptor.
Is the COVID-19 vaccine a YSU requirement or a site requirement?
In the archived 2022-23 handbook, YSU left COVID-19 vaccination to each practicum site's policy. The current handbook keeps its immunization list in Exxat, so check it there, and check the hospital's own onboarding rules once your site is set, since a site can require more than YSU does.
Related pages
Last checked 2026-09-26
We check these pages against YSU's own catalog, graduate handbook, online program pages and FAQ, and Ohio rules. Your clinical faculty, the Graduate Clinical Coordinator and your advisor have the final word.
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