YSU clinical systems, practicums and rules, taken one at a time

Updated September 26, 2026 · Reviewed by the YSU Preceptor placement team

These guides split Youngstown State's graduate clinical process into the pieces an online nurse practitioner student actually handles: the preceptor search YSU asks you to lead, the two-month approval deadline, affiliation agreements, Exxat, each of the five 7-week practicums and their hours, Ohio's practice rules, and the YSU tools and dates you plan around. Each draws on YSU's 2026-27 catalog, graduate handbook, online program pages and FAQ, and each says plainly where YSU publishes nothing.

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YSU clinical systems. These guides split Youngstown State's graduate clinical process into the pieces an online nurse practitioner student actually handles: the preceptor search YSU — Every YSU clinical guide in one place: securing a preceptor, the two-month deadline, Exxat, the NURS 7061 to 7075 practicums, hours and Ohio rules.

Where YSU keeps the official detail

YSU spreads its public clinical detail across four kinds of documents. The 2026-27 Graduate Catalog lists every NURS course and its prerequisites. The online program pages give hours, admission rules and the states YSU accepts. The Graduate Nursing Handbook, revised in August 2026, sets compliance, Exxat, conduct and preceptor rules. The online FAQ covers the practical side: who secures preceptors, deadlines, workplace limits and acceptable settings.

Some of these sources disagree, most of all on total clinical hours, physician assistant preceptors and the fourth state YSU accepts, and the guides show each conflict rather than choosing quietly. The working documents, such as the preceptor agreement, site request and practicum logs, sit in Exxat and Blackboard, open only to enrolled students.

Where to begin

New to YSU's process? Read the placement process first for the full sequence, then finding your own preceptor for YSU's expectations and the approval timeline for the dates that count back from each practicum. Once your next practicum is clear, the hours planner lists what it requires and which preceptors suit it.

Preceptors and placement

Placement processThe YSU nurse practitioner placement route in order: your preceptor search, the two-month deadline, agreements, Exxat, faculty approval and each practicum.Finding your own preceptorYSU's own words on securing your preceptor: the FAQ, the 90-day notice, starting at admission, the handbook's roles, and how our search does the finding.Approval timelineCount back from a YSU practicum start: two months for preceptor details, 90 days for the coordinator notice, 30 days for Exxat and months for a new site.Affiliation agreementsWhen a YSU clinical site needs an affiliation agreement: YSU's start-date warning, your handbook duty, the RN to BSN contract rule, and how to lower the risk.Preceptor requirementsWho can precept a YSU FNP or AGACNP student: APRN, CNM and physician credentials, experience rules, the physician assistant conflict, forms and evaluations.Practicums where you workYSU lets NP students log practicum hours at their employer, but never on their own unit, with their supervisor or on the clock. How to use your employer well.If your preceptor dropsPreceptor quit or site fell through during a YSU practicum? Tell the Graduate Clinical Coordinator fast, protect logged hours and get a replacement approved.Practicums outside OhioDoing YSU practicums in Pennsylvania, West Virginia or Michigan: the state list conflict, RN license rules, the relocation warning and RN to BSN agreements.Who does whatEvery YSU role that touches your practicum, by title: the Graduate Clinical Coordinator, clinical faculty, the Program Director, the APG Committee and more.

Hours and practicums

Clinical hoursClinical hours for each YSU nursing program: FNP and AGACNP (750 on program pages, catalog 600 and 540), Nursing Education, RN to BSN, and how hours are logged.FNP clinical hoursYSU FNP clinical hours: five 150-hour practicums, NURS 7061 to NURS 7065, 750 on the program page against the catalog's 600, and the pace a 7-week term sets.FNP hour mixYSU's recommended FNP hour mix: at least 200 adult, 100 pediatric and 75 women's health primary care hours, the settings YSU accepts, and a five-practicum plan.NURS 7061 Practicum 1NURS 7061 is YSU's first FNP practicum: 2 credits, 150 hours in YSU's FAQ, a B in NURS 7047 first, and a first preceptor who must be approved before day one.NURS 7062 Practicum 2YSU's NURS 7062 moves FNP students from managing to diagnosing: 2 credits, 150 FAQ hours, a B in NURS 7061 first, and a preceptor due early in Practicum 1.NURS 7063 Practicum 3NURS 7063, YSU's third FNP practicum: diagnostic reasoning, current evidence and patient outcomes, 2 credits, 150 FAQ hours and a midpoint hour-mix check.NURS 7064 Practicum 4NURS 7064 is YSU's fourth FNP practicum: leadership, critical thinking and care across the lifespan, 2 credits, 150 FAQ hours, and a B in NURS 7063 to enroll.NURS 7065 Practicum 5NURS 7065, YSU's last FNP practicum: clinical mastery, autonomy and certification readiness, how it pairs with the NURS 7005 Capstone, and graduation dates.AGACNP clinical hoursYSU's AGACNP program page lists 750 acute care clinical hours while the catalog still says 540. See the per-practicum split, settings, ACLS and weekly pace.AGACNP practicumsThe five YSU AGACNP practicums, NURS 7071 to NURS 7075: catalog focus, the B rule, which acute care preceptors fit each stage and hospital onboarding windows.Nurse Educator practicumsYSU's Nursing Education practicums: NURS 7022 (50 hours) and NURS 7023 (100 hours) in education and health care settings, prerequisites and supervision.Capstone practicumYSU's NURS 7005 Capstone Practicum: 3 credits, 60 project clock hours, not a precepted clinical, taken with or after the final practicum as the last MSN course.7-week practicum termsHow YSU's 7-week practicum terms work: one practicum per term in strict order, a B to move on, no didactic course alongside, and five preceptors back to back.

Compliance and clearance

ExxatWhat Exxat does for YSU nursing students: compliance uploads due 30 days before the first practicum, placement records, hour logs and the older Medatrax name.Compliance checklistWhat YSU graduate nursing students clear before clinicals: BLS, ACLS for AGACNP, immunizations, drug screen, background check, ID badge and the Exxat cutoff.RN license rulesYSU requires a current, unencumbered RN license where you live, work and train, plus recent RN practice. How the nurse compact and Ohio system rules fit in.

Ohio rules

Ohio NP practiceOhio NP practice for YSU students: standard care arrangements, collaborating physicians, prescribing limits, the APRN license and what they mean for preceptors.Ohio Board of NursingWhat the Ohio Board of Nursing means for YSU students: RN licensure, the APRN license, the APRN student exemption, program approval and compact status.

Terms, tools and support

Academic calendarYSU's 2026-27 accelerated calendar: 7-week term dates, the four online starts, graduation deadlines, a Spring 2 date conflict and how practicums map on.Online student toolsThe YSU systems an online nursing student uses: Penguin Portal, Banner, Blackboard Ultra, email, Penguin PASS, Respondus, Examity and Sentinel U.Grades and time limitsYSU's MSN progression rules: a B in every practicum, repeats, clinical failure, Incompletes, the 6-year vs 4-year limit, leave, transfer credit and appeals.Library and supportMaag Library, the Writing Center, the Resch Academic Success Center, Accessibility Services, counseling and career help for YSU online nursing students.State rulesWhich states YSU's online nursing programs accept, program by program: Ohio, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and the Michigan versus Indiana conflict, with dates.AccreditationWho accredits each YSU nursing program: CCNE through 2032 for the MSN and certificates, ACEN for the BSN, COA for nurse anesthesia, and the Ohio Board's role.NP certification examsThe boards YSU names for FNP and AGACNP certification, the pass rates YSU reports, how NURS 7065 and 7075 build toward boards, and the Ohio APRN license after.

Questions YSU students ask

Are YSU's preceptor forms public?

No. The Student Preceptor Agreement and Clinical Site Request live in YSU's clinical system for enrolled students, and preceptor tips sit on the graduate nursing Blackboard site. These guides rely on the catalog, handbook, program pages and FAQ and point out what to confirm there.

Which clinical system does YSU use now?

The 2026-27 graduate handbook names Exxat as the official clinical compliance, placement and documentation system. The older online FAQ still mentions Medatrax and CastleBranch, so treat Exxat as current and ask your clinical faculty if a form points elsewhere.

Who at YSU approves my preceptor?

Clinical faculty approve clinical sites and preceptors, and a Graduate Clinical Coordinator works with students through the program. Each role, and what to bring to it, is laid out in who does what.

How current are these guides?

They were checked in September 2026 against the 2026-27 catalog, the graduate handbook revised August 2026 and YSU's online program pages. Each guide lists its sources and dates any conflict it shows.

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.

YSU asks you to secure your preceptor. We find one near you.

Tell us your YSU track, where you live and when your next practicum starts. We find preceptors near you who fit the practicum, check YSU's rules and hand you what the preceptor request needs, two months ahead, with the next term's preceptor already in view.

Primary care preceptors for FNP practicums NURS 7061 to NURS 7065, acute care for AGACNP NURS 7071 to NURS 7075
Outside your own unit and away from your supervisor, in a state YSU accepts
Across Ohio, from the Mahoning Valley to Cincinnati, and in Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Michigan

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