NURS 7064, FNP Practicum 4: patients of every age and more of the lead
In NURS 7064, the next-to-last FNP practicum at Youngstown State University, the catalog description widens the course in two directions at once: patients across the lifespan, and leadership alongside clinical reasoning and critical thinking. You need a B in NURS 7063 to enroll; the course is worth 2 credits over seven weeks, with 150 hours in YSU's FAQ list. It is also the practicum best placed to close any gap in YSU's recommended adult, pediatric and women's health mix.
Find a lifespan preceptor for NURS 7064
Tell us your remaining hour mix and home area. We look for a primary care practice that fills it.
What does the catalog add in Practicum 4?
The 2026-27 description begins: "Students integrate advanced clinical reasoning, leadership, and critical thinking to develop approaches to health promotion and disease management for patients across the lifespan and in a variety of practice settings." Two ideas are new in the sequence. "Leadership" appears for the first time, and "across the lifespan" names the full age range a family practice sees, from infants to older adults.
The rest carries forward. Health promotion echoes the first practicum, clinical reasoning builds on the second and third, and "a variety of practice settings" repeats the wording of NURS 7061. The course holds the same frame as the others: 2 credits, one 7-week term, no other course alongside it, and primary care only. The catalog lists no hours for it; YSU's FAQ lists 150, and the program totals are sorted out on FNP clinical hours.
Which setting covers the lifespan?
YSU's FNP setting list holds here as everywhere: primary care for adults, older adults, children or women's health. For a course built around patients of all ages, a family practice that sees children, working-age adults and older adults in the same week is the most natural fit. Gerontology primary care is also on YSU's list, and an older-adult practice pairs well with a second preceptor who sees younger patients.
Our suggestion, not a YSU rule: use NURS 7064 to fill whatever remains of YSU's recommended minimums. A family practice can add pediatric and adult hours in the same term, and a second approved preceptor can cover a women's health shortfall for part of the seven weeks, since YSU lets hours be split among approved preceptors. Check your running totals against the FNP hour mix before you choose, because after this term only one practicum is left.
What does leadership look like in a primary care practicum?
YSU's public catalog, handbook and FAQ do not define leadership tasks for NURS 7064; the syllabus on Blackboard will say how it is assessed. The idea is not new to you, since NURS 7003 Role Development in Advanced Practice is one of the core courses. The FNP rules also stay in force: the course remains a clinical practicum in primary care with an approved preceptor.
Within those limits, here is what leadership can look like in a clinic, as our suggestions to discuss with your preceptor and clinical faculty:
- Running your own visit list for a session, with the preceptor reviewing each plan.
- Coordinating a patient's referrals, results and follow-up with the rest of the care team.
- Teaching: explaining a care plan to a family, or walking a staff member through a guideline change.
- Spotting a gap in how the practice handles a common problem and proposing a fix.
What should your Practicum 4 preceptor expect?
A fourth-practicum student arrives with about 450 hours behind them by the FAQ count, so the preceptor can reasonably hand over more of each visit. The handbook's formal asks stay the same as in every course: preceptor documentation and agreements completed before you begin, YSU's student evaluations filled in, and hours verified. Clinical faculty use those evaluations, their own observation, your documentation and practicum logs to set the grade.
Choose a preceptor who is comfortable delegating and who works inside a team, since leadership is hard to practice where the clinician does everything alone. If you are weighing a physician assistant, remember the two sources conflict: the August 2026 handbook opens a capped PA option once Practicum 1 is passed, while the FAQ rules PAs out. The full list is on preceptor requirements.
When is the Practicum 4 preceptor due?
Two months before the course starts, which in practice means early in Practicum 3. The winter break shows the best case. The longest gap in YSU's 2026-27 accelerated calendar runs from December 6 to January 4, so if NURS 7063 fills the second Fall term (October 19 to December 6) and NURS 7064 begins January 4, 2027, Practicum 4's preceptor information is due around November 4, the third week of Practicum 3. The 90-day notice point, about October 6, comes before Practicum 3 starts. Both dates are our arithmetic from YSU's rules.
- Before Practicum 3 startsTotal your hours by population and decide what
NURS 7064must cover. - By the 90-day markHave a preceptor who fits, or tell the Graduate Clinical Coordinator you need help.
- By the two-month markSubmit the preceptor for approval, with any affiliation agreement already in motion.
- Before day oneConfirm approval and keep your Exxat compliance current.
How we help with Practicum 4
Why YSU students bring us in at this stage: the fourth practicum is often the one that has to fix the hour mix, and the fifth comes due right behind it. Your placement advisor maps the hours you still need, finds a family or population-focused primary care preceptor who fits NURS 7064, checks the practice against YSU's workplace, preceptor and state rules, and gives you the details the preceptor request asks for.
We search for Practicum 5 at the same time, so the final practicum is settled before this one ends, and your advisor stays on call through both terms in case a preceptor's plans change. A preceptor who asks what the role involves can read our page for preceptors. Tell us what your last two terms need.
Questions YSU students ask
Can I do NURS 7064 entirely in a gerontology practice?
Gerontology primary care is one of YSU's listed FNP settings, so an older-adult practice can host the hours. The catalog's wording for this course, patients across the lifespan, points toward adding younger patients where you can, and YSU's recommended pediatric and women's health minimums still have to be met somewhere in the program.
Does leadership mean a management placement instead of patient care?
Nothing in YSU's catalog, handbook or FAQ turns NURS 7064 into a management rotation. The FNP practicum rules still apply: primary care settings and preceptors from YSU's approved list. Treat leadership as something you practice inside patient care, and check the syllabus for how it is assessed.
What if my Practicum 3 grade falls short after my Practicum 4 preceptor is approved?
Approval of a preceptor and permission to enroll are separate steps. You need a B in NURS 7063 to register for NURS 7064; below that, you repeat Practicum 3 first. Tell your Practicum 4 preceptor and clinical faculty quickly and ask how to move the approval to a later term. See grades and time limits.
Can my Practicum 4 preceptor also precept Practicum 5?
Yes. Clinical faculty simply need to approve them again for NURS 7065, because YSU collects preceptor details before every rotation, even for someone you already know. Staying on can suit a strong placement, though some students switch for the final term to train in the setting where they hope to work.
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.
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 7061toNURS 7065, acute care for AGACNPNURS 7071toNURS 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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