Questions Post nursing students ask us
These are the broad questions Post University nursing students ask before starting a placement with us: who we work with, where clinicals can happen, how Post's approval fits in, and when to begin. Topic pages go deeper, and each answer links to the page that owns the detail.
Get your placement plan
Tell us your Post program and where you live. A placement advisor replies with the preceptor and site options that fit your course.
Which Post students do you place?
We place students across the online programs of the American Sentinel College of Nursing & Health Sciences at Post University, and most of our work is for its three nurse practitioner specializations. FNP and AGPCNP students need primary care preceptors for each preceptorship course; PMHNP students need mental and behavioral health settings that serve patients across the lifespan.
DNP students in the leadership tracks need nurse preceptors holding a doctoral degree for their precepted practice experiences, each under an affiliation agreement. Non-NP MSN students in education, informatics, leadership, case management or infection prevention and control need a preceptor who works at the site and holds at least a master's degree. RN to BSN students have no preceptor requirement, and Post does not ask them for a CastleBranch account either. The programs hub lists each program's hours.
Do I ever need to go to campus in Waterbury?
No campus visit is built into the nursing programs. The American Sentinel College says there is no physical classroom requirement for its students, and clinicals are arranged in your local area. Post's Waterbury, Connecticut campus houses the college's administrative offices, and orientation runs online as an interactive course, so you can begin the program without traveling.
What the NP tracks do require is live online attendance. Each syllabus marks certain live sessions as mandatory, for example exams, virtual presentations, group work, case studies and the closing graduation meeting, and skipping one risks failing the course or removal from the program. Check each syllabus against your clinical schedule at the start of the term. In-person commencement is optional.
Can my clinicals be in a different state from where I live?
Sometimes. Post admits NP students who reside in a state its NP disclosure marks Yes and who hold an active, unencumbered RN license there. Clinical work is limited to approved states where your license is also active, and a clinical away from your state of residence needs prior specialization approval.
A compact RN license can meet the CastleBranch license item, but it does not widen the list of states Post approves for NP clinicals. Post's current disclosure marks seven states No (Arizona, Kansas, Louisiana and New York, plus Oregon, Tennessee and Washington) and lists California for the FNP and AGPCNP only. The state guides show each state's row, and the RN license page explains the rule. If you plan to move during the program, raise it with your Student Success Advisor early, since your state of residence drives which clinicals Post can approve.
Does Post approve the preceptors you find?
Every preceptor and site goes through the same approval, whoever found them. Post's Clinical Coordinator approves each one, and our part is making sure the file that reaches the Coordinator is complete and fits Post's rules the first time: license, national certification, degree and experience checked, conflicts such as a direct supervisor or a relative screened out, the preceptor's documents collected and the preceptor agreement letter signed.
The site also needs a fully executed affiliation agreement, which you request with Post's Affiliation Agreement Tracker. Post notes that an agreement already on file with a facility does not settle whether a given student is approved there, so each placement is reviewed on its own. The Clinical Coordinator page explains who does what at Post.
When should I contact you?
As soon as you pass the APEA 3P exam, and earlier if you like. Passing the 3P gate opens the NP specialty courses, and from then on each preceptorship arrives on the fixed rhythm of 8-week terms, one course at a time. Planning them together gives you the widest choice of preceptors and the most time for agreements.
At the latest, reach out a couple of months before the term of your next clinical course. A few state boards expect to hear about a clinical plan as much as 60 days before it begins, and every item in the Week 1 packet must be complete by the end of that week. If your term is closer than that, tell us so; the short-timeline plan is on need a preceptor fast.
What do you need from me to get started?
Send your program and specialization, your next clinical course number and its term, your home city, state and ZIP code, and every state where you hold an active RN license. Add your preference between an NP and a physician (MD or DO), any leads you already have, and any practice you need to avoid, such as one where your direct supervisor works.
Keep your CastleBranch account current as well. NP students must stay compliant for the whole program, including the annual background check and drug screen, and a lapse stops hour logging. Use the contact page to send the details, and your placement advisor will reply with a plan and a quote. Include the term start date you are aiming for, because the plan works backward from Week 1.
Questions Post students ask
Will I keep the same preceptor for every course?
Sometimes, when one preceptor's patients suit several courses and the Clinical Coordinator approves each. Often the courses need different settings: FNP students need obstetric, gynecological and pediatric patients for N 589, and PMHNP courses move between child and adolescent care and adults and older adults. Post also recommends an NP for two or more of your clinical courses.
Can I do my clinicals where I already work?
Post allows it with the right preceptor, who can never be your direct supervisor. The setting still has to match your course: primary care for FNP and AGPCNP hours, and a mental or behavioral health setting for PMHNP hours, so an acute care unit on its own will not fit a primary care course. See clinicals at your workplace for the details.
Does a preceptor need to have worked with Post before?
Post's catalog sets no such requirement. A preceptor qualifies by meeting Post's license, certification, degree and experience rules and by having no conflict with you, and the site qualifies with a fully executed affiliation agreement. A preceptor who is new to Post simply needs the full document set and the Coordinator's approval.
How long does Clinical Coordinator approval take?
Post publishes no turnaround time for preceptor and site approval, and its NP Clinical Guidelines, which may cover it, are not public. The one published clock is for affiliation agreements: Post's Academic Affairs staff reach out to a newly requested site inside seven business days. Ask the Clinical Coordinator about current timing and submit everything well before Week 1.
Which Post catalog do your pages follow?
Our pages follow the 2025-26 edition of Post's catalog, since it is the latest edition with readable nursing sections. The 2026-27 edition is out, and its nursing details may differ. Where something matters to your plan, such as hours, repeat rules or preceptor requirements, check it against the current catalog and ask the Clinical Coordinator or your Student Success Advisor.
What if I already have a preceptor but no site agreement?
Bring what you have. A named preceptor without an affiliation agreement yet is a strong start: we check the preceptor against Post's rules, gather the documents and get the agreement request moving, then line up your remaining courses. Knowing the site early matters, because some health systems add their own onboarding before a student can begin.
Related pages
Last checked 2026-09-27
We check these pages against Post University's own catalog, program pages and published nursing documents. Your course faculty and the Clinical Coordinator have the final word.
Post asks you to select your own preceptor. We make the search the easy part.
Tell us your Post track, your city and your next preceptorship course. We line up preceptors who fit the course, collect the license report, certification and CV the Clinical Coordinator reviews, and start the affiliation agreement early so your Week 1 packet is complete before the term opens.
- Preceptors matched to the course: primary care for FNP and AGPCNP, mental and behavioral health for PMHNP, doctoral nurse leaders for DNP hours
- Preceptor agreement letter, license report, certification and CV ready for Post's approval
- Every preceptorship planned together, close to home in a state where you hold your license and Post's disclosure says yes
Start your placement plan
Track, city and next preceptorship course is all we need to begin.