Who can precept a GW Nursing student

GW's baseline rule, word for word

The rule sits in GW's 2021 clinical placement guide, which GW still hosts even though its current clinical pages no longer link to it: "Preceptors must have appropriate professional credentials (NP, MD, DO, CNM) and educational information, a minimum of two (2) years of professional work history in an advanced practice capacity, and a current and unencumbered advanced practice license."

Read it as three tests. The credential has to be one of the four GW names. The two years are years in the advanced role, so on a plain reading a new nurse practitioner's earlier RN career does not fill the gap. And the license has to be active, with no restrictions or discipline attached.

The same guide adds that preceptors must meet "state and GW Nursing regulations" on supervising NP students. Because the wording dates from 2021, check your course syllabus and CORE's Document Library for anything GW has changed since.

Physician assistants and other clinicians

PAs do not appear on GW's list. The 2021 guide names NP, MD, DO and CNM only, and no current GW page adds physician assistants. An older GW document from 2016 was narrower still, naming physicians and nurse practitioners.

So a PA who offers to precept you is a question for your program director before it turns into a Site Prospector submission. Ask in writing, name the course, and keep the reply. The same caution applies to any clinician whose credential falls outside the four GW names, however strong their practice.

The PMHNP track has its own wrinkle. A psychiatrist, as an MD or DO, fits the baseline list for the earlier PMHNP courses. NURS 6248 is the exception, because GW's 2021 guide requires a PMHNP or CNS preceptor there. Plan the last PMHNP rotation around a nurse preceptor from the start; the PMHNP courses page shows where it falls.

How GW judges a preceptor

Meeting the credential list gets a preceptor considered; it does not settle approval. GW's Become a Preceptor page says faculty weigh "individual preceptor qualifications, strengths of the clinical setting, and needs of the individual student/course." That judgment happens in the Program Director Review, the first step after your Site Prospector submission in CORE.

Once the rotation begins, your Clinical Experience Faculty keeps watching the same question. GW's 2026 CORE workshop lists addressing site and preceptor appropriateness among their duties and asks students to raise it with them when something does not fit.

What reviewers can see in your submission

• The preceptor's license, attached in CORE, showing type, state and expiration
• The preceptor's biography or CV, showing years in advanced practice and specialty
• The site and its patients, to compare with the course objectives
• Your course and term, so the fit is judged against that course and not a general idea of NP practice

Why students choose us to find a preceptor who fits

Every preceptor we bring to a GW student is checked against these rules before you hear their name: the credential, the two years, a clean license, the right setting for your course and, for NURS 6248, the PMHNP or CNS requirement. We confirm the license with the state board and gather the biography or CV so your submission answers the reviewer's questions on sight.

GW's program director makes the final call on every preceptor. Our work is making sure the person in front of them fits GW's rules the first time, so your review weeks go to the agreement and clearance rather than a rejected name. If a preceptor leaves partway through, we look for a replacement who meets the same standard. Start with the form below or on the contact page.