TTUHSC's FNP clinical courses, one rotation at a time

The FNP clinical sequence at a glance

TTUHSC names three FNP clinical courses in order: a first primary care course, a second one, and the Family Nurse Practitioner Practicum. The MSN plan and the certificate share the practicum's number and part ways on the two courses before it. The table lines the numbers up exactly as each source prints them.

The certificate triples read as credits, then weekly lecture hours, then weekly clinical hours. They describe a single week only. TTUHSC states no clinical-hour total for the FNP, and a multiplied estimate is not an official number.

The Primary Care I gap: a conflict to settle early

The catalog's MSN plan never lists Primary Care I, yet TTUHSC's own course pages require NURS 5440 before both NURS 5541 and NURS 6660. The same plan shows a prerequisite block total larger than the courses printed beneath it, which points to an incomplete listing rather than a shorter sequence.

For preceptor planning, the careful reading is three rotations, not two. A course named as a prerequisite has to be passed before the next one opens, and each precepted course needs its own approved preceptor, approved facility and electronic agreement for that semester.

Confirm the sequence before you contact a single practice. Your program director steers advising for the MSN NP tracks, the Graduate Enrolled Student Advisor fields registration questions, and the written plan handed out at orientation is the version to build your rotations around.

Clearances to finish before the first FNP rotation

A preceptor who says yes still cannot take you until TTUHSC's requirements are in place. These are the items FNP students most often leave late.

Before Primary Care I

• ACLS, which every TTUHSC FNP student must hold before the first primary care rotation and must still hold when NURS 6660 starts
• BLS, required of all students
• Immunization records approved before registration, with TB screening repeated each year
• Criminal background clearance through TTUHSC's chosen vendor, plus drug screens, which TTUHSC orders ahead of most placements and at random
• An RN license from Texas or a compact state, current and unencumbered
• Proof of HIPAA training for the current year

The immunizations and certifications guide covers each item in detail. If you hold a vaccine exemption, raise it before you commit to a practice: TTUHSC cautions that a clinical site can turn the affidavit down, which could stall placement or graduation.

Why TTUHSC FNP students choose us for these rotations

We plan all three FNP rotations as one search. Your placement advisor works from the plan TTUHSC gave you, checks which primary care numbers you are registered under, and looks for preceptors and clinics near home that fit each course, ideally a practice that can carry you from Primary Care I into the longer practicum weeks.

For every term, we build the file TTUHSC reviews: your preceptor's license and certification, a description of the practice, the clinic's details and whether an agreement with TTUHSC already exists, and every answer the electronic agreement calls for. SON staff and faculty make the decision; our work is making sure the file they open is complete and within TTUHSC's rules from the start. Should a preceptor leave mid-plan, we are hunting for the next one that same day. Send us your plan and first clinical term using the form below.