Your first TAMUCC clinical course, and when to start looking
For TAMUCC FNP and FNP certificate students, the first clinical course is NURS 5624 Advanced Health Assessment and Differential Diagnosis, with 90 hours, followed in fixed order by NURS 5644, NURS 5645 and NURS 5746. The term for each course is not published, and TAMUCC warns that signing a new affiliation agreement can take up to three months. So the search for your first preceptor belongs in the semester before, not the first week of class.
Get your placement plan
Tell us your TAMUCC program and where you live. A placement advisor replies with the preceptor and site options that fit your TAMUCC course.
NURS 5624 opens the FNP sequence
Every FNP clinical at TAMUCC sits on one chain of prerequisites. NURS 5624 comes first; NURS 5644 requires it, NURS 5645 requires NURS 5644, and NURS 5746 requires NURS 5645. The FNP guides call the stages early clinical, mid-clinical twice, and late clinical, and the hours climb from 90 to 135, 135 and finally 270.
NURS 5624 is the shortest clinical course and the one where Typhon logging, the faculty site visit and the end-of-semester DocuSign forms happen for the first time. It is also where your first preceptor meets TAMUCC's paperwork, which makes a good first match worth more than its 90 hours suggest. Certificate students start here too, since the certificate keeps all four clinical courses. The NURS 5624 guide covers the course itself.
Which term it falls in
TAMUCC keeps each student's plan in the Degree Planner, which is not public, so no outside page can name your exact term. The MSN FNP admits in fall only, and the MSN handbook states: "Courses will be taught once a calendar year." Public course syllabi, though, show more than one offering for some courses.
| Course | Terms with a posted syllabus |
|---|---|
NURS 5624 | Spring 2025, Fall 2025 |
NURS 5644 | Spring 2025, Spring 2026 |
NURS 5645 | Fall 2023, Fall 2024, Fall 2025 |
NURS 5746 | Spring 2025, Spring 2026 |
The later courses hint at a rhythm: NURS 5644 posted for spring terms, NURS 5645 for fall terms, then NURS 5746 for spring again. That is a reading of posted syllabi rather than a TAMUCC schedule, and summer offerings could not be checked. For your own cohort, the Degree Planner is the record and the CONHS Graduate Advisor is the person to ask.
Count back from your first clinical day
Your first hour counts only after several pieces are finished, and they take very different amounts of time. Working backward from the start of the term, these are the pieces and their lead times:
- Secure the preceptorYour preceptor must be a nationally board-certified NP, MD or DO with at least two years in independent practice. Most students start with their own network; failing that, the guide suggests asking in person with your CV and the course objectives.
- Check the agreementSearch Typhon's Clinical Site Directory for the site. No listing, no dates or an expired contract means an "Initiate Affiliation Agreement" request, with up to three months to allow.
- Complete the packetThe Preceptor Agreement Packet reaches your preceptor through DocuSign one to two business days after it goes to administration; your preceptor attaches a CV and a copy of their license no older than 30 days.
- Clear compliance and TyphonCastleBranch items must be current before clinicals start, and Typhon access comes before your first day.
- Get faculty clearanceSubmit your intended schedule to your assigned clinical faculty member and wait for clearance to begin.
The full sequence, with every form in order, is on the placement process page.
When to start looking
Start the search a full semester before NURS 5624. TAMUCC asks for a three-month allowance on any new affiliation agreement and warns that larger health care systems take much longer, and that clock only starts once you have a preceptor and a site to name. TAMUCC publishes no fixed calendar deadline for submitting a preceptor, so the agreement is the real deadline.
Health systems add calendars of their own. Houston Methodist's graduate NP request deadlines fall on November 13 for spring, April 30 for summer and July 15 for fall. UT Southwestern accepts spring requests from May through August, and CHRISTUS Santa Rosa in San Antonio wants its registration form four weeks ahead with a preceptor already secured. If your likely preceptor works inside a large system, that system's student page may set your true start date.
The first clinical course in each TAMUCC program
Outside the FNP, the first clinical piece is often a lab, and the precepted work comes near the end of the program.
| Program | First clinical course | Main precepted course |
|---|---|---|
| MSN FNP and FNP Post-Master's Certificate | NURS 5624, 90 hours | NURS 5746, 270 hours |
| MSN Nurse Educator | NURS 5324 Health Assessment for Advanced Practice, the virtual health assessment lab | NURS 5459, 135 hours with a preceptor |
| MSN Leadership in Nursing Systems | NURS 5360 finance lab and NURS 5362 clinical lab | NURS 5469 capstone, 135 hours, taken with NURS 5163 |
| DNP, both tracks | NURS 6304, field-based, with NURS 6195 | Practice hours toward 1,000; per-course targets are not published |
| BSN Traditional and eLine | NURS 3614 and NURS 3435 in the first nursing semester | Program-assigned clinicals in the Corpus Christi area |
For the Educator and Leadership tracks, the precepted capstone near the end is where the preceptor search matters most. DNP cohorts start in spring, and the practice organization's Letter of Support is one of the first things to secure.
Certificate and conditional-admission timing
The FNP Post-Master's Certificate starts with the same NURS 5624, but its start term is one of TAMUCC's documented conflicts. The certificate program page says Fall Intake Only, while the July 2024 MSN handbook said certificate cohorts start in summer, and the July 2026 handbook says nothing either way. Ask the FNP Clinical Coordinator or the graduate advisor which term your cohort's first clinical falls in.
MSN applicants admitted before they hold a Texas RN license must have it by the end of the first semester, and TAMUCC's clinicals require a Texas license or a compact license authorized for Texas. Conditionally admitted students also carry a B-or-better requirement through their first four MSN courses, so the first clinical term is no time to learn the grading scale. See grades and progression.
Why start your first placement with us
The first placement sets the pace for the whole program. Bring us in the semester before NURS 5624 and your placement advisor searches near your home for a Texas preceptor meeting TAMUCC's FNP standard, confirms whether the site already has an agreement with TAMUCC, and assembles the CV, license and certification details the packet needs.
Because the chain runs on to NURS 5644 with its pediatrics focus and NURS 5645 with its women's health focus, we plan the next rotations while the first one is under way, so each semester opens with a preceptor ready. Already inside the three-month window? The need a preceptor fast page explains how we work on a short timeline. Start with how it works, or send us your term in the form below.
Questions TAMUCC students ask
Is NURS 5624 offered every semester at TAMUCC?
The MSN handbook's rule is one offering per calendar year, yet public syllabi show NURS 5624 in both Spring 2025 and Fall 2025. Because the two sources point different ways, rely on your Degree Planner and the CONHS Graduate Advisor for the term your cohort takes it.
Can I take NURS 5644 before NURS 5624?
No. The catalog makes NURS 5624 the prerequisite for NURS 5644, which is in turn the prerequisite for NURS 5645 and then NURS 5746. The MSN handbook bars progression beyond an unpassed prerequisite, so a delay in the first course moves every course after it.
Does TAMUCC set a deadline for naming my first preceptor?
TAMUCC does not publish a fixed calendar deadline for submitting a preceptor. The working deadlines come from the affiliation agreement, which can take up to three months, the packet, and any health system's own student-request dates. Your clinical faculty member must clear you before your first hour counts.
Is there an on-campus intensive before TAMUCC FNP clinicals?
TAMUCC's FNP guide and catalog do not list a required on-campus intensive or skills check-off. The MSN handbook does say students will be expected to attend periodic campus events, with dates announced by TAMUCC. The FNP itself is offered online, with precepted clinicals at Texas sites.
What if I live outside Texas when my first clinical starts?
Your clinical site still has to be in Texas. The MSN handbook keeps all clinical education and training inside Texas, and admission itself rests on a Texas RN license or a compact license carrying authorization to practice there. Read the Texas-only rule before you plan a first rotation.
Related pages
Last checked 2026-09-26
We check these pages against TAMUCC's catalog, FNP clinical guides, MSN and DNP handbooks and college pages. Your course, your clinical faculty member and the handbook for your cohort have the final word.
TAMUCC makes the preceptor search yours. Let us run it for you in Texas.
Tell us your TAMUCC program, your next clinical course and where in Texas you can drive. We find preceptors who fit the course and gather what the affiliation agreement and the Preceptor Agreement Packet need, early enough for both to clear.
- Preceptors matched to the course: pediatrics for
NURS 5644, women's health forNURS 5645, broad primary care forNURS 5746 - CV, license, board certification and the site's agreement status ready for TAMUCC's paperwork
- In Corpus Christi, the Valley, San Antonio, Houston, Austin, Dallas-Fort Worth and across Texas
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