Liberty MSN Nurse Educator: preceptors and sites for 300 hours
In Liberty's MSN Nurse Educator track, you choose the facility and set up the preceptor contract yourself. The 300 practicum hours run through NURS 677, 678 and 679, and the site affiliation agreement has to be in place before the first of them. Clinical and classroom teaching both appear in the sequence, so one preceptor may not cover everything.
Plan your educator practicum
Tell us your state and when you expect to reach NURS 677. A placement advisor will reply about clinical and academic teaching sites near you.
NURS 677, 678 and 679
How the track is built
The Nurse Educator concentration is a 36-credit online MSN. Courses run 8 weeks with eight start dates a year and no set login times, although Liberty notes practicums may be an exception. Liberty's next MSN start dates are October 26, 2026, January 18, 2027 and February 15, 2027, and an accelerated one-year track is offered.
The catalog plan spreads the degree over six semesters across three years, with five years allowed to finish and no grade below B- counted. The shared MSN core includes the zero-credit Practicum Gate, NURS 527, which sits in the first semester and must be passed before any practicum course.
Before the practicums, you take the educator's version of the advanced practice core: NURS 504 pharmacology, NURS 505 health and physical assessment and NURS 506 pathophysiology, plus NURS 600 on evaluation strategies. Liberty says all practicum hours can be completed in your own community, with no travel to Lynchburg.
The practicum sequence
The three practicums share 300 hours. The catalog doesn't publish a per-course split, so check each syllabus before agreeing on a schedule with your preceptor.
| Course | What you do | Before you enroll |
|---|---|---|
NURS 527 MSN Practicum Gate | Submit practicum requirements (0 credits) | First semester |
NURS 677 Nurse Educator I: Advanced Clinical Applications | Advanced health assessment in a chosen population, plus simulation design | Site affiliation agreement and preceptor contract in place; NURS 504, 505, 506, 521, 527 done |
NURS 678 Nurse Educator II: Teaching Strategies | Observing and teaching in both clinical and classroom settings | NURS 600 and 677 done |
NURS 679 Nurse Educator III: Curriculum Development | Curriculum design and evaluation, with hours continuing | NURS 678 done |
An older 2022-23 handbook listed 200 educator hours under the former course numbers NURS 617, 618 and 619. The 2026-27 catalog's 300 is the current figure.
Who can precept a Nurse Educator student
Liberty describes this preceptor two ways. The course descriptions ask for an approved nurse educator preceptor, while the plan footnote asks for an approved MSN- or doctorally prepared nurse leader preceptor. Ask your course faculty which wording governs before you approach anyone, and keep the two descriptions in mind when you do.
The older handbook adds detail that may still guide approval. It called for an RN license in good standing and an MSN (or School of Nursing approval), and it preferred a doctorate, certification and two years of experience. For the clinical course it wanted an MSN-prepared specialist such as a CNS, NP, CNM or CRNA and barred physicians and physician assistants; for the teaching courses, the preceptor had to work in an education setting.
Because NURS 677 is clinical and NURS 678 spans clinical and classroom teaching, you may end up with more than one preceptor and more than one site. The same handbook noted that educator students may need more than one agreement. Our preceptor requirements page compares the rules across tracks.
Your role, and the practicum office's
The current catalog puts you in charge: you secure an educational site affiliation agreement with an approved facility you select, and you obtain a preceptor site contract. The older handbook said the MSN program works with students to secure preceptors and asked students to check preceptor availability in their area before enrolling, and it let students ask the MSN practicum coordinator about sites Liberty had already approved. Asking that question early can save a cold search.
Agreements take time. The older handbook encouraged sites that accept Liberty's own Clinical Program Affiliation Agreement, warned that a facility's own contract may delay approval, and offered an Attestation of Agreement letter for sites that need no contract. The site contract page explains each document.
NURS 677 won't open until the site agreement and preceptor contract are done. Start the paperwork while you're still in NURS 504 to 506, not in the week before registration.
Two early tasks to plan for
First, NURS 505 needs its own helper. The catalog says you must find a master's-prepared nurse to proctor the final exam, a head-to-toe physical assessment, and the course guide describes it as a narrated video on a consenting adult, uploaded with the proctor's graded rubric. That proctor is not a practicum preceptor, but you need one well before practicum.
Second, the pre-practicum requirements. The MSN catalog lists AHA CPR, immunizations (MMR, TB, varicella, hepatitis B and influenza), HIPAA and bloodborne pathogens training, a criminal background check and a 10-panel drug screen, and sites may add their own. Students carry all practicum-related costs. The clearance page sets out timing, and once hours begin, logs and evaluations run through InPlace, which replaced Typhon for MSN students from fall 2022.
Where educator practicum is allowed
Liberty doesn't approve MSN practicum in the District of Columbia, and students based in a U.S. territory complete practicum in one of the 50 states. Washington is open to this track: Liberty's page says Nurse Educator students are approved to complete practicum there with an active Washington RN license.
Everywhere, your RN license has to cover the practicum state, whether it's that state's own or a multistate license the state recognizes. Liberty also advises checking with your state's Department of Education or Board of Nursing, because some states may reserve clinical sites for in-state residential students. If you have moved since you enrolled, note that updating your address in myLU doesn't change your state on file for licensure purposes; Liberty asks for its State Change Notification form instead. The state restrictions page compares programs.
Why Nurse Educator students choose us
Educator placements are student-arranged, so the heavy lifting is finding a willing preceptor who meets Liberty's wording and a facility that will sign an agreement in time. We search for clinical and academic teaching sites near you, prepare the preceptor CV, license details and site information the Gate course collects, and track the agreement through to signature with you.
Our search sits alongside whatever the MSN practicum office can offer, and when a site Liberty already knows fits your plan, we point you to it first. We stay on call if a preceptor steps away between NURS 678 and 679. Liberty decides on each educator site and preceptor, and the agreement we help you track is part of what it checks. When you know your NURS 677 term, use the form below.
Questions Liberty students ask
Can a physician precept my Liberty Nurse Educator clinical course?
The 2022-23 MSN handbook said no physicians or physician assistants could precept the educator clinical course, then numbered NURS 617, and asked for an MSN-prepared nurse specialist. The current catalog asks for an MSN- or doctorally prepared preceptor. Since both point to a nurse with a graduate degree, plan on that and confirm with faculty.
Can I do my Nurse Educator practicum at my own hospital?
The 2022-23 handbook allowed practicum at your existing workplace if the hours were unpaid, an affiliation agreement was in place, the site met course needs, and you worked in a different unit or department from your job. That is the most recent written rule. Confirm it still applies before you build around your employer.
Who proctors the NURS 505 physical assessment exam?
You choose a master's-prepared nurse to proctor it. The course guide describes a student-narrated video of a head-to-toe assessment on a consenting adult, uploaded with the proctor's graded rubric. A colleague with a master's in nursing may qualify, but check the course instructions in Canvas for any extra conditions before you schedule the recording.
Can I take two educator practicums in the same term?
The older MSN handbook allowed one practicum course per sub-term and counted hours only within the course term dates, after you and your preceptor had met. The catalog prerequisites also chain the courses, with NURS 678 requiring 677 and 679 requiring 678, so the sequence runs one course at a time in practice.
Am I covered by Liberty's malpractice insurance during educator practicum?
The 2022-23 MSN handbook said Liberty provides professional malpractice coverage for MSN students in required practicum, but only for Liberty-scheduled practicum hours. Shadowing, employment, volunteering or continuing with a site after your hours end were outside that coverage. No newer public statement gives limits, so ask the MSN office if a site requests proof.
Related pages
Last checked 2026-09-23
We check these pages against Liberty's own published sources. The practicum team and Liberty's current handbook have the final word.
More leads, sooner, for your practicum.
Tell us your Liberty program, your county and when your practicum starts. We look for a preceptor and site that fit Liberty's rules for your track, and help you get the Gate-course paperwork right.
- Matched to your track: FNP, PMHNP, DNP or MSN
- Paperwork ready for the Gate course and the site contract
- In person near you, or telehealth where your track allows it
Start your placement plan
A placement advisor replies with what a Liberty-ready preceptor and site look like for you.