Clinical Placement Scheduling — Operations

Step 1Lock the term roster

Nothing downstream works until the roster is final: who needs a placement, and how big each clinical group may be. Group-size caps come from your program's policy — never from memory.

Term (e.g., Fall 2026) Cohort size needing placement Max clinical group size (per program policy)

Roster exported with student names and IDs — adds/drops resolved
Clinical group size cap confirmed from program policy (record the policy name/version below)

Policy source for the group cap

Step 2Confirm site capacities

Every site's per-shift student capacity, confirmed by a person at the site — plus a current affiliation agreement. The program is responsible for adequate, appropriate, available sites (CCNE II-C).

Number of clinical sites this term

Each site's per-shift student capacity confirmed by the site contact — with name and date recorded
Affiliation agreement current (unexpired) for every site; expirations logged
Site-sufficiency documentation assembled (the CCNE II-C evidence file)

Step 3Build the placement grid

Assign every student to exactly one clinical group, each group to a site and shift. Every group needs a named faculty owner — faculty own clinical evaluation (CCNE III-K).

Every student assigned to exactly one clinical group — no one unplaced, no one double-booked
Each clinical group has a named faculty owner recorded
Required clinical hours accounted for per course (including program hour minimums and, where applicable, the NP 500-hour direct-care floor)
Shift and site conflicts checked — no student in two places at once

Step 4Match groups to sites

Capacity check per pairing, plus each site's special requirements: compliance prerequisites, orientation, parking, EHR access.

Each group's size fits its site's confirmed per-shift capacity
Each site's special requirements noted (compliance deadlines, orientation, EHR training)
Preceptor credential-check dates recorded per site (feeds the preceptor-matching workflow)

Step 5Confirm with sites

Written confirmations from every site contact. Email drafts you ask Nick to write are headed DRAFT FOR HUMAN REVIEW — send them yourself.

Confirmation request sent to each site contact (group sizes, dates, shifts)
Written confirmation received from every site — filed
Any site-requested changes logged and the grid updated

Step 6Notify and publish

Students, faculty, and the evaluation calendar go out together. The midterm evaluation date belongs in the announcement — not discovered later.

Students notified of their placements (site, shift, start date, compliance deadline)
Faculty notified of their group assignments
Term calendar published with midterm and final clinical evaluation dates

Midterm evaluation date Final evaluation date