Excelsior nursing programs, and who arranges the placement
Excelsior University runs a full ladder of nursing programs, from an associate degree to three master's tracks, but they do not all handle practice placement the same way. Some hand you a scheduled clinical, and some hand you a blank page and expect you to fill it. Knowing which is which before you enroll saves you a scramble later. This page maps every Excelsior nursing program, the practice-experience hours each one requires, and the single fact that decides whether you need an outside placement service: does the program make you find your own mentor and site, or does Excelsior arrange it for you?
Why does the placement rule split by program?
It splits because Excelsior only supplies supervised clinicals to its entry-level students and leaves everyone else to arrange their own. The split comes down to one policy: there is no clinical instruction provided in any program in the School of Nursing at the level where you are expected to lead your own practice experience. At the graduate level, and in the RN-to-BS, Excelsior treats the practice experience as your independent work: you identify a volunteer mentor, secure a site, design a project, and clear compliance, while faculty only approves. At the prelicensure and associate level, where students are new to nursing and need supervised hands-on clinicals, Excelsior arranges those experiences itself. That is the honest line, and it is why we serve the first group and not the second.
There is no clinical instruction provided in any program in the School of Nursing. Excelsior's word is mentor and practice experience, not preceptor or rotation.
Which Excelsior nursing program are you in, and who places you?
Find your program in the row below and read across to the last column. The table covers all of Excelsior's nursing programs. The right column is the one that matters most: it tells you whether you are on your own to find a mentor and site, or whether Excelsior schedules the experience for you.
| Program | Level | Capstone or clinical | Practice-experience hours | Who arranges the placement |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MS in Nursing Education | Master's | NUR676 capstone | 135 | You self-source (we place you) |
| MS in Nursing Informatics | Master's | NUR686 capstone | 135 | You self-source (we place you) |
| MS in Nursing Leadership & Administration | Master's | NUR646 capstone | 135 | You self-source (we place you) |
| RN to MS bridges | Combined | Same MSN capstone (144 or 142 cr) | 135 | You self-source (we place you) |
| RN to BS in Nursing | Bachelor's | NUR448 + NUR462 | ~90 | You self-source (we place you) |
| Prelicensure Hybrid BSN | Bachelor's | In-person clinicals, St. Petersburg, FL | Scheduled clinicals | Excelsior arranges |
| AAS in Nursing | Associate | Scheduled clinical experiences | Scheduled clinicals | Excelsior arranges |
These figures reflect Excelsior's published requirements; confirm the exact hours, course codes, and credits against your current Excelsior catalog. Excelsior offers no nurse practitioner, no APRN, and no DNP, so no program on this list involves direct patient care at the graduate level.
The programs where the search is on you
These are the tracks where Excelsior expects you to arrive with a mentor, a site, and a project already lined up. All four require the same three-part legwork, and all four are exactly what we handle.
The combined RN-to-MS bridges (Education 144 credits, Informatics 142 credits, Leadership 144 credits) route into these same MSN capstones, so their practice experience is identical to the standalone MSN tracks.
Which programs does Excelsior place for you?
Excelsior arranges the clinicals itself for the prelicensure hybrid BSN and the associate AAS, so students in those two tracks do not need us. We are an honest independent service, so we will tell you plainly when you do not need us. Two Excelsior programs schedule their own supervised clinical experiences, so students in these tracks should not pay any placement service, ours included.
Prelicensure Hybrid BSN
Excelsior runs this program with in-person clinicals in St. Petersburg, Florida, and it arranges and schedules those clinical experiences itself. New nursing students here are supervised in a structured hands-on setting, so there is nothing to self-source and nothing for us to place.
AAS in Nursing
The associate program schedules its clinical experiences directly through Excelsior. Approved by the New York State Board of Regents, it puts students in supervised clinicals the school arranges, so an outside mentor-and-site service does not apply.
The facts that hold across every program
A few things are true no matter which Excelsior nursing program you pick. They shape what a qualified mentor looks like and how much lead time you should give yourself.
- A qualified mentor holds a master's degree or higher, has expertise in your specialization, and volunteers; faculty only approves the match
- You arrange the site, any affiliation agreement, and CastleBranch compliance: background check, drug screen, and immunizations
- Practice experiences are completed in your own community and can be in your own workplace, subject to faculty approval and conflict-of-interest rules
- Bachelor's and master's nursing are accredited by ACEN; the associate program is approved by the New York State Board of Regents; the university is institutionally accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education
- Recommended lead time is four to six months before your capstone, since sourcing a mentor and clearing compliance take longer than students expect
Program placement, answered
Which Excelsior nursing programs make you find your own mentor and site?
The three MSN tracks, Nursing Education (NUR676), Nursing Informatics (NUR686), and Nursing Leadership and Administration (NUR646), along with the RN-to-BS program, require you to self-source your own volunteer mentor, practice-experience site, and project. Excelsior provides no clinical instruction in these programs and only approves what you bring.
Which Excelsior nursing programs arrange the placement for you?
Excelsior arranges the placement itself for the prelicensure hybrid BSN in St. Petersburg, Florida and for the associate AAS program. It schedules those in-person clinical experiences, so students in those tracks do not self-source and do not need an outside placement service.
Does Excelsior offer a nurse practitioner, APRN, or DNP program?
No. Excelsior University offers no nurse practitioner, no APRN, and no DNP. Its graduate nursing is indirect-care only: MS in Nursing Education, Nursing Informatics, and Nursing Leadership and Administration, plus combined RN-to-MS bridges. None of the practice experiences involve direct patient care.
How many practice-experience hours does each Excelsior program require?
Each MSN capstone requires 135 practice-experience hours with a self-sourced mentor and project. The RN-to-BS adds roughly 90 practice-experience hours across NUR448 Community Health and the NUR462 capstone, with NUR342 using a live adult volunteer. The prelicensure hybrid BSN and AAS carry in-person clinical hours that Excelsior arranges.
Is Excelsior nursing accredited?
Yes. Excelsior's bachelor's and master's nursing programs are accredited by ACEN, the Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing. The associate program is approved by the New York State Board of Regents, and the university is institutionally accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education.
Find out if your program needs us
Tell us your Excelsior program, your city, and your capstone term. If you are in a self-source track, we will line up the mentor, site, and project. If Excelsior places you, we will say so.
Related
RN to MS Leadership
The 144-credit leadership bridge and its NUR646 capstone with a nurse-leader mentor and QI project.
Practice-experience hours
The full breakdown of hours every Excelsior MSN capstone and the RN-to-BS require.
Find a mentor
Who qualifies as an Excelsior mentor and how we source a faculty-approvable one for you.