Walden AGACNP

Walden AGACNP preceptor and placement: 640 acute-care hours

Q: How many practicum hours does the Walden AGACNP program require?

The AGACNP specialization requires 640 practicum hours across four courses, 160 hours each. Students seeking APRN licensure in Kansas who began on or after March 1, 2025 complete 750 hours, about 188 per course. Always confirm the count on your own program-of-study page.

Q: Who is allowed to precept Walden AGACNP students?

Walden accepts acute-care qualified preceptors such as an ACNP, AGACNP, AGNP, ANP, ENP, intensivist, or hospitalist, plus an MD or DO. A physician assistant may qualify depending on state board rules. The preceptor needs a graduate degree, active licensure in the specialty, and at least one year of post-graduate independent practice.

Q: What clinical sites count for the AGACNP practicum?

Acute and high-acuity inpatient settings count, including acute care hospital units, critical care or ICU, and emergency departments, plus specialty inpatient rotations like cardiology or trauma. Outpatient clinics, primary care offices, operating rooms, and palliative care units are not accepted for the acute-care courses.

Q: Does Walden find my AGACNP preceptor for me?

Usually no. Students secure their own preceptor and site, then nominate them in Meditrek for approval before the course starts. Walden provides checklists, coaching, and the affiliation-agreement database, and finalizes placements directly for certain sites that require it.

Q: How many patient encounters do I log per AGACNP course?

Each acute-care practicum course requires 80 patient encounters alongside the 160 hours. You record both your time and your patient logs in Meditrek, and your preceptor signs off.

The Walden Adult-Gerontology Acute Care NP track runs on 640 practicum hours spread across four acute-care courses, 160 hours each, in high-acuity inpatient settings. You must secure your own acute-care preceptor and site, then nominate them in Meditrek for approval before the course begins. This page walks through the hours, the courses, who can precept, which sites count, and how we get you matched.

Last updated: June 22, 2026 · Reviewed by the Walden Preceptor placement team

No payment until matched

Start your placement, free

Tell us your program. We map the whole practicum. No payment until you are matched.

The hour requirement at a glance

Every AGACNP specialization course pairs didactic content with a practicum block. Across the four practicum courses you log 640 hours total, with 160 hours in each course, plus 80 patient encounters per course. There is a state exception: students pursuing APRN licensure in Kansas who started on or after March 1, 2025 complete 750 hours, which works out to roughly 188 hours per course (Walden Nursing Practicum Manual).

640

Total practicum hours

Acute-care courses, 160 hrs each

Patient encounters per course

Catalog numbering shifts by entry year, so confirm the exact hour count and course list on your personal program-of-study page before you plan.

The four AGACNP practicum courses

The acute-care sequence builds from older-adult care into progressively higher acuity. Each course carries a didactic prefix (NRNP or DRNP) paired with a practicum prefix (PRAC or PRCM) at the same 6xxx number.

Course number	Focus	Practicum
6540	Advanced Practice Care of Older Adults	160 hrs / 80 patients
6566	Advanced Care of Adults in Acute Settings I	160 hrs / 80 patients
6550	Advanced Care of Adults in Acute Settings II	160 hrs / 80 patients
6560	Advanced Care of Adults in Acute Settings III	160 hrs / 80 patients

Numbers reflect the current AGACNP layout in Walden's field-experience guides; your actual codes appear in your course shell and Meditrek (Walden field experience, 6566 AGACNP).

Who can precept an acute-care student

The acute-care courses are stricter about preceptor specialty than primary-care tracks, because your encounters have to happen in genuinely high-acuity settings. Walden accepts a preceptor who holds a graduate degree, carries active licensure in the specialty, and has at least one year of post-graduate independent practice. Acceptable credentials for AGACNP include:

ACNP or AGACNP (acute-care nurse practitioner)
AGNP, ANP, or ENP working in an acute or emergency setting
An intensivist or hospitalist
An MD or DO practicing in the acute-care environment
A physician assistant, where the state board permits it

A preceptor cannot supervise another student at the same time as you, and cannot have a conflict of interest (a relative, a direct supervisor outside the practicum, or anyone you report to). These details are verified during Meditrek approval (Walden, find a preceptor).

Which clinical sites count, and which do not

This is where AGACNP students get tripped up. The acute-care courses require high-acuity inpatient experience, so primary-care and outpatient placements do not satisfy them, even if the preceptor is excellent.

Sites that count

Acute care hospital units
Critical care and ICU
Emergency departments
Inpatient specialty rotations (cardiology, trauma, and similar)

Sites that do not

Outpatient and primary care clinics
Operating rooms
Palliative care units
Any setting without acute or critical inpatient volume

The exception is the older-adult course (6540), which is broader by design. The three acute-settings courses (6566, 6550, 6560) all need the high-acuity inpatient environment.

How approval works in Meditrek

Walden runs placement approvals through Meditrek. The flow looks like this:

Secure your preceptor and site. Treat the search like a job hunt. You confirm an acute-care preceptor and an inpatient site that meets the course requirements.

Nominate in Meditrek. You submit the preceptor and site for approval before the course starts. You cannot register for a practicum course without an approved Meditrek application.

Affiliation agreement. Some sites already have an agreement in Meditrek's database; others need Walden to finalize one. Build in time for this, especially with large hospital systems.

Log and sign off. Once you start, you enter time and patient logs in Meditrek, and your preceptor signs off your hours and evaluations.

Walden's Office of Field Experience supports the process with checklists, coaching calls, and the affiliation-agreement database. For most students Walden does not assign the preceptor; you find your own. Its Practicum Pledge can step in as a backstop, but only after you document a qualifying failed search. A handful of sites require Walden to finalize the placement directly, in which case you schedule a coaching call to begin (Walden, course success).

Compliance and timing

Before clinical contact you clear compliance through CastleBranch (myCB): background check, drug screen, immunizations, and required trainings. Requirements are state-specific, and Walden does not accept an outside background check, so start this early.

Pacing rules apply across the practicum. You can log a maximum of 12 hours in a day, your hours must spread over at least eight weeks, and you complete the course by the end of Week 10 (Week 11 for Tempo, though note the NP tracks are course-based, not Tempo). With 160 hours and 80 encounters per course, mapping a realistic weekly schedule against your shift availability matters from day one.

How many practicum hours does the Walden AGACNP program require?

640 hours across four courses, 160 each, plus 80 patient encounters per course. Kansas APRN students who started on or after March 1, 2025 complete 750 hours, about 188 per course. Confirm your own count on your program-of-study page.

Who is allowed to precept Walden AGACNP students?

An ACNP, AGACNP, AGNP, ANP, ENP, intensivist, hospitalist, MD, or DO in an acute-care setting. A physician assistant may qualify depending on the state board. The preceptor needs a graduate degree, active specialty licensure, and at least one year of independent post-graduate practice.

What clinical sites count for the AGACNP practicum?

Acute and high-acuity inpatient settings: hospital units, critical care or ICU, emergency departments, and inpatient specialty rotations. Outpatient clinics, primary care, operating rooms, and palliative care units do not count for the acute-care courses.

Does Walden find my AGACNP preceptor for me?

Usually no. You secure your own preceptor and site, then nominate them in Meditrek for approval before the course starts. Walden supports with checklists, coaching, and the affiliation-agreement database, and finalizes placements directly only for sites that require it.

How many patient encounters do I log per AGACNP course?

80 patient encounters per course, alongside the 160 hours. You record time and patient logs in Meditrek and your preceptor signs off.

Sources

Where we help

Acute-care placements are hard to find. We do the finding.

High-acuity inpatient sites with an ACNP or hospitalist preceptor are the scarcest placements in the program. We source the site, confirm it clears the course requirements, and help you through the Meditrek nomination and affiliation agreement. We match you within 5 days, and you pay nothing until you are matched. More than 3,200 nurses supported.

Get matched for your AGACNP practicum

Breakdown showing the Walden AGACNP practicum total of 640 hours as four acute-care courses of 160 hours each, with 80 patient encounters per course. — The Walden AGACNP track requires 640 practicum hours, split as four acute-care courses of 160 hours each.