UNCW nursing programs and the practicum behind each one

Updated September 25, 2026 · Reviewed by the UNCW Preceptor placement team

UNCW's nurse practitioner concentrations sit inside the DNP, and each one asks for 1,000 hours, most of them with a North Carolina preceptor. The nurse educator programs, the leadership DNPs and the bachelor's options each follow their own pattern. The table sets out UNCW's figures, and every program guide below walks through its practicum courses and the kind of preceptor each one calls for.

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Bar chart of hours in UNCW's 2026-27 catalog and program pages: every DNP concentration 1,000; FNP and AGPCNP practica 180, 180, 180 and 240 (780; the catalog lists 750 direct care); PMHNP four practica of 187.5 (750); BSN 675 clinical hours; MSN Nurse Educator 186 practicum hours. — Hours in UNCW's 2026-27 catalog and program pages: every DNP concentration 1,000; FNP and AGPCNP practica 180, 180, 180 and 240 (780; the catalog lists 750 direct care); PMHNP four practica of 187.5 (750); BSN 675 clinical hours; MSN Nurse Educator 186 practicum hours.

Practicum hours by UNCW program

Where UNCW's own pages give two different numbers, the guides show both; your syllabus and the Graduate Clinical Coordinator settle which one applies to you. For a semester-by-semester view of every program, open the planner on the clinical hours page.

UNCW clinical and practicum hours (2026-27 catalog and program pages)
Program	Hours	Who arranges the site
DNP FNP and AGPCNP	1,000: 750 direct care (course pages add to 780) + 250	You, in North Carolina
DNP PMHNP and the PMHNP certificate	1,000 in the DNP: 4 x 187.5 direct care + 250	You, in North Carolina
DNP Post APRN and Nurse Executive Leadership	1,000, part carried from the master's, plus immersion hours	Your DNP project, no assigned preceptor
MSN Nurse Educator	186 practicum and practice hours	You, where you are licensed
Nurse Educator certificate	Practicum with an educator preceptor	You, where you are licensed
BSN Prelicensure and ABSN	675 clinical hours	UNCW assigns clinical sites
RN-BSN	No set clinical hours	Practice experiences, often at work

Nurse practitioner DNP

DNP Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP)UNCW's BSN-DNP Family Nurse Practitioner track: 74 credits, four NSGL practica, 1,000 hours, North Carolina-only clinicals and how to plan your preceptors.DNP Adult-Gero Primary Care NPUNCW's AGPCNP DNP: 72 credits, NSGL 660 to NSGL 663, patients from age 13 to end of life, frail-elderly care, an NP preceptor and North Carolina clinicals.DNP Psychiatric Mental Health NPUNCW's PMHNP DNP has two routes, BSN-DNP and MSN-DNP, leading to four 187.5-hour practica with North Carolina psychiatric preceptors, one student per day.PMHNP Post-Doctoral CertificateUNCW's new PMHNP Post-Doctoral Certificate: 31 credits for DNP-prepared NPs, the NSGL 646 to 649 practica in North Carolina, and what UNCW has yet to publish.

Doctoral leadership

DNP Post APRNUNCW's Post APRN DNP: 33 credits, 1,000 hours with 500 from your master's, immersion hours with no assigned preceptor, and a project where you're licensed.DNP Nurse Executive LeadershipUNCW's Nurse Executive Leadership DNP: 36 credits, 1,000 post-baccalaureate hours, immersion with no assigned preceptor and a project in your licensed state.

Nurse educator

MSN Nurse EducatorUNCW's online MSN Nurse Educator: 36 credits, six starts a year, 186 practicum hours, the August 2026 curriculum and the educator preceptor you arrange.Nurse Educator certificateUNCW's 12-credit online Nurse Educator Post-Graduate Certificate ends in a practicum you arrange. Courses, timing rules, hours and preceptor criteria explained.

Bachelor's

BSN PrelicensureHow clinicals work in UNC Wilmington's on-campus BSN: 675 hours, sites the school assigns across the region, the NSG 434 RN preceptorship and pass/fail grading.Accelerated BSN (ABSN)UNCW's second-degree ABSN runs four on-campus semesters from summer. Clinical hours, assigned sites, travel, vaccine rules and the NSG 434 capstone, explained.RN-BSN (online)UNCW's online RN-BSN sets no clinical-hour count. How practice experiences work at your job or outside it, plus the license rule, 7-week courses and starts.

Questions UNCW students ask

How many clinical hours are in UNCW's DNP NP concentrations?

The catalog asks for 1,000 hours in each: 750 direct patient care plus 250 non-patient hours. The FNP and AGPCNP course pages list four practica of 180, 180, 180 and 240 hours, and PMHNP lists four of 187.5.

Does UNCW still offer an MSN FNP?

Not in the current catalog. UNCW's nurse practitioner preparation now runs through the BSN-DNP concentrations; the MSN FNP last appeared in the 2022-23 catalog.

Which UNCW programs place students in clinical sites?

The BSN Prelicensure and ABSN, where the school makes clinical assignments across the counties around Wilmington. Graduate NP and educator students find their own preceptors with UNCW's help.

HoursUNCW clinical hours by programClinical hours for every UNCW nursing program, from the DNP's 1,000 to the BSN's 675, where UNCW's own figures disagree, and how an hour is counted.DNPThe 1,000-hour DNP ruleHow UNCW's DNP reaches 1,000 hours: 750 direct + 250 non-patient for new NP cohorts, 500 + 500 in older catalogs, and the Post APRN and NEL rules.GuideUNCW clinical systemsEvery UNCW School of Nursing clinical guide in one place: finding preceptors, the North Carolina rule, deadlines, Typhon, hours, compliance and licenses.GuideUNCW programs by stateStudying with UNC Wilmington from another state? Fifty state guides: the North Carolina rule for NP clinicals, online programs, licenses and state rules.

Last checked 2026-09-25

UNCW asks you to find your own North Carolina preceptor. Let us run that search.

Tell us your UNCW program, your practicum course and where in North Carolina you can travel. We find preceptors who fit the course and prepare the CV, license and agency details UNCW's Graduate Clinical Coordinator reviews, well before the deadline.

Preceptors matched to the course: primary care, pediatrics and women's health for NSGL 650 to NSGL 653, adult and older-adult care for AGPCNP, psychiatric care for PMHNP
Preceptor CV with dates and site, license number and agency details ready for your submission
In Wilmington, the Cape Fear region or wherever in North Carolina your clinicals can happen

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