The usual sequence
- Review the course and hour requirements.
- Identify a preceptor and site that appear to qualify.
- Submit the university’s application or nomination materials.
- Complete onboarding required by the school and the site.
- Attend clinicals, document hours, and finish evaluations.
Where students get stuck
The bottleneck is often not “studying.” It is locating a willing, qualified preceptor before the deadline, then finishing affiliation or onboarding in time. Treat those as a project with a calendar, not a last-week task.