The following roles and responsibilities of students, faculty and the Clinical Placement Coordinator (CPC) have been identified to coordinate placements for graduate students within the School and to clarify communication links between the School and clinical agencies.

Role of Students

Students are admitted to an advanced practice specialty area. They communicate their specific area of interest to the coordinator in their advanced practice area. Students will not be asked to find placements or preceptors; this causes problems for agencies and preceptors. The Clinical Placement Coordinator (CPC) will contact preceptors and clinical sites by dealing directly with faculty (and not with students). Students should anticipate up to a 1.5 hour commute one-way to their clinical site.

Role of the Faculty Advisor

Faculty and/or academic advisors should direct students to communicate with the coordinator of their advanced practice area about clinical placement issues. Graduate faculty members are encouraged to advise the Clinical Placement Coordinator as well as the coordinator of an advanced practice area of potential new placement sites and preceptors.

Responsibilities of the Course Coordinator

The responsibilities of the course coordinator of a clinical management course or practicum include:

• Informing the coordinator of the advanced practice area of potential sites and preceptors.
• Establishing informal faculty contact as an important part of the relationship between the School and agency placement sites.
• Collaborating with the coordinator of the advanced practice area to match students to placement sites.
• Communicating with the preceptor about evaluations of student's performance.
• Assisting the coordinator of the advanced practice area with the confirmation of graduate students' clinical hours to facilitate student progression and reimbursement of ambulatory community-based preceptors.

Responsibilities of the Coordinator of an Advanced Practice Area

The responsibilities of the coordinator in an advanced practice area include:

• Advising the CPC of potential new placement sites and preceptors for students.
• Compiling written requests for placement sites using the UNC School of Nursing Graduate Student Clinical Placement Request Form.
• Submitting requests for clinical placements to the Clinical Placement Coordinator as follows:
  
  

  Semester	Final Requests Due
  Requests for Spring Semester placements	Mid-September
  Requests for Summer Session I and II placements	Mid-February
  Requests for Fall Semester placements	Mid-April

  
  Requests for clinical placements are responded to in the order in which they are received. Placement requests coming to the CPC after the above deadlines will be filled as soon as possible. A delay in submitting requests may prevent obtaining the best possible or preferred placement site.
  
• Receiving a list of secured sites from Clinical Placement Coordinator
• Coordinating with the course coordinator in matching of students with secured placement sites.
• Directing course coordinator to send "Letter of Course Assignment" re: student-to-site match to agency preceptor/contact person.
• Directing course coordinator or designated person to send orientation materials (course guidelines, evaluation sheets and preceptor guidelines) to agency preceptor/contact person.
• Informing Clinical Placement Coordinator of changes involving clinical assignments of students
• Asking course coordinators to confirm graduate students' clinical hours every semester.

Responsibilities of the Clinical Placement Coordinator (CPC)

The responsibilities of the CPC include:

• Sending requests for clinical site placements to preceptors/contacts as requested by advanced practice area coordinators.
• Securing placements based on consultation with advanced practice area coordinators and responses from agencies.
• Informing the Office of Academic Affairs of placements to confirm contracts.
• Notifying advanced practice coordinators of confirmed sites.
• Notifying sites when a student drops a course or withdraws from the program.
• Notifying each coordinator of an advanced practice area of changes in clinical agencies that may impact students in the agency.
• Notifying Area Health Education Centers Offices of Regional Primary Care Education (ORPCE) directors of placements of NP students in their region at the beginning of each semester.
• Providing data to Central Area Health Education Centers, as requested, regarding NP precepted clinical hours.