Essential Competencies for Nurse Preceptors

Nursing programs partner with a variety of clinical practice settings to provide student nurses expert clinical training. This essential partnership assures students are prepared to provide quality patient care. Within these practice sites, staff registered nurses (RNs) provide nursing students rich clinical learning experiences within a safe yet challenging learning environment. These RNs are identified as Nurse Preceptors. While many clinical practice sites have programs that prepare staff nurses to precept new employees, most programs do not include specific preparation for working with nursing students.

This Preceptor Development Program is designed to prepare registered nurses to construct high quality, rich, and effective learning experiences. Staff RNs who participate in preceptor development programs report more confidence and satisfaction in the preceptor role. This effect translates to the student’s learning as well. Students who have well prepared clinical preceptors describe effective and valued learning experiences.

Topic areas covered in these modules include:

1. Preceptor roles and responsibilities
2. Assessing learner needs and learning styles
3. Clinical teaching
4. Critical thinking and clinical decision making
5. Legal issues in preceptorships
6. Communication and conflict resolution
7. Managing learning experiences of culturally and generationally diverse students

Verified learners may receive 8 continuing education units (CE's) from the University of Maryland School of Nursing.

The University of Maryland School of Nursing is an accredited provider of continuing nursing education by the American Nurses Credentialing Center's Commission on Accreditation.