Bachelor of Science in Nursing / Practical Training & Field Experience

Nursing student clinical and practicums take place in a healthcare setting, where students can gain the experience they need to succeed in their future careers. Potential internship settings include hospitals, clinics, long-term care facilities, and doctor’s offices. Students’ nursing schools help place them in an internship or practicum environment that suits their academic needs and career goals.

In nursing practicums, students are supervised by a registered nurse who serves as their mentor. Practicum students help with paperwork and other supportive duties, and while their work doesn't include hands-on patient care, they do have chances to observe working nurses as they care for patients. nursing student clinical include more responsibility than practicums, since they require direct patient care. Tasks include feeding and dressing patients, administering medication, assisting with tests and procedures, and helping develop and implement patient care plans. Interns work with the nursing staff in a clinical setting, and are closely supervised by a registered nurse who monitors and reports their progress to their nursing school.

 

Practicums and clinical helps students improve their self-discipline skills, preparing them to complete tasks in the workplace and successfully hold down a job. These positions also help students hone their interpersonal skills by providing them the opportunity to work with nursing staff and other healthcare professionals.

 

Practicums and clinical provide first-hand experiences that the classroom cannot offer. Students may practice techniques for administering medication or drawing blood in a classroom, but it’s completely different to perform these tasks for a real patient who may be ill, anxious, or in pain. These students also get a chance to work in different specialties, so they may find there’s an area of medicine they especially prefer, or ones they don’t like. This knowledge, plus the professional connections and recommendations students can gain in the process, are especially helpful in transitioning from the academic world to the workforce after graduation.​