Samford's PMHNP MSN: the plan, the hours and the preceptors behind them
Samford's Psychiatric-Mental Health NP MSN is a six-semester online program: 48 credits, 750 clinical hours and one or two short trips to Birmingham. Clinical work starts earlier than many students expect, with NURG 767 in the third semester, and each of the four clinical courses needs a preceptor Samford approves.
Line up your PMHNP preceptors
Share your start term and where you live. We plan the NURG 767 setting and the psychiatric clinicals together.
The program at a glance
The BSN to MSN PMHNP admits in May, with a March 1 deadline and a 3.0 GPA requirement. Samford's plan of study, dated December 2025, totals 48 credits, and the 2025-2026 catalog agrees. Coursework is online, with 1 or 2 required on-campus intensives in Birmingham, and the clinicals take place in what Samford calls "a variety of mental health care settings" near where you live.
Two other doors lead to the same clinicals. Nurses with an associate degree take the eight-semester, 54-credit ADN to MSN, which starts in August. Nurses who already hold a master's can take the PMHNP certificate or the MSN to DNP.
Graduates sit for board certification through ANCC or AANPCB. The graduate handbook adds a caution worth heeding early: confirm that the board of nursing in the state where you plan to practice accepts the AANPCB PMHNP credential before you choose which exam to take.
Semester by semester
The plan pairs each clinical course with a didactic course in the same term, so what you study that semester shapes what your preceptor should be able to show you.
| Term | Courses | Clinical hours |
|---|---|---|
| Year 1 summer | NURG 533 Advanced Physiology and Pathophysiology; NURG 731 Concepts of APN | None |
| Year 1 fall | NURG 610 Advanced Health Assessment (campus visit); NURG 633 Pharmacotherapeutics; NURG 766 Psychiatric Assessment and Diagnosis | None |
| Year 1 spring | NURG 767 Psychotherapeutic Frameworks and Modalities; NURG 769 Psychopharmacology; NURG 771 Psychiatric Mental Health I | 75 |
| Year 2 summer | NURG 732 Evidence-Based Practice; NURG 772 Psychiatric Mental Health II (child and adolescent); NURG 788 Advanced Practice Clinical I PMHNP | 150 |
| Year 2 fall | COHS 500 Interprofessional Practice; NURG 774 Psychiatric Mental Health III (adult and geriatric); NURG 789 Advanced Practice Clinical II PMHNP | 225 |
| Year 2 spring | NURG 606 Systems Leadership; NURG 790 PMHNP Practicum | 300 |
Samford's program page describes clinical weeks of 10 to 20 hours depending on the rotation. If you started in May 2026, NURG 767 is your spring 2027 course, and the College of Health Sciences graduate calendar runs that term from January 11 to April 22, 2027. The same calendar lets certain clinical experiences begin a week early, on January 4, so ask your course faculty whether yours does.
The four clinical courses and who precepts them
NURG 767 is the therapy course: the catalog calls for hours with "a Samford approved preceptor" in psychotherapeutic work. It is the one most students underestimate, and the NURG 767 guide covers what counts and how to plan it.
NURG 788, NURG 789 and NURG 790 are the psychiatric clinicals, rising from 150 to 225 to 300 hours. Their didactic partners hint at the patient mix: child and adolescent content runs beside NURG 788, adult and geriatric content beside NURG 789, and the practicum closes the program. The course-by-course detail sits on the PMHNP clinicals page.
Who can precept? Alabama's rule for APRN programs defines a preceptor as an advanced practice registered nurse, a physician, or another appropriately licensed, population-focused clinician. Samford's own NP preceptor criteria are in the NP Clinical Manual inside the Canvas Nurse Practitioner Homeroom, and Samford approves each preceptor, so check every candidate against that manual before anyone commits time.
Where Samford's PMHNP documents disagree
Several public Samford sources give different numbers for this track. Plan to the stricter figure and ask your program coordinator which one governs your cohort.
NURG 767hours: the plans of study say 75; the catalog says "a minimum of 60 hours."- Total hours: an archived capture of the PMHNP MSN page from June 2025 said a minimum of 660 clinical hours; the current page and plans say 750.
- Weekly load: the page archived between 2022 and 2024 told students to expect 16 to 20 clinical hours a week; today's page says 10 to 20.
- Prerequisites: the catalog lists
NURG 601beforeNURG 771andNURG 773beforeNURG 774, yet neither of those earlier courses appears in the current plan. - Liability insurance: the handbook calls personal coverage required for graduate nursing students, while the catalog calls it highly recommended. The insurance page sets out both.
Why psychiatric preceptors take longer to find
Mental health prescribers are scarce, and scarcity shows up as preceptor time. HRSA's quarterly summary, as of June 30, 2026, lists 67 mental health shortage designations in Alabama and puts the share of need met at 28.40 percent. The same report puts Alabama's primary care need met at 62.97 percent, so the psychiatric gap is more than twice as deep. Where need outruns prescribers, a psychiatric clinician's teaching time gets spoken for early.
Distance adds its own cost. Samford's NP pages say the school does not arrange or reimburse travel for clinicals, so a psychiatric preceptor two hours away means your fuel, your time and your lost shifts for three straight semesters. Planning for clinical travel covers the trade-offs.
Samford holds affiliation agreements with hundreds of agencies and lets students request more, but its NP pages lean on your own professional and personal connections to land a placement near home. A student without a psychiatric NP or psychiatrist in their network is starting from zero, which is exactly the gap we fill.
How we place Samford PMHNP students
- Map all four courses at onceYour placement advisor plans the
NURG 767therapy setting and the three psychiatric clinicals together, aiming for continuity where one practice can carry you across terms. - Find preceptors near home who fit Samford's courseWe search your area for psychiatric NPs, psychiatrists and therapy settings whose patients match each course, and confirm their interest in precepting before your name goes forward.
- Prepare what Samford reviewsPreceptor and site details are collected and checked against the course, so your clinical rotation request is complete the first time; where the site needs a new affiliation agreement, we assemble the information for that request.
- Carry onboarding to the finishSite paperwork, orientation and your Samford clearance items move in step, so the first clinical day starts on schedule.
- Stay on call all termIf a preceptor steps away mid-course, we start the replacement search that day and keep your hours moving.
Samford approves every preceptor and site; we make sure the preceptor you bring fits NURG 767 or the clinical in front of you. Request your PMHNP placement plan.
Questions Samford students ask
How many clinical hours is Samford's PMHNP MSN?
750 in the current plans: 75 in NURG 767, 150 in NURG 788, 225 in NURG 789 and 300 in NURG 790. The program page states the same minimum. The only open question is NURG 767, where the catalog's minimum is 60, so budget 75 unless your course says otherwise.
Is Samford's PMHNP program fully online?
The coursework is online, but the track requires 1 or 2 on-campus intensives in Birmingham, and the plan marks a campus visit in the first fall with NURG 610. Clinical hours happen in your own community, although Samford's pages note that travel for clinical opportunities may sometimes be needed to meet course requirements.
Can a psychiatrist precept a Samford PMHNP student?
Alabama's definition of an APRN program preceptor includes physicians, alongside APRNs and other appropriately licensed clinicians in the population. Samford still approves each preceptor against the rules in its NP Clinical Manual, so confirm the specialty and license with your course before the psychiatrist agrees.
Does Samford publish a PMHNP board exam pass rate?
Not publicly. Samford's NP pages report an FNP certification result, and no PMHNP figure appears anywhere on its site. Graduates can certify through ANCC or AANPCB, and the handbook asks you to confirm that your state board accepts the AANPCB PMHNP credential before you register. The certification exams guide compares the two boards.
Can I start clinical hours before NURG 767?
The plan places the first clinical hours in NURG 767, in the third semester, after the assessment, pharmacology and psychiatric diagnosis courses, and your plan of study sets that order. What you can do early is identify the therapy setting and preceptor, so the spring term starts with hours on day one rather than a search.
Related pages
Last checked 2026-09-25
We check these pages against Samford's own program pages, plans of study, the 2026-27 Graduate Nursing Student Handbook and Alabama rules. Your course, your program coordinator and Graduate Student Services have the final word.
Samford says connections are essential. We are the connection.
Tell us your Samford track, where you live and when your next clinical course starts. We find preceptors near you who fit the course and prepare the details Samford needs to approve the rotation, including a new affiliation agreement where one is needed.
- Preceptors matched to the course: adult primary care for
NURG 723, family practice across the lifespan forNURG 724, psychiatric care forNURG 788 - Preceptor, license and site details ready for your clinical rotation request
- In your own community, anywhere Samford accepts you and your RN license is valid
Start your placement plan
Program, city and start date is all we need to begin.