Clinicals in your local area: what UofM's promise means
UofM pairs online MSN coursework with in-person practicums close to where you live, so a student in Jackson, Chattanooga or Southaven builds clinical hours near home instead of commuting to Memphis. Local still runs through UofM's rules: the RN license you hold, the states LCON may serve, the settings your track requires and the steps each health system sets.
Find a preceptor close to home
Tell us your city, your track and your first practicum term.
UofM's exact words
The MSN programs page puts the promise in one line: "Enjoy the convenience of online coursework paired with the advantage of in-person clinical practicums in your local area." UofM Global's PMHNP page says the same for psychiatric students, whose four supervised practicum courses take place "in their local communities".
The Academic Bulletin confirms that all MSN courses are online. Campus time for NP students is limited to up to three short on-campus intensives across the program, each lasting one to three days and announced at least six months ahead. The precepted hours themselves are meant to happen near you.
The promise describes where practicums happen. It does not say who arranges them for MSN and certificate students, and UofM's public pages leave that unstated. However UofM handles your placement, our team finds a preceptor and site near you that satisfy its rules.
What local looks like across the region
UofM's graduate students live well beyond Memphis, and the metro itself spans three states. Each area brings its own health systems and, across a state border, its own rules.
| Where you live | What to know |
|---|---|
| Memphis and Shelby County | Large systems run their own student steps. Regional One Health requires a signed affiliation agreement before a preceptorship starts, and Church Health takes no graduate nursing students. |
| Jackson and West Tennessee | Home of the Lambuth campus. Christ Community Health Services has Jackson locations, and Madison County and many rural West Tennessee counties carry primary care shortage designations. |
| Nashville and Middle Tennessee | NP student pages for several large systems could not be found, so each site has to be asked directly about its steps. |
| Knoxville and Chattanooga | Covenant Health routes students from non-partner schools through its student portal. Erlanger is not entering new affiliation agreements for advanced practice student placements. |
| DeSoto County and north Mississippi | Out of state for UofM. Mississippi reviews out-of-state programs before clinicals there, with requests due at least four months ahead. |
| West Memphis and east Arkansas | Out of state for UofM. No Arkansas board rule was found for clinical-only placements by out-of-state programs. |
Area guides go deeper: Memphis NP preceptors, Jackson and West Tennessee, Nashville and Middle Tennessee and DeSoto County and north Mississippi.
Across the Memphis metro's state lines
A clinic in Southaven or West Memphis may be a shorter drive than one on the far side of Shelby County, but it sits in a different state. UofM's license rule follows the site: you need an unrestricted RN license in Tennessee or in the approved state where your clinical assignments take place, and appropriate licensure has to be in place before the program starts.
Tennessee, Mississippi and Arkansas all belong to the Nurse Licensure Compact, so a multistate RN license from any of the three covers RN practice across the metro. The program-level question is separate. Mississippi asks out-of-state nursing programs to go through a review before students train there, so a DeSoto County site needs extra lead time.
Access need runs across the whole region. Federal shortage-area designations for primary care cover low-income neighborhoods in Memphis, much of rural West Tennessee, parts of north Mississippi and communities in east Arkansas.
When local means another state
Some UofM students live well outside the region. The residency requirements page sets the outer limit: LCON is "NOT authorized to offer distance education in California", and a student who relocates there must finish the remaining requirements in Tennessee or another authorized state, or withdraw.
Beyond California, UofM's own documents disagree. The Office of Community Partnerships and Practice names 16 authorized states, while UofM's professional licensure disclosures answer "Yes" for every other state. Confirm your state with LCON before applying or moving; the state authorization guide sets out both sources, and the RN license guide covers the license side.
State boards add their own layer. Louisiana wants approval requests from out-of-state programs at least six months ahead, while Wyoming asks for written notice to its board and a written facility contract before a clinical there. UofM also makes out-of-state students individually responsible for checking that the program meets advanced licensure rules where they live. The state guides summarize each board.
What stays the same wherever you train
UofM rules that travel with you
- An approved preceptor agreement form from the Office of Community Partnerships and Practice before the first clinical day.
- Your track's rotation rules, including at least one NP-precepted rotation in every NP track.
- Complio items and the site's myClinicalExchange onboarding, plus any extra steps the health system sets.
- A clinical schedule to your clinical faculty by Monday of the second week, and at least seven weeks for each course's hours.
- Transportation, which is the student's responsibility; LCON provides no shuttle service or travel reimbursement.
- The January 2027 on-campus intensive, which is required for all NP tracks.
Local does not mean anywhere: a site across a state line brings that state's rules, and California is closed to LCON distance students.
How we find preceptors where you live
UofM students choose us because the search starts where they actually live. We work outward from your own city and county, whether that is Memphis, Jackson, Nashville, Knoxville, Chattanooga or a Mississippi or Arkansas suburb, and hold to the drive time you set.
Before a match moves forward we settle the state questions too: whether the site's state is one LCON serves, whether its board wants notice or approval for an out-of-state program, and whether your RN license covers it. Then we prepare the preceptor and site details for the agreement form, check your compliance dates against the term and stay on call if anything changes. Share your location in the form below.
Questions UofM students ask
Can I do UofM MSN clinicals outside Tennessee?
Possibly, depending on the state. You need an RN license valid where the clinicals happen, the state must be one LCON may serve, and California is excluded. Because the partnerships office's 16-state list and UofM's licensure disclosures disagree, confirm your state with LCON before you apply or move.
Do I have to travel to Memphis for UofM clinicals?
Precepted hours are meant to take place near where you live. NP students still come to campus for up to three short intensives during the program, and the January 2027 session is required for every NP track. Travel to any clinical site is at your own expense, since LCON offers no shuttle or reimbursement.
Can I use a clinic in DeSoto County while living in Memphis?
A Mississippi site is out of state for UofM even inside the Memphis metro. Mississippi reviews out-of-state nursing programs before their students train there, with requests due at least four months ahead. Tennessee and Mississippi are both compact states, so a multistate RN license covers the RN side.
Where do UofM BSN students do clinicals?
The BSN works differently from the MSN. UofM assigns Traditional and Accelerated BSN students to clinical placements, which may be at healthcare locations across West Tennessee and North Mississippi. Traditional BSN students also have a home campus, in Memphis or at Lambuth in Jackson.
What happens if I move during the program?
A move can change the rules that apply. Students who relocate to California must finish their remaining requirements in Tennessee or another authorized state, or withdraw. A move elsewhere can bring a new board's rules and a new license question, so tell your advisor early and check the guide for your new state.
Related pages
Last checked 2026-09-27
We check these pages against UofM's 2026-27 catalog, the LCON Academic Bulletin, program pages and licensure disclosures. Your clinical faculty and your plan of study have the final word.
Whether UofM helps or you start alone, we find the preceptor.
Tell us your UofM concentration, your next practicum and the town you train near. We find preceptors and sites that fit the course and prepare what the preceptor agreement form needs, early enough for approval before the first clinical day.
- Preceptors matched to the rotation rules: an NP preceptor, family practice for FNP, inpatient and critical care for AG-ACNP
- License, certification and site details ready for the preceptor agreement form, with your Complio items in order
- Across the Mid-South, Tennessee and the states UofM serves
Start your placement plan
Your concentration, your town and your next clinical semester is all we need to begin.