The Practicum Affiliation Fee: when MRU appoints your preceptor
If you reach your practicum without a preceptor, MRU appoints one and charges the one-time Practicum Affiliation Fee. The fee is waived only for students who secure an approved preceptor themselves. MRU prints the amount in its catalog and Bursar addendum; this page explains how the rule works and what to weigh before you choose a route.
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What the fee is
The Practicum Affiliation Fee is the charge attached to MRU's appointment route. MRU's fee tables describe it as "Charged when a student is assigned a Preceptor by MRU", and a footnote on the MSN-FNP table calls it a one-time fee for students entering the practicum.
It follows from the catalog's own-preceptor rule. Students who do not provide a preceptor "will be appointed one by the University for an additional fee", and this is that fee. It is a service MRU offers, and for some students it is the most practical choice.
MRU prints the amount in the "Other Costs" tables of the 2025 catalog and in the July 2025 Bursar addendum, both on mru.edu. Fees can change through later addenda, so check the University Addenda page for the current figure.
Which programs list it
The fee line and the appointment wording do not always sit together. Check both for your program.
| Program | Fee line in MRU's cost table | Appointment for a fee in program text |
|---|---|---|
| MSN: Family Nurse Practitioner | Listed, with the waiver footnote | Yes, catalog |
| AGACNP Post-Master's Certificate | Listed | Yes, catalog and web page |
| PMHNP Post-Master's Certificate | Listed | Yes, catalog |
| FNP Post-Master's Certificate | Not listed on the web page or in the Bursar addendum | Yes, catalog p. 126 |
| MSN in Healthcare Systems Leadership | The addendum says an additional fee applies; check its cost table for the name | Yes, 2026 addendum |
| MSN Direct Entry | The waiver footnote appears, but the fee itself is not listed | No own-preceptor rule found |
If you are in the FNP certificate, the cost table and the catalog do not match. Ask your program chair or the Office of Academic Affairs which charge would apply before you rely on either.
How the waiver works
MRU's footnote reads: "Waiver of Practicum Affiliation Fee for students securing an approved preceptor only." Two conditions sit in that sentence. You secure the preceptor, and MRU approves them.
On the plain wording, a preceptor you find who is not approved does not meet the second condition. That makes the approval stage, covered on the approval page, part of the fee decision as well as the clinical one.
Some details are not public. MRU does not say whether the waiver is judged per clinical course or once for the program, whether you can move from an appointed preceptor to your own after the fact, or how the one-time fee is treated if you bring your own for some courses but not others. Get those answers in writing.
A separate line: the Practicum Credentialing Fee
Keep the affiliation fee apart from the Practicum Credentialing Fee. MRU lists the credentialing fee as the cost of verifying preceptor credentials, and it appears in the tables for the MSN-FNP, AGACNP, PMHNP and DNP.
The tables do not say whether the credentialing fee applies only when you bring your own preceptor, and the waiver footnote does not mention it. Budget for it on either route unless MRU tells you otherwise. The credentialing page covers what the verification involves.
The FNP certificate's table lists neither fee, which is one more reason for FNP certificate students to ask MRU directly how preceptor costs are handled for them. The same table also leaves out the clinical clearance and Typhon lines that appear for the MSN-FNP.
Questions to ask MRU before you choose
The appointment route is simple to request but hard to change once a term is under way. These questions help you compare it fairly with finding your own.
- When is the appointment made, and how long before the course starts will I know my preceptor and site?
- Where will the site be, and how far is it from where I live?
- Does one appointment cover all my clinical courses, or is each course arranged separately?
- For PMHNP: will the appointed placements cover the 115 child and adolescent hours and the 150 psychotherapy hours?
- If I find my own preceptor later, can I switch, and what happens to the fee?
- If an appointed preceptor becomes unavailable mid-course, who arranges the replacement?
- Is the amount in the July 2025 Bursar addendum still current?
Send the questions to the Office of Academic Affairs or your program chair from your university email so the answers are on record. The PMHNP clinical courses page explains the hour mix behind the fourth question.
How to decide
Start with time. If your first clinical course begins within a few weeks and you have no lead, the appointment route may be the only realistic one, and taking it early is better than losing the term. MRU does not offer leaves of absence, so sitting out a semester has consequences of its own.
Then weigh location and fit. MRU has one campus, in Miami Springs, and publishes no list of clinical sites, so ask where appointed placements are likely to be relative to where you live. If you already know a clinician whose practice fits the course, your own route may be the quickest.
Finally compare the full cost of each route: MRU's fee, the time your own search takes, and the price of outside help if you use it. The cost page explains what shapes a placement quote, and the decision guide sets the three routes side by side.
Questions MRU students ask
How much is the MRU Practicum Affiliation Fee?
This site does not print MRU's fees. The amount is in the "Other Costs" table for your program in the 2025 catalog and in the July 2025 Bursar addendum, both published on mru.edu. Later addenda can change fees, so check the University Addenda page and confirm with MRU before you budget.
Does MRU charge the affiliation fee once, or for each clinical course?
MRU's MSN-FNP footnote describes it as a one-time fee for students entering the practicum. How that applies across four FNP clinical courses, or three PMHNP or AGACNP courses, is not spelled out in public documents. Ask MRU whether one charge covers every appointed preceptorship in your program.
Do I get the waiver if I find a preceptor MRU does not approve?
On the wording of MRU's footnote, no: the waiver applies to students securing an approved preceptor. If your first choice is not approved, you would need another candidate who is, or the appointment route. Ask how long you have to find a replacement before MRU treats you as needing an appointment.
Does using a placement service count as securing my own preceptor?
MRU's waiver wording refers to students securing an approved preceptor and does not mention outside help either way. Ask MRU how it treats a preceptor you found with help. Whatever the answer, approval stays with MRU: a placement service can find and prepare a candidate but cannot approve one.
How do I ask MRU to appoint a preceptor for me?
MRU does not publish the request route or a deadline for it. Look in the nursing student handbook on the student portal first, then ask your program chair or the Office of Academic Affairs. Ask early: an appointment takes time to arrange, and your clinical course cannot start without an approved preceptor.
Related pages
Last checked 2026-09-24
We check these pages against MRU's own catalog, addenda and program pages. The nursing student handbook on the MRU student portal and MRU's Office of Academic Affairs have the final word.
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