NP Clinical Rotations by Specialty
NP clinical rotations look different on every track. As a family nurse practitioner (FNP) student, you might rotate through family medicine, pediatrics and OB/GYN, while a psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner (PMHNP) student spends most of their hours in psychiatry. To show how the mix changes from one specialty and track to the next, we’ve gathered the figures from Clinical Match Me’s own placement data: which rotations students request, how that differs by program track, how the mix has changed since 2021, when rotations start and how many hours students ask for.
Whether you’re planning your own nurse practitioner clinical rotations or writing about them, every Clinical Match Me figure here comes from anonymized placement requests that students made with us. We update them every month, and each one is a share of requests or a median, so it’s easy to compare specialties and tracks side by side. If rotations are new to you, our guide explains what a clinical rotation is.
TL;DR
- Family medicine and primary care is the most requested specialty, at 20% of placement requests on Clinical Match Me from October 2025 to September 2026.
- FNP students made 52% of requests that list a program track, and PMHNP students made 27%.
- Psychiatric and mental health rotations have made up a smaller share of requests every year since 2023, while the share for acute, emergency and hospital rotations rose every year from 2021 to 2025.
- January, May and August were the most requested start months in requests made from 2021 to 2025.
- The median request asked for 160 hours.
Which NP clinical rotations do students request most?
Family medicine and primary care is the most requested NP rotation in Clinical Match Me’s placement data from October 2025 to September 2026, at 20% of all requests. Pediatrics (13%), in-person psychiatry (12%) and OB/GYN (8%) complete the top four.
Psychiatry appears twice on that list because you can request it in person or remotely. Add child and adolescent psychiatry, psychotherapy and inpatient psychiatry, and mental health becomes one of the two largest areas of NP rotation requests.
NP clinical rotations by specialty group
By specialty group, primary care (28%) and psychiatric and mental health (28%) are the two most requested areas. Women’s health, pediatrics and acute, emergency and hospital care come next.
Here’s what each group includes:
- Primary care: family medicine, adult and internal medicine, geriatrics and outpatient clinics
- Psychiatric and mental health: psychiatry and psychotherapy (in person and remote), child and adolescent psychiatry, inpatient psychiatry and addiction medicine
- Women’s health: OB/GYN, gynecology, obstetrics and fertility care
- Acute, emergency and hospital: hospitalist, emergency medicine, ICU, neonatal and pediatric ICU, urgent care and inpatient acute care
How do NP clinical rotations differ by track?
The specialties you’ll rotate through depend on your program track. In Clinical Match Me’s placement data from October 2025 to September 2026, FNP students made 52% of requests that list a program track and PMHNP students 27%, followed by adult-gerontology acute care (AGACNP) and adult-gerontology primary care (AGPCNP) students. Pediatric, women’s health and other NP tracks make up the rest. To learn what each track covers and who certifies it, read our guide to NP specialties and their certifications.
Here’s what students on the FNP, PMHNP, AGACNP and AGPCNP tracks request, and what you can expect in those rotations.
FNP clinical rotations
FNP programs prepare you to care for patients of every age, a population focus the APRN Consensus Model calls family/individual across the life span. In our data, family medicine and primary care made up 36% of FNP requests, pediatrics 24% and OB/GYN 12%.
In family medicine, expect a steady mix of chronic disease follow-ups, acute visits and wellness exams. In pediatrics, you’ll practice growth and development checks, vaccine counseling and talking with parents. OB/GYN and gynecology rotations include contraception counseling, STI screening and prenatal visits.
The median FNP request asked for 150 hours. For more on FNP hours and rotations, read our guide to FNP clinical hours and rotation requirements.
PMHNP clinical rotations
In our data, in-person psychiatry made up 42% of PMHNP requests and remote psychiatry 15%, along with in-person psychotherapy (10%) and child and adolescent psychiatry (9%).
Remote rotations made up 25% of PMHNP requests in our data. Under the 2022 Standards for Quality Nurse Practitioner Education, care you provide to patients through telehealth can count toward your direct patient care hours, while simulation can’t. Your program decides whether it accepts a remote rotation, so check with your clinical coordinator before you request one.
In person or remote, you’ll practice psychiatric interviews and mental status exams, suicide and safety risk assessments, and starting and monitoring medications. The median PMHNP request asked for 160 hours. To plan the rest of your hours, read our guide to PMHNP clinical hours and requirements.
AGACNP clinical rotations
AGACNP students request hospital and emergency settings. In our data, hospitalist rotations made up 20% of AGACNP requests, emergency medicine 15%, inpatient acute care 14% and ICU 13%.
Expect acutely ill patients and a fast pace. In these rotations, you’ll assess unstable patients, interpret labs, EKGs and imaging with your preceptor, and manage flare-ups of chronic conditions such as COPD and heart failure. The median AGACNP request asked for 160 hours. When you’re ready, find an AGACNP preceptor for hospitalist, ICU and emergency rotations.
AGPCNP clinical rotations
AGPCNP students train to care for adults and older adults in primary care. In our data, family medicine and primary care made up 27% of AGPCNP requests, along with adult medicine (15%) and geriatrics (13%). AGPCNP students also request women’s health rotations, with gynecology at 10%.
In these rotations, you’ll manage chronic conditions such as diabetes and hypertension, review medication lists for older patients who take several drugs, and handle preventive care and screenings. The median AGPCNP request asked for 160 hours. If you’re on this track, you can find an AGPCNP preceptor for primary care, geriatrics and adult medicine.
How has the mix of NP clinical rotations changed since 2021?
The specialty mix has shifted since 2021, and the biggest changes are in mental health and hospital care. Here’s each group’s share of requests in 2021, 2023 and 2025 in Clinical Match Me’s placement data.
- Psychiatric and mental health: 32% in 2021, 35% in 2023 and 29% in 2025
- Primary care: 30% in 2021, 27% in 2023 and 27% in 2025
- Women’s health: 14% in 2021, 14% in 2023 and 14% in 2025
- Pediatrics: 14% in 2021, 13% in 2023 and 13% in 2025
- Acute, emergency and hospital: 6% in 2021, 8% in 2023 and 11% in 2025
- Other specialties: 4% in 2021, 4% in 2023 and 6% in 2025
Psychiatric and mental health was the most requested group every year from 2021 to 2025, and its share has fallen every year since 2023. The specialty group chart above shows where the two largest groups stand in the last 12 months.
The share for acute, emergency and hospital rotations rose every year from 2021 to 2025, from 6% to 11%. The share for other specialties rose too, from 4% in 2021 to 6% in 2025.
Remote rotations also make up a smaller share of mental health requests than they did a few years ago. In 2022, 40% of mental health requests were for a remote rotation. That share fell every year after that, to 29% in 2025.
When do NP clinical rotations start?
In requests made on Clinical Match Me from 2021 to 2025, January was the most requested start month for NP clinical rotations, at 20% of requests, followed by May (17%) and August (15%). Those are the months many programs start their spring, summer and fall terms. December (1%) and April (2%) were the least requested.
Start months follow the school calendar on every track.
Students submit placement requests all year. From 2021 to 2025, each month’s share of new requests ranged from 7% in April to 10% in August. Although many students are placed within days, try to submit your placement requests as early as possible. The sooner you do, the sooner we can place you.
How long are NP clinical rotations?
NP clinical rotations typically run over one semester. In Clinical Match Me’s placement data from October 2025 to September 2026, the median request asked for 160 hours. Our guide to how long clinical rotations are shows the hours by track and specialty, and how many weeks they take.
You’ll complete several rotations like these to reach your program’s total. The 2022 Standards for Quality Nurse Practitioner Education, from the National Task Force on Quality Nurse Practitioner Education, set a minimum of 750 direct patient care clinical hours for each NP population-focused track. Your program decides how to divide those hours across courses and specialties, so check your handbook for its exact totals.
How to plan your rotations across specialties
- Find out what each specialty requires. Ask your clinical coordinator or check your handbook for your total hours and how many go to each specialty.
- Log every encounter in detail. Record each patient’s age group, the visit type and the setting. Under the national NP education standards, faculty review students’ clinical encounters for breadth, depth and type, so a detailed log makes your progress easy to see.
- Share your goals with each preceptor. Bring a short list of the skills you want to practice to your first day, such as pelvic exams in women’s health or risk assessments in psychiatry.
- Request your next rotation early. Submit a request for your next NP clinical placement as soon as you know your dates and specialty.
NP clinical rotations: questions students ask
How many clinical hours do NP students need?
The 2022 Standards for Quality Nurse Practitioner Education set a minimum of 750 direct patient care clinical hours for each NP population-focused track. Your program sets its own total and decides how many of those hours you complete in each specialty.
Which specialty do NP students request most?
Family medicine and primary care. It made up 20% of all placement requests on Clinical Match Me from October 2025 to September 2026, ahead of pediatrics at 13%.
Can NP clinical rotations be remote?
Some can. On Clinical Match Me, students request remote rotations in psychiatry and psychotherapy, and 27% of mental health requests from October 2025 to September 2026 were for a remote rotation. Telehealth care can count toward your direct patient care hours under the national NP education standards, but your program decides whether it accepts a remote site.
What month do NP clinical rotations usually start?
January, May and August. In requests made on Clinical Match Me from 2021 to 2025, those months made up 20%, 17% and 15% of requested start dates.
How long is an NP clinical rotation?
Nurse practitioner rotations typically run over one semester. The median request on Clinical Match Me asked for 160 hours, and the median FNP request asked for 150.
Does a specialty rotation cost more?
Our standard NP preceptor cost is the same regardless of specialty. So you’ll pay the same price whether you’re searching for an FNP, PMHNP or AGACNP preceptor. Most preceptors charge a flat rate of $1,995 for rotations up to 250 hours, and that price includes our fee and the preceptor’s honorarium (their compensation for teaching you). Payment plans are available for up to 24 months.
Find a preceptor for your next NP clinical rotation
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About this data
Every figure on this page comes from anonymized placement requests that students, most of them NP students, made on Clinical Match Me. Our students come from all 50 states. The specialty, track and hours figures come from requests made from October 2025 to September 2026. The year-by-year trend uses full calendar years, and the start-month figures use requests made from 2021 to 2025.
Each figure is a share of requests or a median, and we update them every month (most recently in October 2026). They come from students who used Clinical Match Me, rather than from a survey of every NP program in the country.
You’re welcome to reuse these figures under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 (CC BY 4.0) license. Just credit Clinical Match Me as the source and link to this page.
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