Editing Herzing Issues: Clinical Placement (section)

=== HU-058: The "Clinical Placement Pledge" marketed to graduate NP students appears materially misleading; multiple students confirm they are responsible for finding their own preceptors; some pay $1,000 or more ===
{| class="wikitable" style="width:100%"
! style="width:12em" | Severity
| High
! style="width:12em" | Status
| CONFIRMED
|-
! Issue type
| Institutional Misrepresentation, Clinical Placement Pledge
! Date added
| 2026-05-05
|-
! Owner
| colspan="3" | Clinical Placement / Dean of Graduate Nursing / Admissions
|}
'''Finding.''' The "Clinical Placement Pledge" marketed to prospective graduate NP students appears materially misleading. Multiple current and former Herzing FNP, PMHNP, and AGACNP students across at least five states confirm they are largely or entirely responsible for finding their own clinical preceptors, with many cold-calling over 100 sites independently. Some students pay $1,000 or more out of pocket for preceptor matching services, and sites with existing Herzing affiliation agreements have refused to accept students.

'''Evidence.''' Facebook posts, March to April 2026: (1) Student BU (April 24, 2026), to whom a Herzing alumna, Student BV, replied that a student is mostly on their own finding a preceptor. (2) Student BW (March 10, 2026), an FNP student in Nashville, who contacted over 100 possible sites in the past couple of months. (3) Student CI (February 15, 2026), an MSN-FNP student in Baltimore, who is currently in a MSN-FNP program at Herzing University where students are required to find their own clinical placements. (4) Student CJ (February 20, 2026), a PMHNP student in North Carolina, who stated that even places with existing affiliation agreements have stated they will not accept students. (5) Handle 7 (March 13, 2026), who stated they had to pay the majority of their preceptor cost. Source Group: Defense Bundles and Institutional Materials (May 2026).

'''Reported statement.''' Student BU, Student BV, Student BW, Student CI, Student CJ, and Handle 7, all student pseudonyms or anonymous handles, collectively described being largely on their own to find a preceptor, contacting well over 100 sites in a couple of months, being required to find their own clinical placements despite the pledge, having affiliated sites decline them anyway, and paying out of pocket, in one case the majority of the cost, for a preceptor.

'''Standards.''' 34 CFR 668.71 to 75 (misrepresentation) is implicated: marketing a Clinical Placement Pledge while providing no meaningful placement assistance constitutes a potential misrepresentation of a material program characteristic. ACEN Standard 5.1 requires that the curriculum include planned clinical practice experiences adequate in number and type to prepare graduates for the nursing role. CCNE Standard III-E requires the program ensure adequate preceptor availability. FTC Act Section 5 applies to deceptive advertising of educational program features.

'''Impact.''' Graduate NP students across multiple states spend dozens to hundreds of hours cold-calling clinical sites. Students are paying $1,000 or more out of pocket for commercial preceptor matching services. Sites with existing Herzing affiliation agreements are still turning students away, making the pledge functionally empty.

'''Notes.''' The Clinical Placement Pledge language appears in Herzing's NP program marketing. The contrast between the pledge and the documented reality constitutes a textbook misrepresentation under 34 CFR 668.71. This issue is distinct from {{HU|HU-007}}, {{HU|HU-035}}, {{HU|HU-038}}, and {{HU|HU-049}}, which address prelicensure clinical placement failures; this issue specifically concerns the graduate NP programs.

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