Student Nurse Externship

2026 Student Nurse Extern Summer Opportunities

MU Health Care is offering a 12-week student externship for nursing students who are within one year of graduating from an accredited nursing school. This program provides an excellent opportunity to gain first-hand professional experience. Upon successful completion of the externship, nursing students may have an opportunity to continue as a senior student nurse extern and receive special consideration for graduate nurse (GN) positions.

What You'll Gain

• Direct mentorship from experienced RNs
• Under RN supervision, you'll practice and perform skills typically beyond the scope of a Nurse Tech
• Immersive patient care experience in hospital units
• Confidence and skills to launch your nursing career
• The opportunity to work 36 hours per week, experiencing a day in the life of a nurse

Requirements

• Be within one year of graduation from an accredited school of professional nursing (students graduating December 2026, May 2027, or July/August 2027)
• Completion of a Fundamentals of Nursing course from an accredited school of professional nursing
• Demonstrate a GPA at or above 2.5 on a 4.0 scale. Unofficial transcripts will be required during the application process
• Apply by application deadline
• Rank your preferred units on follow-up application survey
• Complete our online referencing process when requested. Directions are provided by email after applying
  • Reference Guidelines (5 total required):
    • 2 current nursing instructors
    • 2 nursing student peers
    • 1 employer (current or past)
• Participate in a phone interview with Human Resources and attend scheduled virtual, on-camera interviews with nursing leadership
• Provide proof of active Basic Life Support certification through American Heart Association or American Red Cross
  
  

Compensation

• $19.09 or $16.25 per hour, unit specific
• Shift differential
  • Additional $2.00 per hour for evening, night, and weekend shifts
    
    

Important Dates and Deadlines

• Application Opens on Tuesday, December 2, 2025
• Application Closes on Friday, January 16, 2026
• HR Phone Interviews completed in December and January
• Completed References received by Friday, January 30, 2026
• Department interviews via Zoom: Wednesday, February 11, and Thursday, February 12, 2026
• Offers sent by Friday, February 20, 2026
• Program Start Date: Tuesday, May 26, 2026
  • Mandatory Orientation: May 26-28, 2026 5pm to 9pm AND June 1, 2026 8am to 5pm
• Program length - 12 weeks (10 weeks paid with 1 to 2 weeks of unpaid vacation)