Graceland's trimester calendar for 2026-27

Updated September 25, 2026 · Reviewed by the Graceland Preceptor placement team

Graceland University's online nursing programs run on three 16-week trimesters, each split into 8-week A and B halves. For 2026-27, Fall runs August 24 to December 12, 2026, Spring January 4 to April 24, 2027, and Summer May 3 to August 21, 2027. Practicums use the full 16 weeks, and you take one per trimester.

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16weeks in each trimester, split into 8-week A and B halves

3trimesters a year: Fall, Spring and Summer

1practicum allowed per trimester

Start and end dates for 2026-27

These dates come from Graceland's graduate catalog calendar, which the undergraduate calendar mirrors. Commencement falls on Saturday, December 12, 2026 in Independence and Sunday, April 25, 2027 in Lamoni.

2026-27 trimesters (graduate catalog calendar)
Trimester	Classes begin	Session A ends	Session B begins	Classes end
Fall 2026	Mon, Aug 24, 2026	Sat, Oct 17	Mon, Oct 19	Sat, Dec 12, 2026
Spring 2027	Mon, Jan 4, 2027	Sat, Feb 27	Mon, Mar 1	Sat, Apr 24, 2027
Summer 2027	Mon, May 3, 2027	Sat, Jun 26	Mon, Jun 28	Sat, Aug 21, 2027

The handbook describes the year as Summer (May to August), Fall (September to December) and Spring (January to April), but the calendar opens Fall on the last Monday of August, so go by the calendar. Terms from Fall 2027 on are listed as tentative until the Board of Trustees approves them.

Add, drop and withdrawal deadlines

Graceland publishes the 2026-27 deadlines in its RN-BSN Student Handbook and on its academic calendar. Practicums fill a whole trimester, so the 16-week rows are the ones that govern them; a course in an 8-week half follows its A or B row.

2026-27 trimester deadlines
Session	Last day to add, change or drop	Last day to withdraw
Fall, 16 weeks	Sept. 8	Oct. 29
Fall A	Aug. 31	Sept. 25
Fall B	Oct. 26	Nov. 20
Spring, 16 weeks	Jan. 19	Mar. 11
Spring A	Jan. 11	Feb. 5
Spring B	Mar. 8	Apr. 2
Summer, 16 weeks	May 17	July 8
Summer A	May 10	June 4
Summer B	July 6	July 31

Dates can change, so confirm them in the Academic Calendar (Trimester) inside myGraceland before you act on one.

13 percent or 20 percent: the W-grade conflict

Graceland's graduate catalog and its Graduate Student Handbook set different cut-offs for leaving a course without a W on your record.

Graduate catalog: you may add a course in the first 13% of the session with the instructor's consent and withdraw with no W through the 13% point. A W is recorded from there through 60%. After 60%, withdrawal is closed and you receive the grade you earn.
Handbook, p. 38: no W through 20% of the session, and a W after 20% and through 60%.

On a 16-week trimester, 13% is about two weeks in, 20% a little past three weeks, and 60% near the end of week 10. The dated table follows the catalog: Fall 2026's September 8 drop date is 15 days after classes begin, and October 29 sits at the 60% mark. The handbook's 20% point would fall about a week after each dated drop deadline. Until the two sources agree, act before the earlier date and confirm with Program Advising.

Withdrawals also add up. Two documented course withdrawals bring a Letter of Warning from the Graduate Programs Office, and three from graduate nursing courses after the 20% date lead to dismissal from the graduate nursing program.

How registration and withdrawal work

Each term, Graceland enrolls graduate students in courses straight from their completion plan; only a hold, from Student Financial Services or another department, interrupts that. The catalog asks you to contact your Program Consultant about registration no later than one month before each trimester.

Changes and drops: send programadvising@graceland.edu your full name, your student ID and the courses you want changed or dropped.
Leaving before a term starts: tell your Program Consultant in writing before the start date.
Withdrawing from Graceland: complete the Independence Exit Form.
Stopping out: the catalog permits a one-trimester break, a stop-out, while you remain enrolled at the University.

Participation is tracked from week one. A student who does not begin coursework in the first week of an online course is referred for administrative withdrawal, as is one who stops participating for two consecutive weeks. Not taking part before the census date, the last day to add or drop, can also lead to administrative withdrawal. Incompletes and delays covers what a stop-out does to your plan.

The weeks that matter in a practicum trimester

Practicum hours count only inside the term's date range, from the first day of the trimester, and only after your approval email. Faculty ask for every hour by the end of week 14, at 16 to 24 hours a week. Counted from the calendar's start dates, the key weeks fall here:

Practicum milestones counted from the 2026-27 start dates
Milestone	Fall 2026	Spring 2027	Summer 2027
Week 1: hours can begin; approval emails shown on the first day of class	Aug 24	Jan 4	May 3
Week 6: usual FNP and PMHNP Zoom focus session window opens	Sept 28	Feb 8	June 7
Week 11: usual AGACNP campus session window opens	Nov 2	Mar 15	July 12
End of week 14: faculty target for all practicum hours	Nov 28	Apr 10	Aug 7
End of week 16: term ends; later hours do not count	Dec 12	Apr 24	Aug 21

Focus-session dates are the handbook's usual windows, not published dates; see focus sessions.

Paperwork runs a term ahead

Paperwork for a practicum is due a trimester early: by June 15 when it runs in Fall, by October 15 for a Spring practicum, and by February 15 for Summer. The handbook's deadline table says Summer begins "In April", while the calendar starts Summer 2027 on May 3, so plan on the calendar date; the February 15 deadline is the same either way. Anything filed sooner sits unprocessed until that deadline term, so there is little to gain from filing a year out. Practicum deadlines covers early submissions and the two-week notice.

A dropped practicum reaches further than a dropped didactic course. Graceland wants all the practicums in a track completed within a 12-month span, one per trimester, so a lost practicum term means rebuilding your completion plan with Program Advising.

Using the calendar to plan your placement

Every date on this page is a planning date for us. Your placement advisor works backward from the trimester your practicum starts: the paperwork deadline a term earlier, a contract lead time that Graceland says can run a year or more, and a preceptor schedule that fits 225 or 300 hours inside 14 weeks around focus-session days and holidays.

When your plan changes, whether through a dropped course, a stop-out or a delayed practicum, we rebuild the placement timeline for the new trimester so your site and preceptor are ready when the term opens. We keep your graduation term in view too, because the handbook estimates that each term sat out for want of a preceptor adds about four months. Share your start term on our contact page.

Questions Graceland students ask

When does Summer 2027 start at Graceland?

Monday, May 3, 2027, according to the graduate catalog calendar, and it ends Saturday, August 21. The handbook's practicum deadline table says Summer starts in April, which does not match the calendar. The February 15 paperwork deadline for Summer practicums is the same in both, so work to that date and the May 3 start.

Are practicums 8-week or 16-week courses?

Practicums run across the full 16-week trimester: the handbook treats hours unfinished at the end of the trimester as an incomplete and asks for everything by week 14. Graceland allows one practicum per trimester. Other courses may sit in an 8-week A or B half, which carries its own add and withdrawal dates.

How many course withdrawals can I have in Graceland's graduate nursing programs?

Two documented course withdrawals bring a Letter of Warning from the Graduate Programs Office. Three withdrawals from graduate nursing courses after the 20% withdrawal date result in dismissal from the program, according to the handbook. Talk to Program Advising before any withdrawal so you know which count it adds to.

What happens if I stop participating in an online course?

The catalog says a student who does not begin coursework in the first week is referred to the Program Consultant or Registrar for administrative withdrawal, and one who stops participating for two consecutive weeks may be referred for counseling and withdrawal. Missing the census date can also lead to withdrawal, with or without penalty.

Can I take two practicums in one trimester to catch up?

No. The handbook allows one practicum per trimester in every NP track, so the three practicums need at least three terms. To protect your timeline, keep the practicums in consecutive terms and your paperwork ahead of each deadline; Program Advising can tell you which other courses fit alongside each practicum.

ProgressIncompletes and delaysHow Graceland handles an incomplete practicum, the 12-month practicum rule, stop-outs, sitting out a term and completion plans with Program Advising.CalendarFocus sessionsGraceland focus sessions for NURS5194, NURS5195 and NURS5196: Zoom for FNP and PMHNP, Independence for AGACNP, where the sources disagree, and how to plan.DeadlinesPracticum deadlinesGraceland's practicum paperwork deadlines by term, the NPHub option form dates and their conflict, early submissions, the two-week notice and year-ahead plans.SystemsmyGraceland, Canvas and emailThe Graceland systems nursing students use: myGraceland and SON Resources, Canvas, the Sting email account, the my.graceland.edu forms and the Grabske Library.Placement helpBehind on clinical hoursShort on hours in a Graceland practicum? What counts, the week-14 target, substitutes and second preceptors, incompletes, and how we help you catch up in time.HoursClinical hours by programPracticum hours for every Graceland University nursing program: 750 in each NP track, the older 600 and 540 totals, DNP practice hours and where sources differ.

Last checked 2026-09-25

We check these pages against Graceland's own catalog, program pages and Graduate Student Handbook. Your handbook, your track coordinator and the contract coordinators have the final word.

Graceland's practicums are arranged by you, with Graceland's help. We do the searching.

Tell us your Graceland track, your city and your next practicum. We find preceptors who fit the course, line up what Appendix A and Appendix B ask for, and aim everything at Graceland's paperwork deadline for your term.

Preceptors matched to the course: primary care for FNP, hospital and ICU clinicians for AGACNP, psychiatrists and PMHNPs for PMHNP
Site address, contract contact and preceptor details ready before the June 15, October 15 or February 15 deadline
Close to home in your approved state, with a second preceptor planned for Graceland's two-preceptor rule

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