Educational reform commissions and state departments of education across the United States have recommended that would-be administrators spend more time in planned field experiences, internships, and other practica and on-the-job learning activities. Despite this need, systematic research on experiential learning for administrators is remarkably deficient. This paper discusses the rationale for such programs and reviews 40 studies on field-based practica for educational administrators. All these studies employ a descriptive survey design, a single data collection technique (usually a specially designed questionnaire), and a problem-solving, rather than a theory-based, perspective. Most studies describe local experiential learning models developed in university graduate education programs. The remainder evaluated local models (usually favorably) based on participants' comments or examined structural features of "successful" programs. This paper concludes that high quality investigations of practica are nonexistent. Most work is without theoretical base, examines only local issues, is confined largely to internships, and neglects to explore the long-term developmental characteristics of practica. Suggestions are provided for developing a future research agenda to explore mentoring issues, underlying assumptions about "learning-by-doing," the impact of administrative interns on the quality of school organizational life, the effects of practica on candidates' future career success, universities' actual commitment to field experience, and clinical alternatives to full-time, paid internships. Included are 22 references. (MLH)