Nursing students entering professional practice can enter the profession by obtaining one of three degrees; Diploma, Associate, or Bachelors. Regardless of the point of entry, new nurses can struggle with role responsibilities, heavy patient loads, incivility, and staffing shortages. Preceptorship experiences before entering the professional nursing practice have been shown to facilitate an easier transition for new nurses and can help with socialization, communication, skill acquisition, and role modeling. The literature review reveals that the use of preceptors and preceptorship experiences are useful in assisting new nurses transition into professional practice. However, little research has been performed using preceptorship experiences with Associate Degree (AD) nursing students before graduation in the United States. The purpose of the study is to explore whether a 48-hour preceptorship experience with a practicing registered nurse aids in the transition of senior AD nursing students into the role of registered nurse. The Transformative Learning Theory (TLT) was used to guide the research project, and a descriptive qualitative design was utilized for data attainment. Following the conduction of in-depth interviews, of 13 participants, the information was transcribed and coded for themes. The themes were then correlated with the study's research questions. The data obtained from the participants revealed that preceptorships experienced as a nursing student are useful in the transition from student to registered nurse. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://bibliotheek.ehb.be:2222/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]