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Athletic training education is currently at a crossroads, as the Athletic Training Strategic Alliance has required that all athletic training programs transition their minimum degree requirements to the graduate level by 2026 (AT Strategic Alliance, 2015). While some programs are already making this change, others are waiting until closer to the deadline in order to gain valuable insight about the transition process. One of the major components of the athletic training education is the clinical experience that students complete in order to practice their hands-on skills. During these clinical experiences, students are paired with a Certified Athletic Trainer who serves as mentor, and has been found to play an integral role in the education of the athletic training student (Dodge & Mazerolle, 2015). As programs begin to transition to the graduate level, the mentoring experience between students and preceptors is going to undergo this transition as well. This dissertation focuses on the mentoring expectations and experiences of the preceptors during the transition of an entry-level master’s program. Using a phenomenological approach as described by Van Manen (1990), participants who have been determined to fit the criteria for one of two groups – pre-transition and post-transition – completed a one-on-one interview to discuss their expectations or experiences of the transition to graduate athletic training programs. The findings of this study have the opportunity to provide athletic training faculty with the lived experience of preceptors throughout their transition to the entry-level master’s program. The results can then be used by faculty in their design and implementation of new entry-level master’s programs, as well as by athletic training preceptors who are experiencing their first interactions with graduate athletic training students to better prepare for future interactions.