Background Early clinical exposure in the emergency department has been used to introduce preclinical students to clinical work, but existing studies have focused mainly on immediate reactions or specialty interest. This study examined retrospective perceptions of immediate gains and current perceptions of longer-term educational impact associated with a brief emergency department preceptorship.Methods A single-center, retrospective, cross-sectional survey was conducted among all identifiable former participants in an emergency department preceptorship delivered in 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2024, and 2025. A study-specific questionnaire assessed process and preceptor support, retrospective immediate gains, current long-term impact, and four single-item outcomes. Descriptive statistics, Cronbach’s alpha, and Mann–Whitney U tests were used. Cohort comparisons between 2015–2020 and 2024–2025 were exploratory.Results Of 66 eligible participants, 50 completed the survey (75.8%). Mean (SD) scores were 4.03 (0.61) for process and preceptor support, 4.34 (0.57) for retrospective immediate gains, and 4.24 (0.60) for current long-term impact. Single-item mean (SD) scores were 4.12 (0.88) for influence on future specialty choice, 4.50 (0.75) for overall long-term educational value, 3.85 (1.20) for interest in emergency/critical care, and 4.46 (0.84) for recommendation to junior students. Agreement was high for preceptors’ explanations and opportunities to ask questions (both 92.0%), continued influence on later learning or professional development (95.6%), and recommendation to junior students (90.0%). Recommendation to junior students was higher in the 2024–2025 cohort than in the 2015–2020 cohort (4.85 [0.37] vs 4.20 [0.96], P = .005); no other between-cohort differences were statistically significant.Conclusions Participants retrospectively associated a brief emergency department preceptorship with perceived immediate gains and sustained educational relevance. Reported benefits were more consistent for workplace orientation and professional development than for specialty-related outcomes.