Learning Objective #1: Describe recent trends related to the demographic characteristics of nursing students

Learning Objective #2: Discuss the relationship between the nursing shortage and students' career aspirations

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Recent trends, including the widely publicized nursing shortage and targeted nursing recruitment campaigns, have contributed to rapidly changing demographics among nursing students. The purpose of this descriptive comparative study was to examine the changing characteristics of incoming baccalaureate nursing students (N=336) over the course of 8 semesters (2002 -- 2004). A structured survey questionnaire, administered upon entry to nursing courses, was used to obtain information on age, gender, ethnicity, previous degrees and careers, languages spoken, clinical work experiences, educational goals, and career goals. Pre-nursing grade point averages and standardized test scores were also obtained. Mean age, educational preparation, and academic performance of incoming students have progressively increased during this time. For example, mean ACT scores increased from 21.6 to 26.5 (p<.001). Diversity of gender and ethnicity initially rose (to 16.9% male, 12.3% minority), but recently has declined (to 7.3% & 8.0% respectively), along with an increasing number of applicants and increasing competition for entry. This recent decline has occurred in spite of targeted, federally funded programs to recruit and support a diverse student population. Educational goals of the sample are encouraging with 63.9% who definitely intend to pursue graduate degrees, and an additional 31.3% considering graduate school. However, their career aspirations raise concerns in relation to the nursing shortage, since only 21.1% intend to work in direct care clinician positions for the long term. The most common career goals were nurse practitioner certification, anesthesia certification, and nursing administration. This presentation will include a discussion of the evolving demographics of this student nurse population in comparison to trends across the US and around the world. Strategies for recruiting, advising, and teaching our next generation of nurses will also be discussed