Benefits and Barriers of an Honors Nursing Program: Perceptions of 1st year Bachelor of Science Nursing Students

Authors

  • Khadejah F. Mahmoud
  • Ran Sun
  • Kathryn R. Puskar
  • Dina Fradkin
  • Megan Chubb
  • Alanna Ciardi
  • Charlotte Dufoe
  • Jessica Fichner
  • Emilie Hausmann
  • Allison O’Handley
  • Allison Rietze
  • Kelly Thompson

Abstract

The honors undergraduate nursing program was established to meet the needs of outstanding baccalaureate students and to help develop future leaders in the nursing profession. Nine beginning freshman students shared their perceptions about an honors program at a university-affiliated school of nursing in the Northeastern United States. These participants perceived four salient benefits: enhanced learning, exploration of career paths, mentorship, and sense of community. Their perceptions of barriers included: high expectations, ambiguity of long-term benefits, and difficulties in conducting a research-based thesis. The authors concluded that their preliminary description of the findings presented several suggestions for developing a more personalized honors programs in schools of nursing. 

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Published

2017-07-25

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Articles