A Descriptive Study of Former Minority Nursing Students' Perceptions of the Nursing Fundamentals Course
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Authors
Walters, Karon
Issue Date
2026-05
Type
Dissertation
Language
en
Keywords
Failure , Withdrawal , Nursing Fundamentals course , Former Minority Nursing Students
Alternative Title
Abstract
Failure in the Nursing Fundamentals course impacted students financially and emotionally. The problem was that minority nursing students who failed the Nursing Fundamentals course were at risk of dropping out of their nursing programs. The purpose of this qualitative descriptive study was to investigate the perceptions of former minority nursing students who failed in Nursing Fundamentals and subsequently withdrew from the nursing program. The final sample comprised nine former minority nursing students recruited via my LinkedIn account. This study was guided by Tinto's theory of student departure, which emphasized the importance of academic and social integration to prevent dropout. Data collection involved an open-ended survey on Qualtrics, with manual analysis and coding to identify themes. Findings revealed that Nursing Fundamentals, a demanding course that blends theory and practice, can be academically challenging for minority students, leading to course failure. Some students who failed exhibited low self-efficacy in clinical settings, increasing their risk of dropping out. This study underscores the importance of both academic and social integration in reducing attrition, as Tinto's theory highlights. Results suggest that difficulties with Nursing Fundamentals contribute to failure, and low self-efficacy in clinical settings heightens the risk of dropout. Recommendations include early faculty identification of at-risk students, tailored remediation, increased faculty diversity, and diversity training to foster support and respect, ultimately reducing failure rates. Future research might focus on the success of minority nursing students in the Nursing Fundamentals course rather than failures. They should use interviews and open-ended surveys, starting with interviews and then selecting a subset for the survey, to improve data triangulation and credibility in understanding minority nursing students’ attrition.