Nursing educators have struggled for many years with the problem of student attrition in the minority population. Because there are so few minority students who choose nursing as a profession, educators strive to retain these students to graduation. Unfortunately, attrition rates of minority students continue to rise despite years of research into the problem. The majority of this research approaches the issue from the viewpoint of the failing student. What might happen if nursing research took a positive approach to the issue? The purpose of this study was to describe the influencing factors that led minority nursing students to be successful in a predominantly Caucasian prelicensure nursing program. The researcher sought to describe the influencing factors that led to success for minority students who attended a predominantly Caucasian nursing program. Seven minority students from a medium-sized community college were interviewed for the study. The findings of this study reflect a need for minority students to have strong family support while in school. They must also possess a strong work ethic and determination to succeed despite obstacles that may be detrimental to less motivated students. It is hoped that by describing the stories of successful minority nursing students through a qualitative descriptive lens, nursing education researchers and nursing faculty can use the information to develop positive strategies and interventions that will contribute to the success of future minority nursing students.
","abstract_html":"<p>Nursing educators have struggled for many years with the problem of student attrition in the minority population. Because there are so few minority students who choose nursing as a profession, educators strive to retain these students to graduation. Unfortunately, attrition rates of minority students continue to rise despite years of research into the problem. The majority of this research approaches the issue from the viewpoint of the failing student. What might happen if nursing research took a positive approach to the issue? The purpose of this study was to describe the influencing factors that led minority nursing students to be successful in a predominantly Caucasian prelicensure nursing program. The researcher sought to describe the influencing factors that led to success for minority students who attended a predominantly Caucasian nursing program. Seven minority students from a medium-sized community college were interviewed for the study. The findings of this study reflect a need for minority students to have strong family support while in school. They must also possess a strong work ethic and determination to succeed despite obstacles that may be detrimental to less motivated students. It is hoped that by describing the stories of successful minority nursing students through a qualitative descriptive lens, nursing education researchers and nursing faculty can use the information to develop positive strategies and interventions that will contribute to the success of future minority nursing students.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Boruff, Staci M."],"institution":null,"degree_name":"PhD (Doctor of Philosophy)","degree_level":"Dissertation - unrestricted","degree_discipline":"Nursing","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":[],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2012,"date_issued":"2012-12-15T08:00:00Z","date_published":"2012-12-15T08:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:20:31Z","subjects":["Nursing education","Minority Student","Race and Ethnicity","Social and Behavioral Sciences","Sociology"],"languages":[],"rights":["Copyright by the authors."],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://dc.etsu.edu/etd/1484","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Boruff, Staci M."]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.issued","label":"Date","values":["2012-12-15T08:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Nursing"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Dissertation - unrestricted"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["PhD (Doctor of Philosophy)"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Nursing education","Minority Student","Race and Ethnicity","Social and Behavioral Sciences","Sociology"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:rights","label":"Dc Rights","values":["Copyright by the authors."]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://dc.etsu.edu/context/etd/article/2677/viewcontent/BoruffS102512f.pdf","https://dc.etsu.edu/etd/1484"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["Nursing educators have struggled for many years with the problem of student attrition in the minority population. Because there are so few minority students who choose nursing as a profession, educators strive to retain these students to graduation. Unfortunately, attrition rates of minority students continue to rise despite years of research into the problem. The majority of this research approaches the issue from the viewpoint of the failing student. What might happen if nursing research took a positive approach to the issue? The purpose of this study was to describe the influencing factors that led minority nursing students to be successful in a predominantly Caucasian prelicensure nursing program. The researcher sought to describe the influencing factors that led to success for minority students who attended a predominantly Caucasian nursing program. Seven minority students from a medium-sized community college were interviewed for the study. The findings of this study reflect a need for minority students to have strong family support while in school. They must also possess a strong work ethic and determination to succeed despite obstacles that may be detrimental to less motivated students. It is hoped that by describing the stories of successful minority nursing students through a qualitative descriptive lens, nursing education researchers and nursing faculty can use the information to develop positive strategies and interventions that will contribute to the success of future minority nursing students.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Experiences of Success by Minority Students Attending a Predominantly Caucasian Nursing Program"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:creator":["Boruff, Staci M."],"dc:date.issued":["2012-12-15T08:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["Nursing educators have struggled for many years with the problem of student attrition in the minority population. Because there are so few minority students who choose nursing as a profession, educators strive to retain these students to graduation. Unfortunately, attrition rates of minority students continue to rise despite years of research into the problem. The majority of this research approaches the issue from the viewpoint of the failing student. What might happen if nursing research took a positive approach to the issue? The purpose of this study was to describe the influencing factors that led minority nursing students to be successful in a predominantly Caucasian prelicensure nursing program. The researcher sought to describe the influencing factors that led to success for minority students who attended a predominantly Caucasian nursing program. Seven minority students from a medium-sized community college were interviewed for the study. The findings of this study reflect a need for minority students to have strong family support while in school. They must also possess a strong work ethic and determination to succeed despite obstacles that may be detrimental to less motivated students. It is hoped that by describing the stories of successful minority nursing students through a qualitative descriptive lens, nursing education researchers and nursing faculty can use the information to develop positive strategies and interventions that will contribute to the success of future minority nursing students.
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