Elizabeth A. Gazza

Facilitating student retention in online graduate nursing education programs: A review of the literature

Online education, a form of distance education, provides students with opportunities to engage in lifelong learning without the restrictions of time and space. However, while this approach meets the needs of employed nursing professionals, it poses some challenges for educators. Student retention is one such challenge. Student retention rates serve as measures of program quality and are reported to accrediting bodies. Therefore, it is imperative that administrators and program faculty implement comprehensive programs to ensure student retention. This review of the literature was designed to identify strategies to improve student retention in online graduate nursing education programs. The review includes 23 articles that address models, research, and best practices supported in nursing and higher education. The findings indicate that student retention in online programs is a multidimensional problem requiring a multifaceted approach. Recommendations for facilitating retention in online nursing programs include ensuring social presence and program and course quality, and attentiveness to individual student characteristics.

Understanding the Scholarly Writing Development of Nurses Enrolled in U.S. Clinical Doctoral Programs

PROBLEM Faculty teaching nurses enrolled in clinical doctoral programs need to understand the process of student scholarly writing development so that students can be prepared to share knowledge and communicate effectively in scholarly formats. METHODS A hermeneutic phenomenological study that sought to understand the scholarly writing development of nurses enrolled in a clinical doctoral program was conducted. FINDINGS Findings from interviews with six Doctor of Nursing Practice students revealed three themes: learning throughout life, influence of emotions, and getting through the gate. CONCLUSION Based upon these findings, recommendations for further development of doctoral student writing are suggested so that students can disseminate their knowledge in a scholarly manner, improve practice, and contribute to the profession.