| Recent trends in healthcare and an ever-increasing nursing shortage provide clear rationale for examining a broad array of issues related to comprehensive educational methodologies associated with professional nursing. Graduate nursing education at the master's level is no exception. Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) programs prepare nurse educators, clinical nurse specialists, nurse practitioners, nurse anesthetists, nurse midwives, and administrators. Focused inquiry in regards to the student's lived experience within an alternative MSN program is necessary in order to determine why students select such programs over traditional options, factors they deem critical to their success, key descriptors of the learning, experience, and the essence of meaning. Four research questions were posed in order to examine each of these areas.;Purposive sampling was used yielding 14 participants, from 3 university sites. Data analysis was accomplished using the Cohen, Kahn, and Steeves (2000) framework. The steps of analysis were inclusive of interviews, data immersion, data reduction, writing and rewriting. In regards to the primary life circumstances that influenced the decision to select an alternative MSN program over that of a traditional program 3 key themes emerged from the participant interviews: Long commute, competing family commitments, and moving on. Three themes were revealed in regard to factors that students deemed critical to their success: professional connections, open channels of communication, and intrinsic desire and motivation. Four themes emerged in regard to a description of the overall learning experience: new and alternative opportunities for learning, formalized and focused discussion, frustration, and not for everyone. In regards to why students did not choose a traditional program 3 themes emerged: reviewability, focused delivery, and extreme distance.;The core construct of meaning revealed from the participant interview was uplifting. Exemplars derived from the interview demonstrated new opportunities for employment, increased self confidence, and a new direction in life. |
