ABSTRACT
But faculty shortages and other challenges continue to limit enrollment.
Subject(s)
COVID-19 , Faculty, Nursing/supply & distribution , Schools, Nursing/statistics & numerical data , Students, Nursing/statistics & numerical data , Education, Distance , Education, Nursing , Ethnicity/statistics & numerical data , Humans , School Admission CriteriaABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: The need for faculty to educate prospective nurses is urgent: without sufficient nursing faculty, schools regularly reject qualified applicants, despite an increasing need for nurses. At the same time, many graduate-prepared nurses lack preparation in teaching and pedagogical frameworks. PROBLEM: Literature on how PhD programs in nursing prepare graduates for teaching indicates that there is typically more emphasis on research than pedagogical learning. APPROACH: With the shift to remote learning under the COVID-19 pandemic, the University of California Irvine created a Graduate Fellows program to provide support to faculty while offering graduate students education in pedagogy and remote learning. OUTCOMES: Fellows were satisfied and reported increased understanding of challenges in teaching and increasing comfort with nurse faculty roles. CONCLUSIONS: The collaborative efforts of fellows and faculty provided important resources at a critical time, and insights gained can inform similar projects in nursing faculty development.