ABSTRACT
This qualitative research study was undertaken to investigate the experience of being a registered nurse (RN) student enrolled in a specific nontraditional nursing program, ie, Regents College Nursing Program (RCNP), from the perspective of the RCNP baccalaureate graduate. Fifteen RN bachelor's of science in nursing (BSN) graduates of RCNP participated in this descriptive phenomenological investigation in which participant interviews were tape-recorded, transcribed verbatim, and analyzed phenomenologically using Colaizzi's methodology. An exploration of the language of human experience and human expression yielded 101 themes within 20 theme clusters, yet the meaning of the experience was characterized by 8 major clusters that included recounting reasons for choosing RCNP, describing learning approaches for testing, describing the challenges of testing conditions, experiencing stress and describing its effects, describing feelings of uneasiness, describing responses to failure, providing support, and finding ways of mastering Regents. It also was discovered that an underlying theme of stress suggested a pervasive pattern throughout the thematic clusters: stress wove its way throughout the fabric of the experience and caused a disruption of the entire design. The interpreted description of the lived experience of these RN students uncovered reasons for RN baccalaureate program selection by nurses that supported previous research assumptions, isolated specific stressors affecting nurses involved in performance testing, and clarified specific needs of nurses, especially with regard to support networks and learning resources. The results of this study may provide future RN students with information to make a more informed decision about choosing RCNP for a baccalaureate program. In addition, a better understanding of adult learners may assist nurse educators in developing curricula that facilitate professional growth for RN students and relieve some of the possible stress associated with the education process.