From proposal to action: evaluating the results of a nursing student project to promote student-community engagement

BackgroundA focus on community engagement is encouraged when educating nursing students on preventative care and advocacy. Students often struggle to connect theory to practice and benefit from real-world experiences.AimThis paper describes the effect of a student-led health project on student development.MethodsA descriptive, correlational design was used to explore end of semester feedback from undergraduate nursing students (N = 174) completing a semester long community project. Chi-square analyses and thematic coding were performed to determine measures of association and student perceptions.ResultsAcross 83 completed surveys (47.7%), self-efficacy was a key factor in project completion, development, bias awareness, and commitment to community.ConclusionsCivic duty and professional responsibility are challenging concepts for students, thus, impacting transition to practice. Engagement in self-efficacious experiences is encouraged.Impact statementCommunity engagement influences undergraduate nursing students' development. Enhanced support of student self-efficacy may promote attainment of nursing values and improved care delivery.