Assessing the impact of a study skills programme on the academic development of nursing diploma students at Northumbria University, UK

The Government's nursing recruitment campaign has widened access for those wishing to enter the profession, resulting in some students entering university with clinical experience but little experience of academic writing or using libraries. For these students, the library and study advice staff have an important role to play in helping them acquire appropriate information literacy and study skills. To evaluate the impact of workshops supplementing online instruction in study skills on students' study and writing skills, and level of information literacy. A small group of pre-registration nursing students identified as needing support with information literacy and study skills participated in focus groups to identify areas of concern, and were offered four remedial workshops. A follow-up focus group explored whether the students' needs had been addressed. Further evaluation of the workshops' impact was completed by diagnostic testing within the University's information literacy programme, Skills Plus. The results showed that all students who attended at least one workshop improved their academic grade in their next assignment. Qualitative data indicated that the students' confidence level and information literacy, including referencing skills, had improved. Evaluating the impact of this intervention has provided the evidence to demonstrate the value of this additional support.