FROM DIPLOMA TO DEGREE - FOLLOW-UP OF RN-BA GRADUATES OF TEL-AVIV-UNIVERSITY

The Tel Aviv University post-basic nursing program, established in 1968, was the first step of nursing academization in Israel. Since then, one-third of the nursing schools in Israel have been academized. The objectives of the present study were to document changes in the worklife of the graduates since completion of the program, to learn about the influence of the program, and to identify factors promoting or impeding study in the program. A mailed questionnaire to 709 graduates produced a 46.8% response. At the time of this study 93% were working, almost half of them in hospital. Data also showed upward mobility, with 38% employed at the institutional to national supervisor level. Recommendations include continuation of the post-basic program, expansion of the clinical content, and enhanced interaction between students, graduates and faculty.