Navigating through turbulence in the nursing talent pipeline: A constructivist grounded theory of academic success in polytechnic nursing education.
BACKGROUND Academic success for nursing students has traditionally focused on metrics like grade point averages and exam performance but fails to reflect key abilities such as clinical reasoning, ethical decision-making, and the effective transfer of knowledge to practice. Additionally, there is a paucity of literature investigating academic success in undergraduate nursing education within polytechnic institutions, despite their growing role in nursing education. AIM The objective of this study was to explore the processes and strategies undergraduate nursing students in Canadian polytechnic institutions use to achieve academic success. DESIGN This study utilized constructivist grounded theory methodology to explore how final year nursing students in polytechnic institutions achieve academic success. PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING From September 2023 - to December 2023, 13 final-year undergraduate nursing students from three Canadian polytechnic institutions participated in the study. METHODS Interviews were transcribed verbatim and analyzed using line-by-line coding with in-vivo codes, refined into focused codes through constant comparison. Conceptual insights guided theoretical sampling from online forums, while reflexivity was maintained through memo-writing and reviewing interviews. RESULTS The resultant theory, Navigating through Turbulence in the Nursing Talent Pipeline, describes how nursing students in polytechnic institutions navigate complex, interrelated institutional, social, and personal factors that shape their academic success. This navigation process is illustrated through cyclical and linear pathways, highlighting the iterative and adaptive ways students engage in processes to sustain momentum toward graduation and professional readiness despite ongoing turbulence. CONCLUSIONS The findings revealed key phases of navigation, offering a dynamic, student-centered framework that illuminates students' evolving challenges and adaptive strategies throughout their educational journey. The framework can be used to guide research, practice, and educational reform to strengthen the nursing workforce through responsive, inclusive approaches.