| It is thought that nursing enrollment could decline significantly if the baccalaureate-only entry to professional nursing practice is implemented, because associate degree nursing (ADN) students, who comprise two-thirds of nursing enrollment and are overwhelmingly nontraditional, might not enroll in nursing in such an environment. Due to a dearth of studies addressing this possibility, this descriptive-correlational study investigated (a) the likelihood that ADN students would still have enrolled in nursing if the baccalaureate level (BSN) had been the only option for professional nursing practice, (b) the barriers to BSN education they perceive as most deterring, and (c) the relationship between perceived barriers and their likelihood of enrollment. A descriptive survey, using the Barriers to Participation in Baccalaureate Nursing Education questionnaire, was employed to gather data over the Internet from ADN students. The study revealed that up to 37% of ADN students would not have enrolled in the BSN program, up to 89% would not have enrolled in the ADN program, and up to 30% would not have enrolled in nursing altogether in a BSN only environment. These findings suggest that current nursing enrollment could decline significantly and worsen the projected nursing shortage if baccalaureate-only nursing is implemented. Situational barriers such as the costs of BSN education and home and job responsibilities were of most concern among respondents. A significant positive correlation was detected between situational barriers and the likelihood of enrollment in the ADN program. Dispositional barriers were significantly negatively correlated to the likelihood of enrollment in the BSN program. |
