What makes a good nursing education: Meeting the needs of students and society in a free-market education system – cluster analysis of United Kingdom universities

Traditional methods of ranking universities does not fit nursing well, where employment is higher and research quality lower than other subjects. There was no clear pattern in university results. Countries considering a free-market approach to nurse education should consider how they will meet the needs of students and health and social care services, while promoting research. The quality of nursing education should include broader measures of societal value and address the theory-practice gap.