Student Voice: Perceptions of Sense of Belonging and Involvement Among Underrepresented Prelicensure Nursing Students

ABSTRACT STUDENT VOICE: PERCEPTIONS OF SENSE OF BELONGING AND INVOLVEMENT AMONG MINORITIZED PRELICENSURE NURSING STUDENTS Maria Y. Peña, MSN, RN, CNE Marquette University Efforts like holistic review admissions by nursing programs to create a more ethnically diverse student body have led to increased enrollment of students with underrepresented ethnic and cultural social identities. However, these students continue to experience higher attrition rates compared to their White, middle-class peers. Although both sense of belonging and student involvement are positively correlated with academic success, limited research explores these constructs together from the perceptions of students with underrepresented ethnic and cultural social identities once they are enrolled in historically White institutions aiming to diversify their student populations. This study aimed to explore sense of belonging and likelihood of involvement as perceived by nursing students with underrepresented ethnic and cultural social identities in these settings. An explanatory sequential mixed methods design was used. A survey assessed sense of belonging and likelihood of involvement mean scores (N=46), followed by ten semi-structured interviews to gain deeper insights into participants’ experiences. Quantitative findings revealed a moderate positive correlation between sense of belonging and likelihood of involvement. A weak positive correlation was found between sense of belonging and household income, while no significant relationships were observed with other demographics. Qualitative findings offered deeper insights into students’ lived experiences. Three overarching themes were identified, including “Participant as Environment,” “Expectations and Interpretations of the College Environment,” and “Intentionality of Belonging,” and their subthemes, which illustrated how these factors affected students’ experiences. The integration of quantitative and qualitative data emphasized that personal narratives provided crucial context, particularly regarding factors like age and ethnicity, which were not statistically significant in quantitative analysis but had nuanced impacts on sense of belonging and likelihood of involvement in qualitative findings. This study underscores the critical role of inclusivity, representation, and intentional outreach in encouraging a sense of belonging and likelihood of involvement among underrepresented nursing students at historically White institutions. While more research is needed, findings suggest that promoting these constructs benefits all students and supports student engagement, retention, and academic success. Future research is needed to explore the long-term effects of such support, the impact of faculty development programs, and the broader implications for nursing education.