Recently Completed Research

There has been a twofold challenge in recruiting and retaining nurse faculty, who both educate the next generation of nurses and often serve in secondary direct patient care roles themselves. This trend analysis examines the often dynamic demographic and employment patterns among nurse faculty from 2017 through 2024, drawing on aggregate data from the National Nursing Workforce Survey. Critically, the proportion of faculty aged 65 years or older more than doubled over the study frame, increasing from 17% in 2017 to 34% in 2024. Additionally, when compared with similarly educated non-faculty nurses, nurse faculty were found to have earned $32,000 less on an annual basis.

This study was published in April 2026 by the Journal of Nursing Regulation.

NCSBN conducted a longitudinal examination of prelicensure nursing programs’ clinical delivery formats before, during, and after the COVID-19 pandemic. The study leveraged the results of two national surveys of all registered nurse (RN) program administrators at two distinct time points, the first in 2020, the second in 2024. In 2020, administrators from 526 unique prelicensure RN programs responded to the survey for a final response rate of 33%. By comparison, 685 prelicensure RN programs participated in the 2024 follow-up survey for a final response rate of 39%. The combined longitudinal survey sample includes 1,211 unique prelicensure RN programs located across all 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia. A total of 804 prelicensure RN programs provided complete longitudinal data on their clinical and/or lecture delivery formats, including over 3,500 observations across high-fidelity simulation (1,424), virtual clinical simulation (1,024), and didactic instruction (1,062). The study found the median use of high-fidelity (Fall 2019: 15% v. Fall 2020: 30%) and virtual clinical simulation (Fall 2019: 5% v. Fall 2020: 25%) increased two- to four-fold during COVID-19 but reverted to pre-pandemic levels following the end of the emergency phase (Fall 2024: 10% and 5%, respectively). The authors concluded that while advancements in simulated clinical instruction are numerous, ranging from novel applications of virtual/augmented reality to artificial intelligence, widespread adoption remains low. Future efforts to increase uptake must overcome existing institutional barriers, such as facility/equipment availability, faculty exposure and buy-in, and administrative support.

This study was published in February 2026 by Nursing Outlook.

In fall 2024, NCSBN surveyed all registered nurse (RN) and licensed practical nurse (LPN) program administrators nationwide. The study sought to determine the prevalence of RN and LPN education programs’ use of generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies, and the extent to which they embed AI and other digital health topics into their instructional content. Prelicensure RN programs (n = 122, 24%) were more likely to use generative AI technology than LPN programs (n = 27, 12%, p < 0.001), but more than three-quarters of both types of programs reported they do not use such tools or are not sure. In addition to the low usage of generative AI technology, few programs reported teaching advancements in AI and/or other digital health–related topics to their students (RN n = 87, 17%; LPN n = 25, 11%). The study concluded that nursing education programs that limit integration of AI into their curriculum risk potentially limiting students’ learning on evidence-based practice and may miss opportunities to promote critical reflection. The findings underscore the need to support nursing faculty to ensure prelicensure instructional content prepares nursing students for advancements in clinical practice.

This study was published in September 2025 by the Journal of Nursing Regulation.

In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, workforce data suggested that there was a large influx of experienced RNs returning to practice who had left nursing during (or before) the pandemic. An analysis of three cycles of the National Nursing Workforce survey from 2020-2024 reveals that the estimated number of RNs aged 50 or older actively working in nursing increased by more than half a million between 2022 and 2024. Simultaneously, the proportion of RNs surveyed in this age group who reported being retired decreased across each cycle, from 22% in 2020 to 17% in 2024, suggesting a trend of “unretirement” among experienced RNs. However, in 2024, the majority of RNs over 50 expressed an intent to retire or leave nursing within 5 years. This study argues that the return of experienced nurses to the workforce is not a boon that should be appreciated passively, but rather, effort should be made to ensure a transfer of knowledge and expertise from these experienced nurses to the next generation. By better understanding these nurses’ motivating factors for returning and the challenges they faced, workforce planners can buoy future workforce health by facilitating the return of the burnt-out younger RNs who left practice during and after the pandemic.

This study was published in the Journal of Nursing Regulation in August 2026.