Saudi nursing students' graduate program experiences from reality shock to reaching desired outcomes: A qualitative study

Background: Graduate students across disciplines encounter countless academic, social, individual, and financial challenges. Research in nursing has shown that nursing students have trouble during their graduate studies. However, this phenomenon has not yet been explored in Saudi Arabia. Purpose: To explore the obstacles faced by graduate nursing students; assess the effects of these difficulties on their academic, social, and psychological life; determine how the students overcame these challenges; and recognize their needs throughout the graduate program. Methods: We used a qualitative descriptive method to interview 14 graduate nursing students from various graduate programs in Saudi Arabia. All interviews were conducted on Zoom platform and were audio recorded. Thematic analysis was used to analyze the data. Results: The findings revealed that graduate nursing students went through three particular stages during the program. These were reality shock, accepting challenges, and reaching desired outcomes. Conclusions: The findings will help decision makers in supporting and designing programs that facilitate graduate students' experiences. It will also help in improving the quality of graduate programs, by attracting and retaining more Saudis to pursue their graduate studies.