1. What Nursing Students Want A Co-sponsored Study by the Canadian Nursing Students’ Association and Bernard Hodes Group

2. Bernard Hodes Group A fully integrated recruitment communications and staffing solutions provider The Hodes Health Care Practice has several RNs/Consultants on staff A significant % of our revenue comes from the health care sector Part of Omnicom Group – a global leader in advertising and marketing communications

3. Canadian Nursing Students’ Association CNSA - AEIC is the voice of nursing students in Canada 35-year history Over 10,000 members Affiliate member of the Canadian Nurses Association Works closely with the Canadian Association of Schools of Nursing

4. Purpose of this Study To better understand the characteristics of future health care practitioners currently enrolled in colleges throughout Canada Reasons for pursuing a career in health care Reasons for selecting their school of choice What issues in Canadian health care are important to nursing students

5. Purpose of this Study What nursing graduates are looking for from prospective employers Provide feedback to employers about the most effective ways to recruit and retain nursing graduates Assess the effectiveness of the CNSA in its attempt to reach out and speak for its members

6. Methodology Bernard Hodes Group partnered with CNSA-AEIC Conducted a bilingual online survey within the Association’s membership Survey was implemented between September 23 - November 14, 2005 First national survey of its type in Canada

7. Methodology Survey consisted of 27 questions covering: - student demographics and program enrollment - career issues and expectations - reasons for choosing a nursing career - health care career paths - selection criteria and influences in choosing a nursing school - evaluation and importance of clinical experiences - current and future employment opportunities/expectations - evaluation of hospital websites - assessment of the CNSA in reaching its membership

8. Methodology A total of 1,557 respondents completed the survey

9. Findings

10. Respondent Profile Age of Respondents Gender

11. Respondent Profile Ethnicity

12. Respondent Profile Full or Part Time Type of Program

13. Respondent Profile Home Province/Territory

14. Respondent Profile School Province/Territory

15. Respondent Profile Year of Program Study

16. Career Path Attended University directly from High School

17. Career Path Did not attend University directly from High School

18. Career Path Reasons for choosing Nursing

19. Career Path Important Issues

20. Career Path Reasons for Selecting School

21. Career Path Distance from Home to School

22. Career Path Number of Clinical Assignments

23. Career Path Ratings of Clinical Assignments

24. Career Path Will Apply or Avoid Facility Where Clinical Experience Held Will avoid working at facility as a result of clinical experiences Will apply due to experiences during clinical rotations

25. Career Path Work Preference at Graduation

26. Career Path Where Would you Like to Work?

27. Career Path Employment Choice

28. Career Path Preference in Hospital Setting

29. Career Path Personal Development

30. Career Path Most Likely Career Plans

31. Career Path Influence on Career Plans - All

32. Career Path Influence on Career Plans - 4 and 5 Ratings Only

33. Career Path Influence on Choice of Hospital

34. Career Path Career Outlook

35. Career Path Number of Websites Visited to Learn of Career Opportunities

36. Career Path Important Elements on Websites

37. Implications for Employers Nursing Students are fairly realistic in their understanding of the current employment marketplace A positive Clinical experience has a direct correlation with the ability to attract and recruit talent Location is a prime consideration in selecting an initial employer Continuing education is an important attract factor Full-time positions are the most desirable

38. Implications for Employers 26% of respondents are over 25 years old 27% of respondents have had previous career and/or other experience Communications programs must reflect the diversity of non- traditional students within the target audience A variety of communications tools must be used to reach potential nursing students/candidates Employers need to nurture the relationship with students – CRM ‘candidate relationship management’

39. Implications for Employers Nursing students are both altruistic and practical in their reasons for choosing a career in nursing Nursing students are optimistic about their career prospects They are reasonably well informed about issues confronting Canadian health care Students are realistic about the ‘pragmatics’ of their first employment position They want FTE or Permanent positions and benefits with flexibility.

40. Implications for Employers The majority of respondents prefer acute care settings as their preferred place of employment Many intend to continue to pursue higher learning opportunities Teaching hospitals are preferred The majority intend to work close to home The internet is only one of many sources of information when seeking information about potential employment opportunities

41. For more information about this survey, please contact: Colleen Ferris Vice-President Education & Research vp@cnsa.ca Stephen G. Mitchell Vice President Health Care Division SGMitchell@hodes.com 800 581 8816 978-263-6695