Engaging Undergraduate Nursing Students in Research: The Students’ Experience of a Summer Internship Program Pilot Project

Abstract

Educational Innovations Diane Cepanec, MA; Diana Clarke, PhD, RN; James Plohman, MSc; Judy Gerard, BN, RN Educators continue to struggle with ways to foster an interest in and a passion for nursing research among undergraduate students. The purpose of this article is to describe the introduction of undergraduate student internships at the Manitoba Centre for Nursing and Health Research, Faculty of Nursing, University of Manitoba, as an innovation in education that allowed students to be employed while engaging them in student learning, scientific inquiry, and scholarship through one-to-one faculty–student research mentorships. In this article, the key components of the summer internship program are described, along with five nursing students’ experiences of their participation in the program. [J Nurs Educ. 2013;52(8):466–469.] Ms. Cepanec is Associate Director, Dr. Clarke is Associate Dean, Research, and Director, and Mr. Plohman is Research Technician, Manitoba Centre for Nursing and Health Research, Faculty of Nursing, University of Manitoba; Ms. Gerard is palliative care nurse, Palliative Care Program, Winnipeg Regional Health Authority, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Funding for the Summer Internship Program Pilot Project Evaluation was provided by the Faculty of Nursing Endowment Fund, University of Manitoba. The authors have disclosed no potential conflicts of interest, financial or otherwise. Address correspondence to Diane Cepanec, MA, Associate Director, Manitoba Centre for Nursing and Health Research, Faculty of Nursing, Helen Glass Centre for Nursing, University of Manitoba, 89 Curry Place, Winnipeg, Manitoba, R3T 2N2 Canada; e-mail: Diane.Cepanec@umanitoba.ca. 10.3928/01484834-20130718-03