A Phenomenological Study on the Decision to take Leave of Absence among Nursing Students

Abstract

This study is the qualitative research aimed to understand and explain the leave of absence experiences of nursing students. A total of 7 students, selected through purposive and snowball sampling, participated in the study in a way that they are added until the theoretical saturation level is reached. The data was collected using the informal in-depth interview, participant observation, preparation of field note and telephone interview. The collection of data was conducted from March 2018 to June 2020 when the data got saturated. The frequency of interviews for each informant was 2 or 3 times with each session taking 90 minutes to 120 minutes. The data was analyzed by using the phenomenological research method of Colaizzi. The result of the study was classified into 4 theme groups, 6 themes and 13 formulating meanings, 38 significant statement. The theme groups, themes are as follows: The theme of "The Not suitable for major", " The Unable to find the purpose of taking a stop out ", "The There isn't have any Emotional support", " The hope my tired mind will be relieved". In conclusion, the essence of the Nursing Student Leave of Absence experience is that he is thinking about taking a leave of absence as he is faced with constant doubts about whether a career related to his major is right for him and not knowing what he wants to do in reality while exploring and deciding on a career path and appeared to be determined. On the other hand, it was confirmed that nursing students who decided to take a leave of absence had a positive perception to clarify their career identity despite the above research results. Based on the results of this study, the following suggestions were made. First, it is suggested that university institutions need to improve their educational competitiveness in consideration to the individual abilities and characteristics of students in response to the increasing number of leave of absence. Second, it is necessary to develop a manual for long-term learning counseling through psychological counseling of college students and to provide positive suggestions from university institutions so that effective continuous counseling can be maintained.