The Impact of An Innovative Online Orientation Program on Graduation among Graduate Nursing Students: A Secondary Analysis

The current shortage of Advanced Practice Registered Nurses (APRN) in the United States requires innovative programs to increase on-time graduation and decrease attrition. The Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) Online Orientation for Retention Excellence (MORE) Program is one such program. However, the program’s impact on on-time graduation and attrition is not known. The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of the MORE Program on student’s on-time graduation and attrition. Tinto’s Theoretical Model of Student Departure (1993) was used as the guiding theoretical framework. A retrospective secondary analysis was conducted on all 608 MSN students who enrolled in the Fall 2016 to Fall 2018 at one nursing school located in the southern United States. Logistic regression models were used to examine the association between the MORE Program and the on-time graduation rate and the attrition rate. The models adjusted for the effect of age, sex, program track, and admission GPA. The study found no statistical difference in the odds of graduating on-time between students who did and did not participate in the MORE Program. However, age, program track, and admission GPA were significant predictors of on-time graduation. For attrition, students who never or only partially participated in the MORE Program had 2 to 3 times higher odds of attrition compared to students who fully participated. Age and program track were also significant predictors of attrition. Online orientation programs should be used in online graduate nursing programs to decrease attrition. Findings from this study could inform nursing educators about establishing online orientation programs and resources to support at-risk students to better prepare online graduate nursing students for successful graduation.