PERCEIVED INFLUENCE OF CLINICAL EXPERIENCE ON ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE OF UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF BENIN, BENIN CITY

ABSTRACT

A critical aspect of nursing training is clinical learning that assists students in integrating their conceptual understanding to actual-life situations. The research evaluated influence of clinical background on scholastic achievement of undergraduate nursing students in University of Benin, Benin City. This study employed a descriptive survey methodology, and the participants were 196 undergraduate nursing undergraduates at the University of Benin in Benin City. Proportionate sampling method had been utilized. Self-structured questionnaires were employed to get data from the respondents which was validated by the researcher’s supervisor and yielded a reliability score of 0.81 during the pilot study. The testing of the data was done by descriptive statistics, which included proportions and rates. The result shows that undergraduate nursing students have negative experience during clinical placement with a grand mean score of 2.83, attitude of nursing students towards clinical placements was negative with a grand mean score of 2.44, also there was an adverse effects of clinical experience on undergraduate nursing students' academic achievement, obtaining a 2.87 total mean score and academic achievement of nursing students were average. There are no substantial association between undergraduate nursing students' clinical experiences and their academic achievement. The study concluded that undergraduate nursing students have negative experiences during clinical placement, exhibits negative attitude towards clinical placements and clinical experience have unfavorable impact on the academic achievement of nursing students. There is need for a rehabilitation strategy to be created and conducted by the school's head of department and faculty which aim to help improve the undergraduate nursing student clinical learning experience.