Associate Professor Sarah Llanque-White Aymara
PhD, APRN, FNP-C
University of New Mexico, United States of America
Indigenizing the nursing admission process: A participatory approach at a tribal university
Llanque-White, S. M., Kahn-John, M., Godfrey, T. M., Todicheeney, D.
15-minute oral presentation
Wednesday 11 December, 2:30pm
Background: Admission to traditional registered nursing (RN) programs is competitive and prioritizes grade point average and admission test scores. Less than 1% of Indigenous students are admitted to traditional RN programs. A tribal university (TU) in the U.S. was unsuccessful in admitting Indigenous students based on traditional admission processes.
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Purpose: To increase the number of Indigenous students admitted to an RN program at a TU.
Methods: A participatory case study approach is utilized to showcase the strength-based holistic admissions process for Indigenous students applying to a tribal university’s registered nursing program. The revised holistic and Indigenized admission process was informed by an advisory board of doctorally-prepared Indigenous Nurse clinicians and academics.
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Results: A comparison of the traditional versus holistic RN program admissions process yielded zero eligible Indigenous RN student applicants. After meeting with an advisory board, and Indigenizing the admission process to be more holistic, 15 Indigenous students were successfully chosen and admitted to an RN program.
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Conclusions: The revised admissions process validates the Indigenous worldview and acknowledges holistic student strengths and lived experiences.