Transition to RN Practice: Are Pre-licensure Program Graduates Ready?
Webinar Details & Objectives
Hosted by AACN's Faculty Leadership Network.
Nursing education leaders have made great strides in transforming nursing education to better prepare graduates from pre-licensure programs for contemporary RN practice, yet an education-practice gap persists. This webinar will examine the knowledge, skills, and attitudes needed for successful transition with attention given to the unique challenges posed by the 2020 pandemic. Strategies to facilitate graduates confidence and readiness for practice will be explored, including practice-education partnership opportunities.
Objectives
- Discuss knowledge, skills, and attitudes the new graduate needs for a successful transition to RN practice
- Identify ways to address unique new challenges educators face in preparing students for clinical practice during the COVID-19 pandemic
- Explore ways that practice-education partnerships can mitigate the education-practice gap
Speakers

Clinical Associate Professor
Indiana University School of Nursing
Before joining the faculty at Indiana University School of Nursing in 1993, Dr. DeMeester’s clinical experience was in the areas of critical care and cardiac rehabilitation nursing. She earned her BSN and MSN degrees from Indiana University and her PhD from UNLV. She currently holds an academic appointment as a Clinical Associate Professor of Nursing. She has served as an academic leader in the roles of Associate Dean of Pre-Licensure Programs (2013-2018) and Interim Associate Dean of Undergraduate Programs (2018-2020). She is a Certified Nurse Educator (CNE) and teaches courses in both the undergraduate and PhD programs. She previously co-chaired the IU Practice-Education-Partnership (PEP) operations subcommittee and worked with nursing leaders from eight area hospitals to implement a precepted PEP clinical model designed to deepen the clinical learning and practice preparation of undergraduate students. She currently teaches a Nursing Synthesis course in which she supports the learning of senior students in their final semester who are preparing to transition to RN practice. Her educational research has focused on the clinical education of pre-licensure nursing students. She has been involved in studies of the perceptions of students engaged in interprofessional clinical learning and faculty members, preceptors, and/or students in various clinical learning environments including traditional faculty-supervised instruction, preceptorships, dedicated education units (DEUs), and hybrid models of clinical education. Dr. DeMeester is interested in curriculum development, program evaluation and the preparation of future faculty. She has expertise in examination mapping, item-writing, and exam/item analysis.
Pricing and CE Credit
This webinar is free to deans, faculty, staff and students from AACN member schools of nursing. All non-member audiences will be required to pay a $59 webinar fee.
Continuing Education Credits
Eligible attendees may receive one continuing nursing education (CNE) contact hour for participating in this webinar. The American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) is an accredited CNE-provider by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Commission on Accreditation. The Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health (ASPPH) works with the National Board of Public Health Examiners (NBPHE) to provide CPH credits.