Professional identity, academic satisfaction, and career commitment among undergraduate nursing students in India: a cross-sectional study.

INTRODUCTION

Professional identity, academic satisfaction, and career commitment are important psychological and educational factors that may influence nursing students' long-term engagement with the nursing profession. In countries such as India, where nursing workforce retention and migration are major concerns, understanding these factors is essential for strengthening future workforce stability. This study examined the levels of professional identity, academic satisfaction, and career commitment among undergraduate nursing students in India, identified student profiles based on these constructs, and examined whether academic satisfaction showed a statistical indirect association in the relationship between professional identity and career commitment.

METHODS

A cross-sectional correlational study was conducted among 354 undergraduate nursing students from two nursing colleges in India. Participants were recruited using convenience sampling. Data were collected using structured, validated self-administered questionnaires measuring professional identity, academic satisfaction, and career commitment. Descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation, k-means cluster analysis, mediation analysis using PROCESS Model 4, and multiple linear regression were performed.

RESULTS

Students reported high professional identity (mean = 66.98, SD = 8.78) and academic satisfaction (mean = 19.15, SD = 3.67), but moderate career commitment (mean = 12.79, SD = 2.16). Professional identity was positively correlated with academic satisfaction (r = 0.517, p < 0.001) and career commitment (r = 0.224, p < 0.001). Academic satisfaction was also positively correlated with career commitment (r = 0.283, p < 0.001). Cluster analysis identified three student profiles: low identity and satisfaction profile, high identity, satisfaction, and commitment profile, and higher identity/satisfaction but lower commitment profile. PROCESS analysis showed a significant indirect association between professional identity and career commitment through academic satisfaction, (B = 0.0378, 95% CI: 0.0165-0.0607). In regression analysis, professional identity, academic satisfaction, and leadership involvement were significantly associated with career commitment. The model explained 11.9% of the variance in career commitment.

CONCLUSION

Career commitment among nursing students was associated with professional identity, academic satisfaction, and leadership involvement. However, the modest explained variance suggests that additional personal, educational, and contextual factors should be explored. Longitudinal and multicenter studies are recommended to better understand the development of career commitment among nursing students.