AIM The purpose of this mixed-method study was to explore the influence of a formal mentoring program on career satisfaction of novice full-time nurse faculty in academia. BACKGROUND The transition from the role of clinician to faculty in an academic setting can be challenging for novice nurse faculty. METHOD A link to an electronic survey with open-ended questions was emailed to 1435 participants. RESULTS The response rate was 17.6 percent (N = 124). Mean scores were obtained, and independent t-test were computed to compare scores of faculty who had participated in a mentoring program with scores of nonparticipants. Content analysis of the open-ended answers was conducted, and common themes were identified. CONCLUSION By examining characteristics that contribute to the success of novice nursing faculty, recruitment and retention of faculty may improve, which is essential due to the worsening nursing faculty shortage.

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Effective communication skills are required when nurses care for patients and their families navigating life-limiting illness and the end of life. Educators have made great strides in integrating end-of-life content into prelicensure curricula. It is critical to evaluate nursing students' perceptions of their communication skills to empirically guide the development and implementation of future education interventions. The purpose of this qualitative descriptive study was to explore nursing students' perceptions of their verbal and nonverbal communication competence when providing end-of-life care. Students participated in an established high-fidelity simulation focused on difficult end-of-life conversations. Students explored their perceptions during postsimulation debriefing sessions. Colaizzi's method guided thematic analysis of the audio-recorded debriefings. One major theme emerged from the data: delivering bad news is difficult. Four subthemes further described this theme and its components: (1) reflecting on communication at end of life, (2) feeling uncomfortable, (3) calling for more exposure to end-of-life communication, and (4) fostering a supportive environment for patients and families. Results indicate that nursing students had anxiety and discomfort when engaging in end-of-life conversations. These findings support increased investments in additional training interventions to facilitate the development of student competence in end-of-life communication prior to entering the professional workforce.