Introduction: The COVID-19 pandemic generated notable changes in society. Universities are one of the most affected social spheres, since they abruptly went virtual, causing changes in the lives of students, including nursing students. This change unbalanced the habitual states of wakefulness, generating disorders in the quality of sleep, the consequences of which are visible in direct practice towards the people under their care, both in community centers and in hospitals where health workers work. Objective: To determine the influence of sleep quality in the COVID-19 context on the social consequences in nursing students at a public university. Methodology: Observational, cross-sectional design, the sample consisted of 204 Nursing students, the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) questionnaire and a file for sociodemographic characteristics were applied. Results: 66.7% of nursing students are between 18 and 23 years of age, with a predominance of females and single marital status. According to the global score of the Pittsburgh sleep quality index, 84.3% had poor sleep quality, according to its dimensions, 58.8% have a fairly good subjective sleep quality, 37.3% have inadequate sleep latency, 42.6% have an adequate sleep duration, 72.5% have a very adequate sleep efficiency, 52% sometimes have sleep disturbances, 86.3% have never used sleep medications in the last month and 52.9% present almost always daytime dysfunction. 86.4% of the female sex have poor sleep quality. Conclusion: the quality of sleep in the context of COVID -19 negatively influences the social consequences of nursing students.