This study explored and described the prevalence of perceived stress and minority status stress levels among undergraduate Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) students and their relationship to academic persistence. Two research questions motivate this study: 1) What are the differences in perceived stress levels between underrepresented minority (URM) and White BSN students, and 2) What is the relationship between minority status stress (MSS) and the persistence attitudes of URM BSN students. It was hypothesized that: 1) URM BSN students experience stress related to minority status, and 2) the additive levels of perceived MSS will be significantly related to academic persistence attitudes. Previous research studies utilize traditional models of stress and coping in a sample of predominately White, young, traditional college students. Therefore, the unique stressors related to one's minority status are not examined. This study advances our understanding of stress among URM BSN students and proposes a conceptual framework in which to analyze the problem, thus allowing social workers to understand the context of stress in marginalized groups holistically. A quantitative, cross-sectional survey design study was conducted. Using a convenience sample (N=99), we collected data from three four-year, public, accredited BSN programs in the Midwestern region of the United States. The findings from this research study show the impact of parental income and mother's level of education upon academic persistence attitudes. Underrepresented minority students experience minority status stress. The findings offer insight for social workers, nursing school administrators, and student affairs personnel in better understanding the relationship between MSS and academic persistence.