It is generally presumed that most undergraduate first‐year nursing students are not prepared for the transition from basic to higher education. Resilience is recommended as a viable coping strategy that acts as a buffer to the adversities that undergraduate first‐year nursing students experience. Therefore, the aim of this study was to develop and validate a conceptual framework to improve resilience among undergraduate first‐year nursing students at a South African university. A multiphase concurrent mixed‐methods research design was followed through concept analysis, and the empirical, development and validation phases. Development and validation of a conceptual framework were guided by Dickoff et al.'s practice‐oriented theory model and e‐Delphi, respectively. Data used for development of the conceptual framework were gathered from undergraduate first‐year nursing students from two campuses of a South African university, while national and international experts in nursing education were used to validate a conceptual framework. The conceptual framework developed shows that the undergraduate first‐year nursing students are at the centre of four contexts, namely South African university, work‐integrated clinical facilities, the South African Nursing Council and South African higher education. The conceptual framework includes collaboration of stakeholders, mentoring and debriefing. The guiding principles of the conceptual framework encompass strengthening internal resources and establishment of a support group to achieve the terminus, which is characterised by undergraduate nursing students' improved transition from basic to higher education. In conclusion, the newly developed conceptual framework has the potential to improve resilience among undergraduate first‐year nursing students.
