Author(s)

Zhang Nan ¹

Affiliation(s)

¹ International Nursing School, Hainan Vocational University of Science and Technology, Haikou, 571137, China

Corresponding Author

Zhang Nan

ABSTRACT

Nursing education in the 21st century is being reshaped by technological change, demographic shifts, workforce shortages, and higher expectations for safe, patient-centered care. For vocational universities, these changes are especially important because such institutions are expected to prepare practice-ready graduates with strong clinical competence, adaptability, and employability. This paper examines the major barriers and facilitators affecting nursing education in vocational universities. The major barriers include faculty shortages, limited clinical placement capacity, uneven digital infrastructure, financial and psychological burdens on students, weak academic-clinical integration, and inequities in learning environments. Important facilitators include simulation-based education, digital transformation, stronger school-hospital partnerships, preceptor development, student support systems, and competency-based curriculum reform [1-4]. This paper argues that vocational nursing education should move beyond traditional knowledge transmission and adopt a more integrated, flexible, and practice-oriented model. Long-term progress depends on investment in educators, clinical learning ecosystems, educational technology, and supportive policies. Vocational universities can play a central role in preparing the future nursing workforce if barriers are addressed systematically and facilitators are strengthened strategically.

KEYWORDS

Nursing Education; Vocational University; Barriers; Facilitators; Simulation; Digital Transformation; Clinical Placement; Faculty Shortage

CITE THIS PAPER

Zhang Nan. Barriers and Facilitators of Nursing Education in the 21st Century in Vocational Universities. Advances in Educational Technology and Psychology (2026). Vol. 10, No. 1, 80-85. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.23977/aetp.2026.100110.

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Sponsors, Associates, and Links

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• Curriculum and Teaching Methodology
  
  
• Transactions on Comparative Education
  
  
• Applied & Educational Psychology
  
  
• Advances in Vocational and Technical Education
  
  
• Adult and Higher Education