The Lived Experience of Minority Nursing Faculty: A Phenomenological Study

The lived experience of full-time nursing faculty has recently been detailed. However, similar information is not available about minority nursing faculty. Purpose: The purpose is to explore the lived experience of minority nursing faculty. Design: The design is a phenomenological study. Methods: Five female faculty with 8 to 13 years of experience in a full-time position shared experiences through face-to-face interviews. A simplified version of Hycner's five-step explicitation process was used for interpretation and data analysis. Findings: Six themes emerged-missing mentorship, lack of collegial support, harnessing external support, acculturation, feeling isolated, and I feel more like a minority here. Discussion: Minority nursing faculty face challenges similar to minority faculty in other disciplines in higher institutions. However, acculturation has not been discussed in phenomenological studies of similar populations. Conclusion: These findings have bearings on strategies for increasing minority nursing faculty and assessing mentoring practices in nursing programs.