Employers’ perceptions of the performance of nursing graduates from a university in Colombia
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.29375/01237047.4984Keywords:
Health Facilities, Health Organizations, Nursing, Workforce, Work Performance, Nurse's Role, Nursing Care, Work EngagementAbstract
Introduction. Nursing professionals play a fundamental role in interdisciplinary teams across various work settings. Effective performance requires specific competencies, a solid knowledge base, and skill development. The objective of this study was to describe employers’ perceptions of the performance of nursing graduates from a university in Colombia. Methodology. A quantitative, descriptive, cross-sectional observational study was conducted. The sample consisted of 39 institutions selected through nonprobability purposive sampling. Institutions were included if their workforce included professional nurses who were graduates of the university under study. Results. Of the institutions, 64% rated the nursing professionals as good and 33% as excellent. Regarding the desired professional profile, values and competencies such as respect (38%) and leadership and responsibility (35%) were repeatedly highlighted. Discussion. Employers’ individual and collective perceptions of nursing professionals reflect both institutional expectations and the professionals’ day-to-day performance. These factors can be defined, categorized, and evaluated from various perspectives, depending on the work context and service needs. Conclusions. The institutions hold a favorable view of nursing professionals. The study highlights the importance of cognitive skills related to decision-making and problem-solving, grounded in scientific knowledge, as well as principles of respect and leadership for effective integration into work teams.
Author Biographies
Maicol Stip Betancourt-Granada, Universidad de Ciencias Aplicadas y Ambientales
maibetancourt@udca.edu.co - maicol.stip5@gmail.com
Universidad de Ciencias Aplicadas y Ambientales U.D.C.A. Programa de Enfermería. Bogotá, Colombia.
Johan Ricardo Torres-Guevara, Universidad de Ciencias Aplicadas y Ambientales
johan.torres@udca.edu.co, johantorres668@gmail.com
Universidad de Ciencias Aplicadas y Ambientales U.D.C.A. Programa de Enfermería. Bogotá, Colombia.
Nelson Rolando Campos-Guzmán, Universidad de Ciencias Aplicadas y Ambientales
Universidad de Ciencias Aplicadas y Ambientales U.D.C.A. Programa de Enfermería. Bogotá, Colombia.
Nancy Yaneth Portela-Escandon, Universidad de Ciencias Aplicadas y Ambientales
Universidad de Ciencias Aplicadas y Ambientales U.D.C.A. Programa de Enfermería. Bogotá, Colombia.
References
1. Martínez-Martín ML, Chamorro-Rebollo E. Historia de la enfermería: Evolución histórica del cuidado enfermero. Madrid: Editorial Médica Panamericana; 2017. Recuperado a partir de: https://books.google.com.mx/books?id=ZGawDgAAQBAJ
2. Consejo Internacional de Enfermeras. Definiciones de enfermería [Internet]. Ginebra: CIE; 2026. Recuperado a partir de: https://www.icn.ch/es/politica-de-enfermeria/definiciones
3. Organización Panamericana de la Salud. Enfermería y partería [Internet]. Washington: OPS/OMS; 2026. Recuperado a partir de: https://www.paho.org/es/temas/enfermeria-parteria
4. Consultorsalud. ANEC: Situación actual de la enfermería en Colombia [Internet]. Bogotá: Consultorsalud; 2026. Recuperado a partir de: https://consultorsalud.com/anec-situacion-actual-de-la-enfermeria-en-colombia/
5. Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Education at a Glance 2022. OECD Indicators [Internet]. Paris: OECD; 2022. doi: https://doi.org/10.1787/3197152b-en
6. Universidad de Ciencias Aplicadas y Ambientales. Perfil profesional del programa de Enfermería [Internet]. Bogotá: U.D.C.A; 2026. Recuperado a partir de: https://www.udca.edu.co/pregrado/enfermeria/
7. Organización de las Naciones Unidas. Objetivos y metas de desarrollo sostenible [Internet]. Nueva York: ONU; 2026. Recuperado a partir de: https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/es/objetivos-de-desarrollo-sostenible/
8. Campaña-de Paredes C, Velásquez-Jiménez CM, Vargas-Cruz LD, González-Hernández OJ, Zuluaga-Ramírez YC, Orozco-Vásquez MM, et al. Programa de Enfermería. Compromiso con la formación de Profesionales en Colombia. 20 años. Primera Edición [Internet]. Bogotá: UDCA; 2022. Recuperado a partir de: https://www.udca.edu.co/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/Enfermeria_20.pdf
9. Garcia CM, Sarsale MS, Uy IM. Dimensions of program relevance towards employment success: Evidence from a graduate tracer study using principal component analysis. Journal of Teaching and Learning for Graduate Employability [Internet]. 2024;15(1):205-24. doi: https://doi.org/10.21153/jtlge2024vol15no1art1895
10. Pansuwan K, Klayjan K, Suasing C, Sribuarom N. Perception of Graduates’ Employers on Quality and Identity of Nursing Graduates from Faculty of Nursing, Naresuan University. Nursing [Internet]. 2020;14(1):54-65. Recuperado a partir de: https://he01.tci-thaijo.org/index.php/NurseNu/article/view/235770
11. Brits HJ. Assessing employer satisfaction: An attempt to enhance graduate employability at an institution of higher learning. SAJHE [Internet]. 2019;32(5):39-53. doi: https://doi.org/10.20853/32-5-2571
12. Huyhua-Gutiérrez SC, Tejada-Muñoz S. Satisfacción del empleador sobre las competencias del egresado de enfermería de una universidad pública licenciada. ACC CIETNA [Internet]. 2020;7(2):93-101. doi: https://doi.org/10.35383/cietna.v7i2.513
13. Alshammari MH, Alenezi A. Nursing workforce competencies and job satisfaction: the role of technology integration, self-efficacy, social support, and prior experience. BMC Nursing [Internet]. 2023; 22:308. doi: https://doi.org/10.1186/s12912-023-01474-8
14. Guerrero-Méndez Y. Estudio de la percepción que tienen los empleadores respecto a las competencias laborales de los graduados de las carreras profesionales de la Corporación Universitaria Minuto de Dios sede principal calle 80 [Tesis de Maestría]. Bogotá: Corporación Universitaria Minuto de Dios; 2019. Recuperado a partir de: https://repository.uniminuto.edu/bitstream/10656/10957/1/TM.GS_GuerreroYohana_2019.pdf
15. Hyun A, Tower M, Turner C. Exploration of the expected and achieved competency levels of new graduate nurses. J Nurs Manag [Internet]. 2020;28(6):1418-1431. doi: https://doi.org/10.1111/jonm.13105
16. Theisen JL, Sandau KE. Competency of new graduate nurses: a review of their weaknesses and strategies for success. J Contin Educ Nursing [Internet]. 2013;44(9):406-414. doi: https://doi.org/10.3928/00220124-20130617-38
17. Fajardo-Peña MT, Cardozo-Ortiz CE, Padilla-García CI. Percepción de los empleadores sobre el desempeño del profesional de enfermería de la Universidad Industrial de Santander. Salud UIS [Internet]. 2022;54:e22051. doi: https://doi.org/10.18273/saluduis.54.e:22051
18. Ministerio de Salud y Protección Social. Perfiles y competencias profesionales en salud. Perspectiva de las profesiones, un aporte al cuidado de la salud, las personas, familias y comunidades [Internet]. Bogotá: MinSalud; 2016. Recuperado a partir de: https://www.minsalud.gov.co/sites/rid/Lists/BibliotecaDigital/RIDE/VS/TH/Perfiles-profesionales-salud.pdf
19. Prosen M, Licen S. Newly graduated nurses’ perceptions of their professional role and professional competency: a qualitative focus group study. BMC Med Educ [Internet]. 2023;23:755. doi: https://doi.org/10.1186/s12909-023-04747-7
20. Fan Y, Li Q, Yang S, Guo Y, Yang L, Zhao S. Developing tools for identifying employer and employee satisfaction of nursing new graduates in China. The Scientific World Journal [Internet]. 2014; 2014:384649. doi: https://doi.org/10.1155/2014/384649
How to Cite
Downloads
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 MedUNAB

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
| Article metrics | |
|---|---|
| Abstract views | 7 |
| Galley views | 8 |
| PDF Views | 8 |
| HTML views | 0 |
| Other views | 0 |

