Mental Health and Academic Outcomes in Undergraduate Nursing Students

Nursing students are at heightened risk of trauma exposure and trauma-related psychological symptoms. The association of trauma exposure and psychological distress with academic performance among nursing students remains underexamined.

This study investigated whether mental health symptomology predicted academic performance among undergraduate nursing students.

Undergraduate nursing students (n = 601) completed measures of trauma exposure, general and trauma-specific psychological symptoms, and protective factors (social support, self-efficacy, and perceived trauma-informed climate). Self-reported data were correlated with students' grade point average (GPA) the following semester.

Analyses did not reveal a pattern of significant associations of trauma exposure, psychological symptoms, self-efficacy, or perceived trauma-informed climate with students' GPA in subsequent semesters. Social support during the student's second year in the program was weakly correlated with subsequent GPA.

This study suggests that academic performance may not reliably reflect underlying psychological distress. These findings challenge the assumption that high-achieving students are thriving and highlight the need for more holistic approaches to student support.