Increasing French Language Proficiency at the Ingram School of Nursing: Evaluating the Impact of a French Proficiency Requirement for Admissions

Proficiency in French is increasingly required by Ingram School of Nursing (ISoN) clinical partners. As the proportion of French speaking patients increases, students must be able to speak and write in French to ensure safe, high-quality patient care. Additionally, French proficiency is a requirement of nursing licensure and practice in Quebec. Anecdotal reports suggest that low French proficiency is a significant reason ISoN graduates leave Quebec to practice. To address training and retention issues, the ISoN implemented a French proficiency requirement for admission to entry to practice programs. This marks a significant shift in the ISoN admissions criteria for the Bachelor of Science in Nursing [BSc(N)] and Master of Science in Nursing – Direct Entry [MSc(A)–DE] programs and has potential implications for the ISoN student population, faculty, clinical partners, program graduates, and employers.

The proposed 18-month pilot project will document the implementation of the French language proficiency requirement over the 2020-2021 and 2021-2022 academic years. A utilization-focused evaluation approach will provide a framework for the project. Research methods include quantitative analysis of administrative data and qualitative data collection through in-depth interviews with key stakeholders. The primary goals of the project are to: 1) sensitize stakeholders to the change in admissions policy; 2) evaluate the initial impact of the change on key stakeholders; 3) develop and refine data collection tools and strategies for long term evaluation and research, and; 4) identify possible strategies for optimizing retention of bilingual (French and English) nurses in Quebec.