I entered nursing education with two feet in and my heart wide open. After years of bedside patient care, nurse preceptor experience, and finishing my master’s in nursing education, I believed my nursing expertise would naturally translate into teaching competence. I was wrong. Teaching nursing students in academic and clinical settings requires not just knowledge but endurance, creativity, vulnerability, late nights, and lots of caffeine.

I currently serve as an adjunct nurse educator at Del Mar College’s Nursing Education Dept. in Corpus Christi, Texas, splitting my time between classroom and clinical instruction. With less than 4 years in this role, I’ve experienced more growth than I anticipated and more challenges than I was warned about.

Dual roles, double the pressure

In the classroom, I plan active-learning lectures, facilitate group discussions, grade assignments, and attempt to maintain the engagement of a new generation of nursing students amid distraction-heavy times. The learning environment constantly evolves year after year. I’ve noticed that when teaching my Gen Z nursing students, they crave stimulation, immediate feedback, and tech-driven instruction. Meanwhile, when teaching my older Millennial nursing students, they have a strong work ethic, are team-oriented, and desire a school-life balance. I’ve had to embrace flipped classrooms, interactive patient-centered case studies, and Kahoot quizzes on the fly, none of which I used in bedside nursing.

In clinical settings, I supervise and instruct student nurses in real time as they interact with patients. I teach using the clinical judgement measurement model, Socratic questioning, debriefing after every meaningful interaction, and round-table discussions during clinical post-conferences. Some days, I’m facilitating my clinical nursing students through their first subcutaneous injection. Next, I help my student de-escalate an emotional encounter with a distressed patient or family member. Each shift demands attentiveness, adaptability, and relentless presence, especially for my first-semester students.

Most days, balancing classroom and clinical teaching feels like performing two jobs while being paid for less than one. Like many novice adjunct nurse educators, I face inconsistent schedules, limited access to resources, no requirement to go to faculty meetings, no formal office, and low pay. Despite that, I continue, not out of compulsion but because I see the difference my role makes in our nursing students.

The Texas factor

Working in South Texas brings its own unique flavor of complexity. As one of the fastest-growing states with a diverse population and broad healthcare needs, Texas relies heavily on nurse educators to keep pace with demand. Community colleges and universities with nursing education departments increasingly depend on adjunct nurse educators to cover both classroom lecture and clinical rotation hours. However, structured onboarding, mentorship, and professional development opportunities remain inconsistent.

The Texas Board of Nursing enforces rigorous standards, and rightly so. Still, compliance frequently falls squarely on novice adjunct nurse educators who may not receive sufficient institutional support. This creates a high-stakes environment without a clear roadmap for success or retention.

Lessons on the job

In my first year, I started teaching nursing students during the pandemic. I wrestled with impostor syndrome. I questioned whether I belonged teaching them every day. I stumbled over my words during online PowerPoint lectures and replayed every clinical interaction in my head on the drive home. I was over-prepared, nervous about being unable to teach all the course material, and sleep-deprived.

Eventually, I adapted. I learned to manage my time. I manage formative and summative templates for grading and checklists for post-clinical debriefs. I studied adult learning theories, acquired a nursing faculty mentor, and consulted other seasoned nurse educators I worked with. I learned that our nursing students value authenticity. They respect instructors who admit when they don’t know something but will learn together and model professional humility.

One of my proudest moments came when a nursing student who had struggled all semester pulled me aside to say, “I didn’t think I could do this, but you didn’t give up on me. You made me feel more confident when caring for my patients.” Those words reminded me that nurse educators don’t just teach skills; we also build self-belief.

What must change

Adjunct nurse educators are the backbone of many nursing programs, but we frequently go unsupported and unrecognized. To set new nurse educators up for success, academic institutions should implement structured coaching or mentorship programs, provide equitable access to professional educational resources, and offer fair compensation.

Supporting adjunct nurse educators isn’t a luxury but a necessity. We ensure continuity in instruction, foster our nursing student growth, and fill critical roles in the nursing classrooms and clinical rotations. Our success directly influences the quality and resilience of the future nursing workforce.

Looking ahead

Over 3 years in, I feel more confident but remain a work in progress. I no longer fear teaching a large group of students in the classroom or performing clinical evaluations of different levels of nursing students. I no longer hide behind PowerPoint slides or lecture notes. I ask nursing students open-ended questions. I pause when they hesitate. I listen more.

Teaching nursing has taught me more than I expected. It has taught me the power of patience, flexibility, grace, and compassion in shaping our future nurse professionals as they prepare to care for patients.

I’m still new, but I’m also still standing and still shaping tomorrow’s nurses—one lesson, one clinical rotation, and one nursing student at a time!

Angeli Christian MSN/Ed., RN, is a Nurse Educator Adjunct at Del Mar College’s Nursing Education Dept. in Corpus Christi, Texas.