Factors influencing nursing students’ preferences for hospitals by geographic location and bed capacity

Purpose: This study examined the career choices of nursing students in the Gyeongbuk region according to the geographic location and bed capacity of hospitals. The study sought to identify key factors influencing their preferences, particularly in the context of ongoing imbalances in regional nursing workforce distribution, despite expanded admission quotas in regional nursing schools.Methods: A survey was conducted with 220 third- and fourth-year nursing students with clinical training experience. Variables included general characteristics, career decision-making self-efficacy, nursing professionalism, job evaluation criteria, and career preferences. Binary logistic regression analysis was performed, coding “1” for preference toward Gyeongbuk-based hospitals and large hospitals, respectively.Results: Results showed that preference for Gyeongbuk hospitals was significantly associated with being a local high school graduate (odds ratio, OR=9.89, p<.001) preferring hospitals with smaller bed capacity (OR=3.65, p<.001), and higher career decision-making self-efficacy (OR=2.60, p=.018). Conversely, higher job evaluation standards reduced the likelihood of regional preference (OR=0.52, p=.045). Preference for large hospitals was higher among students attending universities (OR=2.76, p=.001) and those seeking employment outside the Gyeongbuk region (OR=2.66, p<.001). Professional role perception showed no significant effect.Conclusion: These findings suggest that nursing students’ career choices are influenced not only by individual psychological characteristics, but also by structural factors including hospital characteristics and regional accessibility. Educational and policy interventions, such as promoting self-efficacy, improving working conditions in regional hospitals, and expanding clinical opportunities, are required to address imbalances in the nursing workforce.