Professional identity in nursing (PIN) is increasingly recognized as a core outcome of nursing education, shaping how students think, act, and feel as members of the profession (Godfrey, 2022; Godfrey & Joseph, 2023). PIN is defined as “a sense of oneself, in relationship to others, that is influenced by the characteristics, norms, and values of the nursing discipline, resulting in an individual thinking, acting, and feeling like a nurse” (Godfrey & Young, 2021, p. 363). The International Society of Professional Identity in Nursing (ISPIN) further articulates four core domains—Values and Ethics, Knowledge, Nurse as Leader, and Professional Comportment—that serve as foundational pillars of PIN (Godfrey, 2022). These perspectives emphasize that PIN goes beyond skills acquisition or role socialization, involving an internalized understanding of nursing shaped by the profession's core values and the integration of personal and professional norms.

Recent scholarship emphasizes that PIN is not a static endpoint but a dynamic, lifelong process shaped by experiences across education and practice (Cruess et al., 2019; Joseph et al., 2023). Yet, despite this growing consensus, empirical studies often treat PIN as a fixed outcome rather than exploring how it evolves over time. Much of the research relies on varied definitions and measures, offering limited insight into the developmental pathways through which nursing students make meaning of their experiences and integrate personal and professional values (Fitzgerald, 2020). This study addresses this gap by examining the professional identity formation of Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) students, focusing on how they articulate their evolving sense of self as nurses. Grounded in a developmental-contextual perspective (Lerner, 1991) and Bronfenbrenner's ecological systems theory (1979), this research explored how personal, institutional, and societal factors interact over time to shape students' professional identity trajectories. In doing so, it offers new insights into the developmental nature of PIN and its implications for nursing education and professional socialization.

PIN formation has historically been conceptualized through structured socialization models that emphasize the process of adopting professional norms and behaviors. For example, Cohen (1981) frames professional socialization as both the means and the outcome of achieving a PIN, articulating four key goals: (a) learning the profession's knowledge, skills, and theory; (b) internalizing the profession's culture; (c) finding a personally and professionally acceptable version of the role; and (d) integrating the professional role into other life roles. While influential, such models primarily view identity as an end product of successful socialization. In contrast, more recent scholarship has focused on professional identity as an evolving, reflective process. The seminal work of Benner et al. (2010) called for nursing education to move beyond skill acquisition and socialization, emphasizing identity formation as a continuous developmental journey. Similarly, Cruess, Cruess, Boudreau, Snell and Steinert, 2014, Cruess, Cruess and Steinert, 2016 introduced a developmental perspective, conceptualizing professional identity formation as a staged process in which individuals progressively internalize professional values and transition from one identity state to another over time. This perspective acknowledges challenges in identity transitions (e.g., moving from student to professional) and argues that professional identity formation should be an explicit educational objective.

Despite growing attention to PIN, scholars note that nursing still lacks a clear definition of professional identity, limiting the field's ability to support identity development in education and practice (Godfrey, 2022; Joseph et al., 2023). In response, the ISPIN developed a shared framework to define and structure PIN. As previously described, ISPIN conceptualizes PIN as a socially constructed and evolving sense of self shaped by integration into the nursing discipline (Cruess et al., 2016; Godfrey & Young, 2021). To further define professional identity in nursing (PIN) using nursing-specific language, ISPIN identified four core domains essential to professional identity development: Values and Ethics—the fundamental beliefs and moral principles that guide a nurse's decisions and actions; Knowledge—the integration of insights gained from nursing and other fields, personal experiences, critical thinking, and scientific research; Nurse as Leader—the ability to motivate oneself and others to achieve a shared goal; and Professional Comportment—the consistent display of professionalism through speech, behavior, and presence (Godfrey, 2022; Landis et al., 2024). These domains offer a shared framework for nurses, educators, patients, and society, reinforcing the importance of a structured yet evolving conceptualization of PIN. Building on this foundation, Joseph et al. (2023) then proposed a comprehensive conceptual model of PIN that further emphasizes its dynamic and interdependent nature. Their model situates PIN within broader cultural, societal, and political contexts and highlights lifelong learning, leadership, and personal-professional integration as key components.

Despite these conceptual advancements, empirical research remains limited on how nursing students make sense of and integrate these core domains of PIN over time and across key transitions in their educational journey. Existing studies often tend to focus on defining professional identity (e.g., Fitzgerald & Clukey, 2021) or identifying influencing factors at a single point in time (e.g., Fitzgerald & Clukey, 2022), offering only snapshots rather than capturing the developmental process. While prior research acknowledges that professional identity development is shaped by a complex interplay of individual, program-level, and societal influences (see Mao et al., 2021 for a review), few studies explore how students experience and navigate these multi-level factors as they progress through their training.

Moreover, Joseph et al. (2023) conceptualize professional identity formation as requiring the ongoing integration of personal and professional selves, shaped by individual, interpersonal, and societal forces. Yet, empirical research capturing how students navigate this complex integration process remains scarce. Professional identity development is not a purely external process of adopting professional norms and behaviors; it also involves internal meaning-making as students integrate—or sometimes struggle to integrate—their personal values, experiences, and self-perceptions with the professional role. Fitzgerald and Clukey (2022) argue that reflection and integration are critical internal processes that shape students' emerging professional identity, with students describing how synthesizing their experiences, knowledge, and personal growth—what they called “connecting the dots”—allowed them to begin seeing themselves as nurses. Still, more research is needed to understand how nursing students experience these internal and external tensions, particularly as they move through different stages of their educational journey. This study addresses this gap by examining how students interpret and navigate professional identity development across their training.

A developmental-contextual approach, grounded in Bronfenbrenner's Ecological Systems Theory (EST; Bronfenbrenner, 1979), posits that human development—including identity formation—is embedded within multiple, interconnected levels of social context. This perspective emphasizes that development unfolds through continuous, reciprocal exchanges between individuals and their environments (Ford & Lerner, 1992; Lerner, 1986, Lerner, 1991). Through these interactions, individuals both shape and are shaped by their surroundings, leading to diverse identity trajectories. Applying this lens, the present study examined how individual characteristics, contextual factors, and socio-historical events—such as the COVID-19 pandemic—interact to shape nursing students' professional identity over time. Specifically, it considered how experiences across multiple ecological levels—from clinical training environments to institutional contexts and broader societal expectations—influence students' professional identity development. This approach captures the fluid and individualized nature of professional identity development, offering insights into how nursing students navigate identity formation in an era of rapid change.

The research questions were: (1) What is the professional identity of final-year nursing students pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree from a public, four-year university? (2) How has the professional identity of final-year nursing students pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree from a public, four-year university changed over time?