The context, influences and challenges for undergraduate nurse clinical education: Continuing the dialogue

•The provision of quality clinical learning experiences for nursing students is becoming challenging and complex.•Some challenges, legacies of the past, arise from the shift from apprentice type models to degree level nurse education.•Contemporary challenges, linked to population, workforce and healthcare policy, are also evident.•Innovative for clinical education are emerging and offer insight into sustainable approaches for the future.

SummaryIntroductionApproaches to clinical education are highly diverse and becoming increasingly complex to sustain in complex milieuObjectiveTo identify the influences and challenges of providing nurse clinical education in the undergraduate setting and to illustrate emerging solutions.MethodA discursive exploration into the broad and varied body of evidence including peer reviewed and grey literature.DiscussionInternationally, enabling undergraduate clinical learning opportunities faces a range of challenges. These can be illustrated under two broad themes: (1) legacies from the past and the inherent features of nurse education and (2) challenges of the present, including, population changes, workforce changes, and the disconnection between the health and education sectors. Responses to these challenges are triggering the emergence of novel approaches, such as collaborative models.Conclusion(s)Ongoing challenges in providing accessible, effective and quality clinical learning experiences are apparent.