| Sumario: | Problem-based learning (PBL) techniques have been applied extensively in nursing teaching recently. What internal transformations students experience during the PBL learning process, and how they do so, however, has seldom been discussed. Since most PBL training uses clinical cases for study, it would be interesting to investigate the influence of PBL on nursing graduate students, most of whom are experienced care workers. The purpose of this study, therefore, was to explore the transformational process experienced by graduate nurse students in the form of self-growth during PBL. This study used the phenomenological approach. The participants in the PBL were first-year graduate students of the nursing department at XX University who had problem-based learning experience. Purposive sampling was adopted and data were collected by semi-structured interviews. Participants' descriptions and non-verbal behaviors were identified, recorded and analyzed in accordance with Colaizzi's phenomenological qualitative analysis method (1976). The result showed the transformation experienced by the participants in relation to discovery of personal capabilities in two different dimensions: self identity transform process and fostering peer relationships. The former consisted of the stages of imprisonment, confusion, awakening and excellence. The latter consisted of the stages of contemplation, conflict, empathy and accordance. The results demonstrate that PBL may help graduate students to improve their self-awareness in relation to problem-solving capability and peer-interaction, and to reach consensus on learning problems, making PBL truly valuable and meaningful. This study might serve as an important reference regarding learning and teaching practice in PBL in the future.
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