Abstract: There is concern over the standards of nursing practice skill acquisition in undergraduate programs. One of the issues relevant to this is which of the multitude of nursing practice skills to include in an undergraduate program. Previous research by Alavi, Loh and Reilly (1991) has been modified and used in clinical settings in the New Zealand context in order to address this concern. Competency level of the most important skills identified by clinicians was also sought in order to aid development of a skill curriculum for Whitireia Community Polytechnic. There is a strong theoretical support for the preparation of student nurses in skills laboratories prior to clinical learning experience in order to maximise learning. Further directions for study are covered with discussion of the implications for teaching from the research findings