Clinical simulation is a widely used teaching strategy that supports nursing educators in preparing students to meet the challenges of caring for the complex mix of patients in the health care system. The purpose of this qualitative study was to deepen understanding of senior level nursing students' learning experiences in simulation education, and specifically to understand their experiences in relation to the components and teaching strategies that could be improved through instruction. In-depth focus group interviews were used to answer the main research question: "How do nursing students describe their learning experiences using simulation as a teaching strategy?" The secondary questions were "How do nursing students describe their experiences that contributed to learning success in simulation?" and "How do nursing students describe their experiences that failed to contribute to learning success in simulation?" The data collected from this study identified five major themes from the primary and secondary research questions including debriefing, clinical decision making skills, role modeling, collaboration, and instructional goals and objectives. The broad conclusion from the study was that students supported the use of simulation, reporting that it enhanced their learning, and that it was an effective teaching strategy that provided a connection between theory and practice. Areas that participants identified as deficient in the simulation experiences involved lack of orientation and lack of clear goals and objectives related to specific simulation exercises. Participants in this qualitative study also offered ideas and suggestions for nurse educators on panning and implementing effective teaching strategies for nursing curricula that would be beneficial in simulation education.