The education of nursing students in traditional clinical settings has become increasing challenging because of a multitude of factors affecting healthcare delivery. A decreasing number of clinical sites has precipitated a corresponding increase in the use of high-fidelity simulation-based learning experiences (HFSLEs). Because HFSLEs are being used more often in nursing education as a supplement to traditional clinical experiences, it is important to make certain students are learning in all domains: cognitive, psychomotor, and affective. Therefore, it is imperative that HFSLEs are designed not only to focus on teaching critical nursing skills, but also to ensure the essential nursing practice of caring is emphasized and learned in this nontraditional clinical setting. The aim of this study was to investigate the lived experience of nursing students participating in high-fidelity simulation at a school grounded in caring. Phenomenology as a philosophy and research methodology guided the development and implementation of this research. Phenomenology was also used as a guide to describe the interactions of students during focus group interviews. Thirty-one senior students participated in six different focus groups moderated by the principal investigator. Those student volunteers shared their lived experiences participating in HFSLE. Five themes were identified from the transcribed data: (a) receiving caring from nursing faculty, (b) receiving caring from classmates, (c) the ability of high-fidelity simulation-based learning experiences to prepare students for traditional clinical settings, (d) the real potential to learn caring behaviors during HFSLEs, and (e) the difficulty of expressing caring with a simulated patient. The results revealed that participants experienced caring during HFSLEs and that it is difficult to demonstrate caring with a high-fidelity human patient simulator. These findings help narrow the gap between what is known about nursing students' capacity to learn caring behaviors during HFSLEs and what is not known. The objectives of simulation-based learning experiences can be modified to add caring behaviors intentionally, thus, ensuring the ethic of caring is emphasized during this alternate form of clinical practice. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com.bibliotheek.ehb.be/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]