The purpose of this study was to identify the effect of nursing students'image of nurses on their self-education competences.A longitudinal survey of the same student groups in university nursing school was conducted in December 1995, and April and December 1996. In this survey, data were collected by using Kajita's questionnaire for self-esteem and the semantic differential method of nurse image.Factor analysis of the self-esteem data by varimax rotation detected six factors, self-affirmation, will to achieve their goals.behavior control, awareness of their personal goals, introspection, and emotional control. Factor analysis for nurse image yielded six factors, special, charming, warm, dangerous, high social standing.and demanding profession. Multiple regression analysis using self-education competences as a standard variable and nurse image as an explanatory variable showed that students' image of nurses influenced their self-education competences.especially four factors,self-affirmation,will to achieve their goals.awareness of their personal goals, and introspection. This indicates that the students' self-education competences may be promoted through changes in their images of nurses.In the 1st and 2nd grade, students' selfeducation competences hardly increased at all, although their images of nurses changed considerably. As they proceeded from 3 to 4 grade, students' self-education competences increased and their images of nurses as a special and charming profession improved.