Objective To understand the current application status of generative artificial intelligence（Gen AI） in the learning of vocational nursing students，analyze its positive impact and potential problems.Methods All the students（n=1 262） in nursing school of a medical college were selected as the research participants. In investigation，a self-made questionnaire was used to investigate the use of Gen AI，and multiple response analysis was carried out. The purpose sampling method was used to select students who had used Gen AI assisted learning in the survey to conduct interviews，and the theme analysis method was applied to refine the theme.Results Among the participated students，417（33.0%） had used Gen AI for assisted learning in the past six months，who mainly applied Gen AI in the scenarios of understanding knowledge points（58.5%），querying information（56.4%），and less in creative inspiration（28.3%） and tracking the latest medical progress（17.3%）. The main way of asking questions was to directly inquiry of specific questions（68.6%），use open-ended questions to seek multiple answers（49.2%），and rarely use guiding prompts（38.4%） and professional terminology（36.0%）. The interview results indicated that students believed that Gen AI provided an efficient and convenient path for knowledge acquisition，making it a powerful learning assistant. However，they also expressed concerns about the usage process and expectations for deep application.Conclusion Gen AI shows great potential in assisting students’ learning. Also，it faces many problems and challenges. Schools and teachers should intervene in the weak points and deficiencies of vocational nursing students in applying Gen AI assisted learning，and actively respond to new educational challenges and difficulties in the digital age.