ABSTRACT
Starting from the premise that the professional development of teachers has a profound relationship with the exercise of teaching, a naturalistic case study was carried out, which aimed to analyze the perception of nursing professors working in a Nursing course at a Public University, on the aspects that involve the professional development of teachers and the exercise of teaching. The data were collected through a semi-structured interview, with approval by the Research Ethics Committee. 30 teachers participated. It was found that the nurse professors understand the primary function of the public university as a social institution, they consent to their contemporary hegemonic function as a social organization, and perceive its physical structure as a contributing element to the professional development of teachers. It was understood that the professional development of nursing professors in a university has an influence on the exercise of teaching.
KEYWORDS: teaching; nursing education; nursing teacher; nursing teacher practice