PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to examine nursing students' attitude toward death and perception on hospice care. METHODS: The survey was performed with 277 nursing students in three universities in Daegu and Busan. The data was collected by questionnaires and were analyzed using descriptive statistics. RESULTS: Regarding the attitude on death, 93.9% of the subjects had ever thought about death. They worried about separation and sadness with family (39.7%). About half (48.7%) of the subjects considered death as a final process of the life. With regard to the perception of hospice, 93% of the subjects heard about hospice through books or nursing courses (83.8%). The best hospice management institution was considered the one run by religious groups or non-profit organizations with government support (33.9%). Ideal model of hospice setting in Korea was hospital or institution specialized with hospice care (47.7%). The barriers the subjects thought to effective hospice care in Korea was the lack of the public consensus on the need for hospice program (37.9%). The average perceptions about the purpose of hospice care was 4.38, whereas, the average of the need of hospice care was 4.06. CONCLUSION: The findings of the study provides the basis for expanding nursing practice and education related to hospice care.