With the world's population aging, geriatric care is more important than ever before. However, many studies have shown that nursing students are less likely to choose geriatric nursing as career than other nursing fields. Nursing students play a vital role in the development of geriatric nursing. Thus, this study aimed to explore the current situation of nursing students' career choice motivation in geriatric nursing and to analyze the influencing factors. A cross-sectional survey was conducted. This study was performed from March 2021 to September 2022 among nursing students from four universities in Shandong Province, China. Data on nursing students' attitudes toward geriatric, aging anxiety, knowledge about aging, and career choice motivation were collected through questionnaires, and analyzed by ANOVA, Pearson correlation, and multiple linear regression. A total of 1007 questionnaires were collected. Nursing students' career expectancy score for geriatric nursing was 19.06 ± 4.00 and the value score was 46.65 ± 7.50. The study revealed that gender, education level, taking geriatric care courses, experience in caring for older adults, believing in bright prospects for geriatric care, geriatric attitudes, and aging anxiety were critical factors that influenced nursing students' motivation in choosing a career in geriatric nursing. Nursing students' motivation to choose a career in geriatric care needs to be improved in China. Nursing educators should take interventions to actively guide students and promote the cultivation of geriatric nursing talent.