Spring is in the air, and for most people that means sunshine, flowers and rainbows, and maybe some hail and tornados if you live in the midwest. It's also the start of baseball season and for me, nursing school application season too. I am looking at five nursing schools; three in Colorado, one in Utah, and one in Idaho. Sorry Chicago friends, but its time for this restless Mountain Kid to head west once again. The bad news is that I probably won't be your last friend to move west on you (the mountains and ocean have this weird effect on people), and the good news is that one day in the distant future when I am no longer in school (yes there will be a day) and settled into proper adult life, you will have a fantastic place to come visit and stay... and then likely decide to move west. The first application that's due is for the University of Colorado - Denver. Below is my first run at the infamous "personal statement" along with the prompts I'm supposed to be addressing. I value honest and candid feedback on this PLEASE!!! This is an important part of the application and if you think I'm not covering the prompts adequately or it doesn't flow right please let me know!! I've also included a poll at the bottom of the post if you want to chime in on what school you think I should attend.. Have a great weekend everyone! Prompts: (A) Describe your perceptions and attitude about nursing today. In your answer, identify current information about the field of nursing including the demands, expectations and career options. (B) What do you believe are the demands of a nursing education and how have you prepared to make this significant change to your current situation? (C) Given your personal background, describe an experience that illustrates what you would bring to the University learning community in terms of diversity, or an encounter that demonstrated the importance of diversity to you. If you told most people that their job would guarantee exhausting hours, physicality, and potential mental anguish on a routine basis, many would turn elsewhere for work. Nursing is a special profession that requires an all or nothing attitude. There is no room to give partial care or meet a person’s needs halfway. Nursing professionals must make a daily commitment to their practice, which requires them to rise above negative feelings or events in order to provide optimum care that each patient deserves. Nurses must be versatile; they are the Swiss army knife of healthcare. They are required to override emotions, prioritize others’ needs first, and be quick to act. These responsibilities scare many away, but it is these same challenges that draw me into this field. I am versatile. I am a Jack-of-all-trades. I have strong communication skills, a thick skin, compassion and empathy for my follow man, and a strong desire to help and serve others. I accept the challenges in search of the many rewards this field provides. Nursing opens the doors for many areas of specialization and additional work outside of traditional nursing including teaching, management and administration, or advanced practice degrees. My long-term plan is to earn an advanced practice degree as a nurse anesthetist. To do so, I will need to gain substantial experience and additional certifications working in the ICU and other critical care units. This goal will require diligence, hard work and fortitude. The next step on my path is nursing school, which will require many of these same attributes. In addition it will require sacrifice, discipline, and focus. These traits are not new to me. I have been operating with this mindset for the last 2 years while working on pre-requisite coursework and working fulltime. My vision and plan for success has not been compromised, and I have risen to the challenge despite the stresses and rigors of daily life in addition to school. I am fully aware that the UCAN program will be the most intensive and rigorous year I have embarked on. I am prepared to make additional sacrifices and do whatever it takes to be successful. I will be humble enough to seek out help as needed to realize this dream, whether that is academic assistance from faculty and classmates or financial and emotional support from family and friends. This program will be my sole responsibility and focus and I will foster an environment and lifestyle that will be conducive to my success. Throughout my certified nursing assistant program, I was an integral part of the classroom and clinical experience. Not only was I committed to excellence in learning and practice, but was someone classmates leaned on for help and clarification. As a man seeking to excel in a heavily dominated female profession, I bring a different perspective to the CU learning community rooted in a non-traditional path to my true calling. I look forward to helping move my cohort forward while soaking in knowledge and ideas from my classmates’ and faculties’ different points of view.
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Alexander McNaChronicles of my journey into the nursing profession. Archives
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