As students and individuals, we each have strengths and weaknesses. I believe I have grown as a person as well as a professional. One of my strengths I like to highlight is my confidence in the work I do. As long as I put all my effort into something, I am completely satisfied with the results however big or small. Another strength I have acquired throughout the years are my communication skills. I remember being extremely shy and timid to talk in public, but that gradually changed and now I can effectively communicate with my peers and coworkers. This has allowed to obtain maximal results at work with my patients. Communication is truly the key to effective nursing care because sometimes patients are afraid to speak up about certain issues, but when you provide them with a comfortable and understanding environment, you can get the most information from them and use that to help them.

Being in the BSN program has really exceeded my expectations overall. I have sharpened my writing skills and have learned to effectively use databases to conduct research for writing all my term papers, something I never thought I could be fluent in. Also, throughout all the clinical courses, I have seen all the aspects of nursing one can work in. Nursing is not exclusive to hospital settings, but it also involved caring for the patient once they are discharged from the hospital. It involves following up with them and providing a continuous care afterwards, and that is what I have learned by means of my clinical courses. Another aspect to nursing involves primary prevention. For example, in my Community Health Nursing clinical, I had the privilege of working with the elderly population and educating them on healthy habits to acquire. Personally, I enjoyed my leadership clinical because it encouraged me to continue in my education as a nurse. I saw the hard work nurse managers go through on a daily basis. Sometimes we underestimate the work others perform, especially our superiors. Overall, the BSN program has provided an overview of the many different branches in nursing we can go into. As a new grad nurse, the only thing I wanted was a hospital job, but after all the clinical courses I have taken, I now have a wide range of opportunities I can pursue. I look forward to continue expanding my career as a nurse.