My first college was John Jay College of Criminal Justice; I chose this college from high school because I wanted to pursue a career in criminal justice. However, I found that the transition from high school to college was very stressful because I felt very obligated to choose my future career within a few weeks and I lost interest in the major. As a result, my grades suffered badly because I had started to neglect school work.
After the first semester, I left John Jay and enrolled into Kingsborough Community College because I needed to finish general college prerequisites. That semester, I worked hard to get straight As. I think this experience rapidly made me mature into an adult because I learned to take care of myself and manage work and life. For the second year of college, I enrolled into the New York City College of Technology because I decided to become a nurse. My passion for nursing came to be when I was thinking about the type of career I wanted to do that was realistic for me. As a woman and of Asian descent, I had friends and family tell me that being in the criminal justice career would be very dangerous and difficult for me. But since my passion from that route stemmed from wanting to be able to make a difference in the world through my determination, I started to think about the healthcare field. In the beginning, I considered the pre-med route. However, given my laziness in schoolwork, I knew it was not for me. Then, my cousin’s boyfriend introduced me to nursing and I thought about how this career can be something to help me develop myself mentally into someone who can be capable of making a change in the world. I also realized that medicine is too narrow for me because I understood that the physician’s responsibility towards a patient is very different from a nurse’s. In my opinions, the nurse’s job is far more patient-focused.
When I received my acceptance letter into the nursing program, I felt like my life changed instantly. I had become a part of the team who will be able to help sick people. As I learned about what nursing encompasses, my vision changed. I began to have an interest in learning about community health nursing because I realized that nursing is more than helping sick people. Often times, there are many factors in what makes a person become a patient. The person may be physically fit but need some guidance psychologically. Or the person may be unsure on health decisions and need some professional tips from healthcare providers. I think that the nursing branch is very flexible and I saw an opportunity to help myself grow into a better nurse and person. From the start, I have been learning about what makes this career special. Even if I am a nursing student, I’ve been able to apply the critical thinking skills that we were taught in school. So far, I have applied these principles to not only nursing related fields but also my daily life and as a medical assistant.
I came to realize that anyone’s future career is not set for life; people have the power to change their jobs or shift their visions. I enjoy the opportunities that the nursing field can give me and I’d like to continue my education as I start to explore more specializations.
