Over the past year I have had the honor and privilege of earning my second bachelor’s degree. What a difference a few years can make in how we approach education! I received a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from George Mason University in Fairfax, VA in 2006. Between that time and the present, I have travelled, moved across the country and back again, gotten married, and obtained my nursing license. I made the difficult decision to change careers and return to school, never dreaming what I would learn and gain from the experience.

With determination and a twinge of nerves, I grabbed the bachelor program by the horns and settled in for a year of intensity, expansion, and more paper-writing than I thought possible under the laws of thermodynamics. I can say with total honesty that I have enjoyed returning to school as an older student and feel that I have benefited more from obtaining this degree than from my previous bachelor’s. I have been more open to the experiences provided by the college and by the excellent clinical placements we were granted. The self-consciousness that plagued me in my younger years has been replaced with curiosity and a genuine eagerness to learn. I have felt my confidence grow because of the courses I have taken.

This semester, I feel as though our school has invested in us the way we have invested in it. There has been significant focus on cultivating advanced skills and grooming us to be active, thoughtful, and resourceful leaders. Our professors have taken a genuine interest in guiding us along the path toward professional nursing by sharing their experiences but also by exposing us to every opportunity that raised its head.

I would be remiss if I did not also acknowledge the tremendous impact that diversity has had on my experience with this program. The sheer vastness of culture represented in staff, faculty, healthcare providers, and students is staggering. I feel confident in my ability to provide culturally competent care to my clients as a direct result of being educated in both New York City College of Technology and New York City itself.