Reflective Essay Essay, Research Paper

November 8, 1999

English 100

-Reflective Essay

What were the motives behind choosing a major in nursing? What have been the reasons behind these reasons? When I look back, it seems like I’ve always wanted to pursue such a career due to my mother who was and still is in such a profession. I remember, ever since the seventh grade, my plans of being a successful registered nurse. I can still remember my seventh grade project. It was to write about where I saw myself ten years into the future. I wrote that I was a registered nurse that had just graduated from the University of California, Los Angeles. I even put a picture of a nurse helping a patient. I had cut out the face of one of my pictures and put it in place of the original nurse’s head. I’ve never had a doubt of what I wanted to be. My parents never really pressured my decision directly; but they might have indirectly because they both hold careers in the medical field. My mother is currently a neonatal intensive care unit R.N. at Queen of the Valley Hospital. My father currently holds a position as a physical therapist/masseur at a clinic. Throughout the years I have heard many stories from a point of view different than that of a patients’. My parents would explain the personal gain of making a difference in helping a person feel better.

There are many factors of my choosing to be a nursing major. I have always been outgoing and social. A nurse’s position will never be in danger; the hospital’s hours will never end. Also, this career ensures high pay. Imagine the thought of being lucky enough to experience the ability and knowledge of actually helping a person. I look forward to the day when I will actually experience what I will have studied so hard for and use it on a day to day basis. Personally, I have always thought that it is important to develop the ability to work with colleagues and to identify and resolve the health problems of my patients in this fast-paced world. As a nurse, that beneficial information will come naturally and quickly.

As an undergraduate student, my general education will pave the pathway to a successful career.

In the course of any given week, as students move in a liberal-arts setting from courses in the natural sciences to courses in anthropology, the behavioral sciences, literature, or history, I have the uneasy sense that they must maneuver among radically divergent theories of knowledge without being fully conscious of so doing(Oakley 2-9).

General education will ease my transition towards achieving the upper-level course work and the theories would serve as the foundation of my career. The learning process of my major will be very complex in nature. However, through perseverance and devotion in learning; it will extend my excellence in my field of study. I strongly believe I have the ability to reach my goal and know that I will strive to finish college.

Throughout high school my curriculum has been strenuous and I have realized the importance of such a small step that will lead the way to my major’s path. I took classes such as Biology, Chemistry, and Human Anatomy and Physiology. It was worth the responsibility of taking these classes. These classes will now help me because they are one of many prerequisites to the co-requisites for major. My background is now the backbone for what I will have to further endure. It is now clear to me that the essential steps I have taken were very valuable towards reaching my goal.

I still feel that every major is important. The nursing program will require much hard work and dedication. I have already experienced a heavy loaded schedule of responsibility and I feel that I am ready to look into concentrating now on my future. My major’s program will consist of six semesters of sixteen or more units each. The career paths in this field are limited. Liberal arts, for example, offers a diverse and wide range of positions available to graduates. Sheetz states “as a liberal arts major, you have to do much more work in terms of researching different job markets and finding out where there is a demand”(12). I think that this pathway is difficult in its own way. A nurse’s job will always be in demand but there may not be many positions available. In this sense many diverse majors are important.

My priority in life so far is to become educated enough to be successful and happy in my career choice. I know that nursing is what I want to do. The reward of knowing that I made a difference in someone’s life is my goal. I feel the philosophies of my major are alike to my own. In this regard, the nursing baccalaureate pathway expects to be commited to the role of maintaining health and preventing illness in self and others. I know that this is exactly what I am striving for and am aware that I will enjoy this.

Maybe the medical environment in my family has influenced my decision. The main reason for my motives is that I want to serve others and know that I have accomplished such an endeavor of going out of my way for someone else. I don’t consider myself selfish. I will have to work hard to contribute to the better health of others.

Bibliography

Work Cited List

Oakley, Francis. “Despite Its Critics, Undergraduate Education Is a Success.” University 100 The University in Your Future 1999/2000 Academic Year Edition. California State Long Beach. Long Beach: CA. 1999.

Sheetz Ph.D., Patrick. “Marketing Your Liberal Arts Degree.” Recruiting Trends. Collegiate Employment Institute. Michigan State University. 1998.