Reasons for nursing always epic?

emtb2rn, BSN, RN, EMT-B · Mar 25, 2010

No epic "lifetime channel" story here either. Go with why YOU want to go into nursing. I liked the comment on how nurses help people. Talk about your volunteering, research and plans to become a cna, what you saw and did that re-inforced your feeling that nursing is for you.

Be yourself, the interviewers hear a lot of crap and I heard from several interviewers that they aren't impressed with the basic "I just want to help people" approach.

Good luck

EricJRN, MSN, RN · Mar 25, 2010

It sounds like you already have a lot to go on. Some of us do have personal stories that pushed us toward this path, but it's definitely not the only way to capture attention for admissions.

Personally, I'd like to hear that someone has worked or shadowed in a few healthcare areas and carefully considered why nursing is right for him... rather than hearing from someone who has a touching story but little idea of the realities of working as a nurse.

iteachob, MSN, RN · Mar 25, 2010

Here's my epic reason:

I was at the end of my junior year of college as a Biology major/chemistry minor when I suddenly realized I had no idea what I'd do after graduating. One thing I did realize, though, was that I did not want to go to med school (or any graduate school, for that matter, at the time). My next door neighbor was a nurse, and I thought she always looked so spiffy (and happy) going off to work. Voila! To nursing school I went.

mustlovepoodles, RN · Mar 25, 2010

No touching story, no feeling of grand "calling." Even though my mother was a nurse, I didn't grow up wanting to be a nurse. Far from it. I fainted at the sight of blood. i vomited whenever someone else vomited. I was just a girl from a poor family who needed to get out of my parents' house and get some education doing SOMETHING that would support me. Most of my friends got married right out of high school and I knew i didn't want to have to depend on a man. Back in the 70s, there weren't a lot of good jobs for women. Mostly teacher, secretary, and nurse. I didn't want to teach and I couldn't type, so nursing was it. I graduated top of my class and went to work.Thankfully, I fell in love with nursing .I've been a nurse for 32+ years and worked in a lot of different specialties. It took me about 7 years to find my real specialty--pediatrics. I have about 25yrs experience in various branches of peds. Now I'm working as a school nurse and a lot of my nursing is cerebral. I have to know pretty much everything, because anything that can happen at home can happen at school. I'm every bit as busy in school as I was in the hospital.

mightymitern · Mar 25, 2010

Why worry about other peoples reasone, sounds like you have a pretty epic story of your own. You know why you want to be a nurse, that's enough. You already hit it on the head, by saying "how" they help people. Good luck, sounds like you will be a great asset to this field.

shamus · Mar 25, 2010

I remember when I was talking with a recruitment person that she said not to give one of those types of stories.

P_RN, ADN, RN · Mar 25, 2010

Nothing epic here either. Just had a friend who loaned me a Cherry Ames book and I said...... AH HA! This is it for me. That was about 1957 or so.

One1, BSN, RN · Mar 25, 2010

Say it how it is and be proud of it. You don't need to have an epic story to prove that nursing is a good fit for you and that many future patients can benefit from you taking care of them. I had no epic story either, just a passion for healthcare and like you could show that I had already gotten my "feet wet" a bit to make sure I didn't have any false ideas about the job description, and got offered a spot at a couple of nursing schools so far.

traveler85 · Mar 25, 2010

I went into nursing because it was either that or biology, and nursing students got to play with the fun equipment and learn the fun stuff (physiology) much sooner than the biology class. There is my grand reason.

Purple_Scrubs, BSN, RN · Mar 25, 2010

I think your logical approach to deciding your career will be impressive to the admissions boards. Just be honest. Tell them you knew you wanted a job that made a difference (avoid the overused phrase "to help people"), and then tell them the steps you took to choose a direction.

To me, this is more impressive than someone who had an experience as a patient and based on that perspective decided to be a nurse (no offense to anyone who took that route...my own is similar). It shows you have done your homework and know what is involved in the field, and also shows a lot of self awareness and reflection. Good luck!

Claritee · Mar 25, 2010

No epic story here either. I always felt awkward in nursing classes where the teacher would ask students to raise their hand and tell the story of why they wanted to be a nurse. I almost felt like I had to make up a story to be accepted (which I didn't do, of course)! Many of them had these dramatic, heartrending stories. And me? I just wanted to be a nurse because I wanted to help people get through some of the scarier times in their lives. Since I had no "story", it kinda made me feel like I wouldn't be as good a nurse as the others. But I got over that thought pretty quickly when I got to my clinicals and realized we were ultimately all the same. We all want to help people in some way, but some of us didn't need to have an epiphany or a tragedy to recognize it.

I think that what you did to come to your decision to become a nurse is just as good as any epic story. The fact that you did all the things you did before making your decision shows that you are intelligent, thoughtful, analytical, and logical. Nursing is after all, a science (at least that what my degree will say when I graduate in Dec. with a bSn). The qualities you possess are important to have when your career involves watching over someone's life. Any nursing school admissions person will be able to recognize that. Just say what you've done, how you've done it, and the truth of how you feel and you should be fine. Personally, I think you have a great story!