I went for the soft spot

[newtress, LPN]

Hello fellow nurses. Because I don't have anyone else to read what I submitted today other than the nursing dept of the college, I thought maybe I could post this here and you all could pretend you are on the board of program directors for a minute. I'm not a youngster asking "will you critique my essay?" I'm a 52 yo that after 4 yrs of LPNing feel it's time to be where I need to be and get the LPN to RN program done. Application packet 100% assembled (all academic requirements satisfied) the dreaded essay is attached. One page 500 words. It's short. Read it (suffer through it) and let me know if it says anything to you if you were looking at prospective students. Entitled "I Am Here For You."

As a youngster my mother had always told me to harm no one. Still to this day I keep her words in my back pocket. Perhaps that is why I was the one who cried when I saw someone smash a grasshopper in front of me. Yes, I was the goofy neighborhood kid who tried to fix up the injured field mouse after the cat was done with it. There were many more. I had respect for life, but had to learn about death also. My little patients at the time were God's creatures. As I got older, I wanted to do the very same with human beings. But I had to know more. I wondered, "what do we look like on the inside?" With my new microscope I got as a gift, and dissecting frogs in biology class, I loved science more than any other subject in school. Now comes the hard part. How do I become a nurse?

I chose nursing as a career path because I feel I am designed for this profession. It is a noble one that requires dedication, fortitude and strength. Nurses are the captain of a sick ship. As a nurse I will care for my patients in the light of day, or through the night. I will care for those that might be an incarcerated inmate, or an NFL quarterback. I will care for your grandmother or your newborn baby. I chose nursing because I am dedicated and proud to say "I am a nurse." As a nurse I consider myself a healthcare professional that uses the skills, knowledge, and critical thinking to serve and protect my patients. It is my responsibility. I am now ready to expand my knowledge and responsibility to become a registered nurse. To answer my question on "how do I become a nurse?" I have to be a student first. I know it doesn't end there. A nurse is never done learning.

It is my hope and desire that I can continue a nursing career. I want to be able to still say to a patient in their hour of need "I am here for you." And in time I will be caring for the most important person in the world, the one who told me to harm no one.

[tothepointeLVN, LVN]

I think it's perfectly lovely. For my admissions essay I forget what I actually wrote but I wrote that was very me. If they didn't want me for who I actually was then what chance would I have being able to pretend to be someone else for 2 years.

I got it. Unfortunately the school was too expensive and now I'm considering going back to JC. I still have until Fall 2013 to go back though so I have that as my back up plan now.

[newtress, LPN]

Yes, I agree with you. As prospective students, most of us try so hard to be nursing school correct in our writing of essays. Like you, I went with who I am and where I came from. I personally would trust an honest LPN/LVN than someone who wants the nursing dept to know just how proficient someone is in clinical areas. I originally posted this on the General Nursing forum, and was disappointed AN immediately moved it because I know there are seasoned RNs and educators that could have read the essay and maybe given me a thumbs up or down. thank you for reading and commenting back!