nursing admission essay examples

nursing admission essay examples

The Importance of Nursing Admission Essays

1. Introduction

Each of these policies is a positive movement for the nursing profession, and the developments today in the institutions of higher education for nurses are designed to meet the goals implied by the acts and the needs in patient care settings.

A similar policy has been set by the Registered Nurse Safe Staffing Act, a joint effort by the American Nurses Association and the National Nurses United. This act is calling for federal legislation that would require all U.S. acute care hospitals to establish registered nurse staffing plans. These plans would have to take into consideration the need for direct patient care RNs to match the intensity of hospital patients’ care needs with RN skill level and patient acuity.

It is evident that advanced nursing education is of vital importance to the nursing profession today. An increasing number of baccalaureate-prepared nurses are being seen as the minimum requirement to enter nursing practice. This is in response to complex patient care settings that require nurses to have a higher level of education and skills.

Nursing is a professional practice that requires a high degree of knowledge, skill, and competence. The policies and regulations of an institution are critical to professional nursing practice and its ongoing development. Any changes in policies must be monitored by professional nurses to assess the potential positive or negative effects on their practice. Nurses also use critical thinking skills to identify the implications of changes.

Any institution of learning is primarily guided by set policies, procedures, and regulations. These are the building blocks for ultimate institutional goals. The management has a responsibility to see to it that such guidelines are disseminated to all the stakeholders. At every level, these regulations act as a reference point and are upheld to the highest standards. A close analysis of an institution’s mission will reflect the need for effective implementation of the set policies to meet the desired goal.

2. Highlighting Personal Motivation

The admissions staff will often emphasize the importance of showing your motivation that will drive you to pursue a nursing degree. This is done to ensure that you write a statement that is worth reading and to see that you understand what is required. A personal example shared as the reason you want to be a nurse will go a long way in suggesting your understanding, too. It is a good idea to find out what the various assignments required to apply are and thus prepare a list of questions to answer on a separate piece of paper, such as a personal statement or letters of recommendation. This way, you can brainstorm and prepare your answers. When approaching your nursing essay, it is a good idea to start with why you want to be a nurse, gaining admission, and specifying your excellent grades and past driving forces. Leadership conference is part of the nursing role, which is a position sought after in the admissions process. It is best to carry a positive sign that reflects this and how it has been a driving force for becoming a nurse. You can also say that you one day hope to be a nurse-psych or a doctor, or have aspirations for pursuing an advanced practice nursing role, starting a family, or wanting to have a different passage into a BSN or an advanced degree. All these factors can be seen as steps towards earning successful acceptance into a BSN program or an advanced degree.

3. Demonstrating Relevant Experience

Questions that might be asked in the essay are similar to: “What inspired a change in career from teaching to nursing?” “What experiences have you had in a student nurse summer employment or a temporary work and how do you plan as a professional nurse when the degree is obtained?” These questions are the symbol opportunity that applicants have to give all possible information to the admission committee to decide if they can succeed at this school of nursing. Gather your thoughts and build a little “story” to answer each question. Be specific and give detailed examples. Tell how what you did has prepared you to act in certain situations as a nurse.

From time to time, nursing program applicants are asked to write a short essay on identifying the work experience they have in a healthcare setting. Candidates should consider their background and include different personal and professional experiences that display their ability to do well in a graduate nursing program. Many applicants have similar work experience. It is the meat of the essay which is the part where candidates usually succeed to pique the reader’s interest and demonstrate that they are a good candidate for nursing school.

4. Emphasizing Academic Achievements

Regardless of the school and the program studied, nursing is a challenging profession that requires critical thinking, an extensive knowledge base, and the ability to quickly and accurately integrate new information that may or may not be included in one’s formal education (McCabe, 2002). Because of the competitive nature of most nursing programs, it is highly recommended that you seek out every advantage possible when preparing your nursing school application. Since students who have performed well academically are assumed to be more likely to succeed in nursing programs (Creasia and Parker, 2007; Chitty, 2005), pointing out your academic achievements is a good way to make yourself stand out from the myriad of applicants with equally competitive GPAs and test scores. Start by examining the application and determine how many places it directly or indirectly invites you to discuss your relevant academic abilities. You will want to follow the directions on the application about the number and types of documents to submit, and information submissions not following the application’s directions can be seen as a lack of attention to detail. A common mistake made by students is submitting a descriptive essay without proofreading its content for relevance to the application’s requested information. This is a waste of your time and a waste of the admissions staff’s time. Compile an edit of each essay utilizing a version control program that tracks changes to help demonstrate your attention to detail. Step-by-step writing instructions can be found at the end of this article.

5. Conclusion

Future nurses are now required to provide evidence of their suitability, skill levels, and understanding of nursing in the form of nursing essays. Nursing school admission board members will examine your admission essay thoroughly. Because the admission essay is read by many readers, it is always a good idea to vary style by utilizing several different conceptual techniques. Adhering to professional standards and presenting information in a clear, comprehensive, and easy-to-understand manner will make a positive impression on readers, who are crucial in making final admissions decisions. An admission essay can help or hurt students who wish to get into nursing school. The essay is not only a revealer of the student’s character, but it is invaluable to the readers – the administrators – in showing the student’s command of the English language, his or her literacy and communication skills, and his or her potential to succeed in the nursing field. Unfortunately, the current state of healthcare does not allow maximum nurturing to individual patients in hospital settings. He/She may have to juggle the needs of many patients, with complex medical and psychological needs, while working in to maintain a certain standard of nursing care. Because of the current nursing shortage, qualified nurses can increasingly find themselves having to juggle job and family commitments. It is this knowledge that causes feelings of inadequacy, and this is one evidence-based need that I intend to tackle and lessen throughout my career as a nurse. Spanning the globe, the field of nursing is broad and varied in terms of the types of work nurses perform, the levels of nursing practice, and the environment in which work is carried out. Although there is no one right way to express your thoughts, there are certain conventions that must be observed in writing an essay. This concludes that the qualifying aspect to all nurses must be the completion of a bachelor’s degree. With a sad shortage of doctors and teachers, and an ever-increasing demand upon the professional, the work should be challenging and inviting of keen, young minds. A diploma programme currently exists, but is only a remnant of its past and students are urged to quickly avail themselves of the earliest opportunity to complete their work and earn a degree. This is the best time for exploratory students of all kinds to enter the healthcare industry. A rich and diverse experience is available in nursing, and it is a global entity. I have worked in various healthcare settings ranging from the military to private sector; but nursing has always remained a common social ground.