Why Did I Pursue My Master’s Degree So Soon After My 2018 Graduation
Initially after graduating I applied and was accepted into a BSN program at a local university. This was the standard route that my nursing school pushed for us to take so we can continue our education. Although I knew I wanted to continue learning, getting a BSN when I already had a previous Bachelor’s in Criminology and Criminal Justice did not sit right with me. Why would I go into more loans, more student debt, and spend more time and more energy for the same level of degree?
During my attendance at the National Student Nurses Association Conference as the President of New Jersey Nursing Students, Inc., I attended the exhibit hall where many organizations, companies, and recruiters set up booths. Drexel’s booth stood out to me (maybe they had cool candy or maybe it was just fate LOL) so I spun the wheel to win a prize and learned more about their MSN bridge program. After learning about what the Master in Nursing Leadership in Health Systems Management program entailed, it just felt like it was the best route.
The MSN bridge program with a leadership concentration was fairly new at this time and not many schools offered it. Many of my mentors who I sought advice from regarding this program were not able to provide comprehensive advice because it was so new to them. This was a fairly new road to taken and the current mantra in the hospitals was focused primarily on BSN BSN BSN. To apply and move forward with completing this program was a decision I made with my gut and just knew it was right.
1) I knew I needed another degree within the next few years because of the politics of changing the degree requirements in hospitals and knew that my Diploma in Nursing would not make me as marketable as I changed hospitals and leveled up.
2) I knew that Drexel’s MSN Leadership program was the right fit because my initial why to becoming a nurse entailed making mass changes to an overall system (leadership) and I knew I did not want to go the Nurse Practitioner, CRNA route.
Fast forward 3 years later, I will now be graduating June 10, 2021 with my Master of Science in Nursing and access and insight to more opportunities than I ever knew existed during my pursuit of the degree initially. I found opening to doors in Healthcare Administration, Nurse Leadership, Education, and Patient/Human Experience.
I’m glad I went with the decision that felt right to me and moved with faith over fear. If something doesn’t make sense or sit well in your heart, question it and ask why. Don’t settle. You may not have all of the answers since you may be pursuing something new or a less traveled path, but keep putting one foot in front of the other and a path will be cleared.
