Students News

Searching for a job can simultaneously spark hope, excitement, and anxiety. Perhaps you have graduated or reached a milestone in your academic trajectory that allows you to take on new opportunities. Maybe you are ready to advance professionally based on your interests or maybe you just need to find a better work environment that fits your professional and personal needs. Whatever the reason, we all must search for jobs at some point, which is why I have listed some tips that may help us on this journey.

Throughout your career you will continue to expand your knowledge base due to advances in technology and cutting-edge nursing research. For those wishing to play a part in developing new skills, research, and practice innovations, now is the time for you to consider a terminal nursing degree. 

As a registered nurse and leader for almost 3 decades, I have had many opportunities to review resumes, cover pages, and interview job applicants. One common thread I have found is that people do not take enough time to review the job posting to fully understand what leadership skills the employer considers valuable and if the skills required are a good fit for their educational background and experiences.

As a graduate nursing student, it can be very easy to get lost in just completing your coursework, meeting assignment deadlines, writing your dissertation, or working on your practice project. However, there are other ways for you to develop as a graduate nursing student through the professional development opportunities such as nursing conferences.

This month's newsletter features: mental health check in and mental health challenges,  the newest GNSA Liaisons, funding opportunities, and upcoming webinars and events.

Congratulations to R. Shavon Clark, DNP Student, University of South Florida College of Nursing, and Nadia Oyama, DNP Student, Chaminade University of Honolulu on receiving the 2022 AACN  and the National Institute of Drug Abuse (NIDA) Substance Use Disorders Evidence-Based Practice Training Award.

Wow, time is certainly going by quickly this academic year! We’ve now started or will soon start the Spring 2022 semester. If you’re like me, you’re thinking about how to best organize your semester so that you’re efficient, effective, and energized (the three E’s) right from the start.

It is hard to believe that another year is coming to an end. At times I feel like I am still stuck in and processing 2020, but we did it. We made it through another year of graduate school, another year of nursing, another year of this life while continuing to combat a global pandemic. I am thankful for a sense of normalcy through the GNSA, our graduate nursing student community, and the wonderful resources we were able to access this year:

Register to attend next week’s webinar, Preparing and Strengthening Your NursingCAS Application, on Wed. 12/8, from 3:30 pm – 4:30 pm (ET). Learn about Nursing’s Centralized Application Service (NursingCAS) that allows prospective students to apply to multiple nursing schools with one application. The event is open to current and future NursingCAS applicants. The webinar will be led by the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) and NursingCAS representatives.

Spring 2017 was one of the most challenging times of my life. I was in my second year in the DNP program at Georgia Baptist College of Nursing and was forced to take a break to recover from a near-fatal car accident. By this time, I had already faced the stressors of my toddler's hospitalization and two family member deaths. I truly felt all signs were pointing to, "Just quit already."