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positions that would suit her skills and interests and joined the same-day
surgery floor in February 2016. “I absolutely love it and the patients and
their families,” Kathy says. “I’m very at home working at the bedside, and
I’m very happy to be back doing what I’m good at.”
A great experience

The BSN journey augmented Kathy’s nursing experience and the
curriculum was relevant to what she does at work. “I’ve always had
empathy, but I gained insight into how to work with different types of
patients, how to educate them effectively, the different types of nursing,
and so much more. I learned a lot.”
The experience was so positive, in fact, that Kathy concluded she should
get the MSN too. “Partway through the BSN it occurred to me how
much I was liking school,” she says. “I was learning so much, and
this is where nursing is headed—the MSN is the future. I might as
well keep going.” Kathy graduated in October 2016 with the BSN and will
started the MSN in June 2017.
A goal to teach

Kathy admits that she was also inspired by the professors teaching in her
BSN. She chose the nursing education specialization. “Short term, the
MSN makes me more marketable and gives me knowledge I’ll use at the
bedside,” she says. “Long term, I hope to become a nursing professor
online when I retire from the bedside.”
Reflecting on her time in pre-surgery, when Kathy mentored and trained
many new nurses, teaching seems like a good fit. “I love working with
new nurses. I think when I move toward that, it will suit me well.” When
she finishes the MSN, Kathy intends to apply to online adjunct teaching
positions.

A degree hard earned

With a teenage daughter who is now starting to think about college, Kathy
says her educational pursuits have rubbed off in a good way. “I tell my
daughter all the time that even though I’m the mother, I look up to her,
because she’s the excellent student and always has been,” says Kathy,
who was the first in her family to go to college. “If you’d told the 16-year-
old me that one day I would hold a bachelor’s degree and be starting a
master’s, I wouldn’t have believed it. I’m nervous about starting the MSN,
but so excited. I’m pushing myself in a way I’ve never done. But after
finishing the BSN, I know I can do it.”

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