Growing Up

I can't believe I start nursing school in 4 months! It seems so grown up to be starting nursing school and getting ready to have a career. I still feel like I'm still a child and learning the ways of the world. It's kind of embarrassing to admit this, but yesterday I went to the doctor's office by myself for the first time. I went to get my physical to get everything squared away for school and everything went pretty smoothly, but I was nervous. haha.

When I walked into the doctor's office I had some weird sense of deja vu. Then, when I was walking up the stairs I realized that I was in the same building my pediatrician used to be in years ago. The carpet, the lighting, and even the smell was the same. So this experience brought me back to my childhood, reminding myself I'm not ready for school.

My arm is still a bit sore from my flu vaccination and I have to get my TB test checked tomorrow. Apparently I have to get a 2-step TB test. I thought that's that they all were. The first step -  you get the injection. The second step - you get it checked. Well I was completely wrong. A 2-step TB test is getting the test done twice. Why on earth would you need to get it done twice? I guess I should have asked the doctor, but I was just puzzled. He just said it's the new thing. I feel like getting shots for everything is the new thing. Kids don't even get the chicken pox anymore, just the vaccine. So now I'm just waiting for some results and hopefully my major paperwork will be complete.

I ordered one of my nursing books today. It's called Nursing: The Philosophy and Science of Caring by Jean Watson. They recommended to start reading this book early because it is difficult to follow. Seems like a simple title to me, but I'll find out when I get it.

So the next step will be to order my Concordia student scrubs and take my CPR class online. I'm getting excited!

Oh goodness...

As you can see, my writing has been lacking the past couple weeks. So I decided to catch up and write my little heart out about everything that has been going on lately. After 3 days of writing, I finally finished that much overdue post, but will not be posting it. It was erased accidentally when I was trying to edit. So as of right now I am currently annoyed and upset, and not in the mood to write. So here's the beyond simplified version of my life right now.

• Went down to Orange County for my nursing orientation a couple weeks ago
• Only working 2 days a week, which has left me with a numerous amount of free time
• I have been running everyday for my half marathon in November
• Not ready for summer to be over

Yes, I cried

Oh. My. Goodness. I am still in shock, but I am so excited to announce that I am a nursing student at Concordia University! After so much hard work, stressful planning and a rejection, I can  see my future ahead of me! I received an email on Thursday with the title in the subject line "Welcome to the Concordia ABSN Program." So before I even opened the email I knew the good news. I was sitting on the couch and turned my computer toward my aunt in shock saying, "I think I got into the program." Even though I knew I got in haha. She was so excited for me and gave me a hug. The email said that was accepted and should be getting a complete packet in the mail with more information (which I did that same day). I was so excited and started making my phone calls. All day I felt like I was in a dream like state. It didn't really hit me until the next morning, when I woke up crying because I was so happy. I feel so lucky to be accepted into a program, when sometimes it takes years for some people to get in. God has blessed me so much and I am so Thankful. So right now I'm ready to soak up everyday of this new adventure.

Feeling Good

I really need to update about my interview. After having anxiety for the entire week before, I am finally feeling good about this whole process. The morning of I got up at 5:30 (I definitely was not used to that) and made sure I was prepared for the day along with doing a devotion. When I got to Concordia, an ease actually came over me knowing I was in a familiar place. I can only imagine how other people felt just being in an unfamiliar place.
There were 6 groups of 6 of the prospective students, and we made rotations to 6 different interview panals. Lets hope the number 6's have nothing to do with it, haha. It did take the entire 4 hours, but went by pretty quickly. Everyone was very friendly and I walked out of there saying everything I wanted to say. So i'd say the interview went really well...in my eyes at least. Some questions they asked were
"Why do you want to be a nurse?"
"What would be your biggest challenge in the program?"
"What are some of your weaknesses and strengths?"
"How do you handle stress?"
"What are some skills you have that will carry into the program?"

I thought those were some pretty standard questions and everyone had something different to say. So it will be interesting to see what kind of nursing student they are looking for. Now I just have to wait for the final decision. I will hopefully hear the first week of August.
Until then.....

Interview

I received some news today that I was invited for an interview for Concordia's nursing program! They first told me over the phone that interviews would be held in the middle of July. So as the planner I am, I planned my summer around this interview, waiting and anticipating until I heard the news. The email stated that my interview would be on Thursday June 23. I had to read that over several times, thinking they must have got the wrong month! But no, the interview is in one week.

I am slowly getting excited about it, but I first had a slight panic attack. I am so busy this next week with Sara's wedding and work and I just freaked myself out. But I got a few days off of work and heading back down to socal on Wednesday. For my moral support, Jeff is coming down there with me to keep me calm and collect. No nervous break downs should happen, but he's there if I need him :) I don't feel mentally prepared quite yet, but hopefully with some good preparation and prayer I will feel ready. 

This goes to show that only God knows my plans and he has his arms wrapped around me as tight as can be. I plan yet another thing and he guides me in a different direction. Who knows what will happen next. I am really thankful for this opportunity that is came at the right time...God's time. 

Round 2

My application is in (again)! And I am in the running for the spring semester  of the accelerated nursing program at Concordia. The interview will be in mid July and final decisions with be in mid August.

Please send out a prayer.

Glimpse of Hope

On Tuesday, I had a phone interview with the head of the nursing department at Concordia. This meeting was set up to discuss my application and my rejection to the program this past semester. Dr. Hobus had a lot to say and really gave me some encouraging words. She really encouraged me to express all of my frustrations and concerns of the program and so thats exactly what I did!

I first asked her why I didn't get accepted into the program, when I have been encouraged for 4 years to apply early and had a "high" chance of getting in. To make a long story short, she told me the program is currently changing due to the high amount of applications this semester. There were 300 applicants this semester (100 more than they expected) for only 40 spots, when they usually only accept 30 applicants. However, it is no longer an option to apply early to the nursing program as a Concordia student because of their popular program.

I then asked why I was not notified about whether I was receiving an interview or not. She apologized for this miscommunication, and basically she said that they filled the spots but still wanted to use the Concordia applicants (There were two other girls from Concordia who applied who were just as overlooked as I was). So they put us on the side, hoping they could use us as fill-ins or something. Weird answer, but understandable I guess. So they didn't want to send out rejection letters until they were certain. She said I just got stuck in bad timing as the program in changing.

On to the good news...I can reapply for the spring semester and was guaranteed an interview in July. She said I had a strong application (I guess not strong enough) and she really wanted to see my degree complete to be fully prepared for the program. She stressed the point that she has seen many students drop out of the program and she does not want to see that from the Concordia applicants.

She also said that the other two applicants and I will be at the top of the list for next semester. Dr. Hobus seemed very encouraging and apologized for all of the miscommunication this semester. We talked for about 25 minutes and I think I got out everything I was feeling. So this week I will be re-submitting my application and be in the running for spring 2012!

Lastly, she through an unexpected question at me and changed her mood drastically. She asked me if anyone I had talked to about the nursing program has ever been rude or snubbed me. I didn't really think a lot about it and said no. Maybe she had heard rumors about some problems in their administration and wanted to know if I experienced any of it. I have had a difficult time getting ahold of people in the nursing department, but I don't think it's anyone's fault. Their program is still so new and  their trying to iron out all of the problems.

So I do have a glimpse of hope. I'm glad I will get an interview this time around so I can show them what I have to offer. But this whole process has unmotivated me to get excited. I am trying by best to stay positive, but I do not want to get let down again. I hope everything Dr. Hobus said was true, because then I think I have a fairly good chance this second time around.