my most proud moment
My most proud moment was when I graduated from University.
I was never a really “top of the class” student in High School, I was average. But I knew when I was in Year 10 (16 years old) that I wanted to be a nurse. This was after a week of work experience at a local hospital. I couldn’t imagine doing anything else with my life.
In a blog earlier explaining why I went to Uni and why I chose this route.
But the actual graduation ceremony made me feel so proud. I had achieved a goal I never thought I would. I got a Pass average in my marks and even failed a subject in my second year. By the third year I was even getting a couple of Distinctions and a High Distinction! My parents were also so proud, their oldest daughter had graduated! I was super proud to get up on stage to receive my degree.
I also remember my Granny telling me how proud she was, that I was going to help people like her and make a great nurse (she had cancer), and that I had so much empathy.
I don’t think I have been as proud as when I graduated, nothing has ever really come close in my opinion.
What has been your proudest moment?
pictures from my graduation ceremony and graduation ball
education level and why i chose it
As many of you may know, I am a Registered Nurse in Australia. This is a University degree, so I have a Bachelor of Nursing (BN). To get into University, I had to complete High School to Year 12. There were certain subjects I needed to complete for my Higher School Certificate- maths and science (biology at a minimum). We also had to get a certain mark in the University Admission Index. (The UAI is awarded to students on the completion of the HSC in NSW. It provided a percentile ranking of peer students of the same age. In New South Wales, the UAI was determined by a combination of the public HSC exams common across all schools at the end of Year 12 and continuing assessment.)
I attended Sydney University. We were not on Main Campus; we were about a 10-minute walk away. It was nice to be on a small campus only for nursing students, but I did miss the atmosphere of the main campus. It is a 3-year degree, and we had practical placement each year. We had 4 weeks practical in 1st year, 6 weeks in 2nd year, and 8 weeks in 3rd year.
I love my job. I chose to go to Uni and get a Tertiary Education as I wanted to get started in my career. And I was in the groove of studying and didn’t want to lose the study momentum. I could have been an Enrolled Nurse first, but I was impatient and wanted to start working! This is a 12-month course at TAFE (Technical and Further Education). In hindsight, maybe I should have gone the TAFE route to get more practical experience, but I learnt a lot on the job once I started work. And I don’t think I would be a Community Nurse now if I didn’t go to university.
sorry that the image is no great… it was taken from another photo!
I also have a Graduate Certificate in Palliative Care from the Australian Catholic University. This was an online course. I did this while I was working in Palliative Care at the time. I love this area, providing holistic care to patients and their families when they are at one of the worst times in their lives, being diagnosed with a life-limiting illness.
I am a certified Death Doula through Australian Doula College. I only finished and received my certificate mid-June.
I also have a Certificate 3 in Animal Studies. I did this before COVID, and got my practical experience at Sydney Dogs and Cats Home.
