Personal Statement Essay

Answer

Personal Statement Essay

Q1. Describe any of your special interests and how you have developed knowledge in these areas and how you have used these. Give examples of your creativity: the ability to see alternatives; take diverse perspectives; come up with new ideas, or willingness to try new things.

Throughout my life, I have always enjoyed my parents' company, especially my mother’s, who has a special thing for preparing perfect Indian dishes. Through this relationship, I developed a particular interest in cooking, which, to some extent, has gone over and above my mother's expertise. For as long as I can remember, I always dared to try out new dishes with a blend of recipes, which in most cases turned out awesome. However, a few instances of disappointments contributed to building the knowledge base in this experience since I took the mistakes I made positively to improve myself. Notwithstanding, moving to the United States provided critical challenges to my cooking interest, which offered me an opportunity to become more creative.

I have had to learn new things, including preparation of American dishes, different kinds of foods, and spices cherished by the people around me. This has proven to be a significant test in my level of creativity and embracing the dynamic changes that arise with a change in the environment. Contextually, I believe the ability to navigate through my social interest and find a sense of belonging in the new culture assures me that the expected challenges of joining the nursing school and, subsequently, graduating, will build me for the good of the profession. By developing the ability to take diverse perspectives and open to new ideas, I am willing to learn and unlearn for efficiency and delivery of quality services. I can take up a challenge and try new things that may contradict the current knowledge base.

Q2. Describe examples of your leadership experience in which you have helped others, resolved disputes, or contributed to group efforts over time. You may include experiences in school as well as in the community.

Leadership remains an integral part of human development, making the acquisition of the skills necessary as their application. The environment, whether school or community, demands people who can rise to the occasion and be counted to make changes and contribute toward improving society's well-being. As such, I have had an exciting leadership experience that shaped my view and perception of leadership as well as the need to improve where necessary. During my human anatomy class, I had an opportunity to lead my group through the assignments. In one particular assignment, we were to cut open the cadaver, but in a group of four, only two members were willing to perform the task, write report, or participate in any way. Since the grades in group assignments significantly depend on collaboration and teamwork, the reluctance to undertake the task created significant challenges since the work was too much for two people to handle.

Therefore, as the team leader, I had an option to maintain the status quo or rise to the occasion and ensure we passed. Consequently, I chose to make a difference with a strategy of collecting the individual members' views, which helped in dividing the work based on the feedback. For this course, everyone contributed, and upon the successful completion of the assignment, our group scored an A. Through this experience, I learned the essence of thinking beyond what every other person can see, which makes me different. As such, every step in academic experience helps build upon the very foundation since nursing requires lifelong learning and the ability to show critical teamwork and collaboration for the success of evidence-based practice and improvement of quality of the outcome.

Q3. Describe the most significant challenge you have faced and the steps you have taken to address this challenge. Include whether you turned to anyone in facing that challenge, the role that person played, and what you learned about yourself.

Coming to the U.S. from India meant having to make significant sacrifices that proved very challenging and affected my ability to settle to a profound extent. The most difficult challenge was to leave my family and friends and start afresh in almost all aspects of life. As if sacrificing the family and friends was not enough, I have had to experience a challenge learning a new language, English, which made me to make every effort to have American friends who would help me improve my grasp of the language. As such, the friends have proved helpful in improving my mastery of the language within a short span.

Notwithstanding, the challenges have made me realize that I can cope with problems more demanding than these since, in my understanding, these were the toughest. Enrolling in a driving school pointed out that I could navigate challenges and derive a sense of belonging in a new community or social group. Furthermore, a new school environment and the school system were as well tricky since there are significant differences between the American system and the Indian, where I began my schooling. Therefore, learning all over again was inevitable. Despite the challenges, I had the determination to remain resilient, which instilled in me a sense of humility since I had to rely on others to make some progress. Moreover, I also had to realize that I could make quick friends, a trait that will be useful in nursing school as well as upon graduation. The truth with nursing is that the environment is subject to changes quite often and with the changes come challenges that must be overcome.

Q4. Describe your experience facing or witnessing discrimination. Tell us how you responded and what you learned from those experiences.

Racial and cultural differences often create instances of discrimination that every person has to deal with, provided they are in a different environment dominated by another race or culture. Although the United States has incredible mechanisms for coping with discrimination, a significant level of it remains a reality. I have faced some instances of discrimination based on my native culture. I am an Indian belonging to the Punjabi Sikh family, which makes me have a different color and lifestyle compared to the people around me. In my neighborhood, barely any Indians are here, which often makes me feel out of place. Besides, despite having some mastery of the English language and can communicate, my accent is substantially different from the others, and sometimes they make fun of my pronunciation and language command. The discrimination is particularly real in language and speech, thus making me adamant about contributing to a discussion.

Nonetheless, the discriminations are never going to weigh me down since I have purposed to become the best version of myself irrespective of the obstacles. Through self-motivation, hard work, and acceptance of the things I cannot change, the discriminations are instrumental in propelling me to greater heights since I have to fight for my rightful position in society. Initially, it was tough coping with reality, and I always felt very insignificant in society. However, I realized that my dreams and ambitions are higher, and thus I had to raise the bar and live to expectations. Essentially, I had to become very accommodative of different cultures, religions, sex, and beliefs since, in nursing, I am destined to meet different people in need of my services. Therefore, discrimination only helped in realizing the reality of the dynamics in society.

Q5. Describe the path you too to prepare, both academically and personally, for a career in nursing.

My interest in the nursing profession has been growing ever since with contributions from the various science and art courses that I have undertaken. I have pursued an Associate of Science in Mathematics and Science, an Associate of Arts in Arts, and have spent some time in pharmacy technician schools. These have been instrumental in strengthening my interest and commitment, which has made me a better person ready to make a difference in nursing. For instance, in many lab assignments, I took leadership roles that helped in experiencing the depth of nursing demands. Besides, while providing informal caregiving services to the Punjabi community elders, I gained numerous care provision skills, which forms the basis of nursing to help in speeding the recovery process.

Moreover, volunteering at Kaiser Permanente helped me gain health insights and expertise that will prove useful in hospital set up and during the training. Adding to the experience gained from volunteering in this noble health institution, I have worked full-time in a major retail company, which has provided insights in service and the need for customer satisfaction, which means providing quality and uncompromised services to everyone. Therefore, through my academic and personal development, I have learned a lot, including healthcare delivery in an emotionally intelligent manner, handling culturally different clients, and meeting everyone's expectations irrespective of the challenges.  Therefore, in preparation for nursing, I have learned the importance of feedback, conceptualizing the client's needs, and assessing the organization's need for development. Thus, in nursing, experience, and education helps in achieving the objective.