“One year down, many more to go!” Juliana Valeika, RN, on being an AAMC new grad
People often ask me what it’s like to be a new graduate nurse at AAMC: it’s challenging and exciting and it always leaves me wanting more.
In what seems like such a short amount of time, I’ve learned a tremendous amount of information — including the valuable skill of how to stay up all night. It has been an honor and a pleasure to work for such an amazing hospital because the care our patients receive is 100% Magnet-worthy.
I can still remember my first day, being both terrified and excited and wondering how I was possibly going to remember everything I learned in nursing school. But you’d be surprised how much information comes back to you when you need it the most.
This past year has been both a challenge and a blessing personally and professionally. Getting a job, passing my NCLEX, nine weeks of working with preceptors, working a day/night rotating schedule, and learning all that I can to become the best (rookie) nurse I can be.
I constantly enjoy the priceless moments: seeing the look on my patient’s face when their 10/10 pain has finally decreased to a 2/10, or being there to comfort a patient during an emotional time in their lives.
Because of this, I have decided to go back to school to pursue my Masters of Science in Nursing Education at Walden University. I want to gain the experience and the education to teach others what I am so passionate about.
AAMC offers a lot of incentives for those interested in furthering their education: for full time employees, HR offers $3000 a year in tuition assistance, while Project Advance offers $2500 a year for associate and bachelors nursing education and $3500 a year for Masters and above. (The Project Advance application comes out twice a year, don’t miss the December deadline!) Walden, Chamberlain, Stevenson, and Notre Dame all offer a tuition discount for being an AAMC employee. For more information, click here.
I can only hope I will have many more years working as an AAMC nurse! -Juliana Valeika, RN (MSU)
Post your comment