As I am approaching my final year of nursing school, I have begun to reflect on the past three years I have spent as a student nurse. To compare my first-year self to the present, I have grown vastly as a learner within a classroom and clinical setting. Most of the challenges I have faced throughout nursing school have involved my ability to efficiently preform skills and patient care as a student nurse. However, I would also largely attribute the aspect of self-validation to the challenges I have faced as a student nurse. As someone who is always seeking to set high expectations, it can be disappointing when they are not fully met. As a first- and second-year nursing student, I noticed that I set these high expectations of myself that sometimes were not obtainable, which led to disappointment as well as questioning my worth as a future nurse. As I began to obtain more clinical experience along with the support of my peers and clinical tutors, I learned to trust in what I know and set less expectations. This has led to achieving goals that are appropriate for myself, which has made me feel more confident as a student nurse.

            Confidence is key in nursing; however, it takes time to develop. From experience, it is extremely nerve-wracking walking into a patient’s room when you have to explain and preform a new skill. There is a lot of pressure on yourself as a student nurse, not only to perform the skill well, but also the confidence you must display to make the patient feel comfortable. Confidence has been something I have struggled with and am currently still working on. My level of confidence has improved overtime, which I would attribute to the support and feedback from my previous clinical tutors. It has been difficult to be confident in skills as a student when there are not always supportive learning environments. For instance, some nurses are not as welcoming to students as others may be. Surrounding myself with those who support me and provide positivity in my learning was something that strengthened my ability to practice skills confidently in a clinical setting.

            As I enter my last year of clinical placement, the fear of the unknown after graduation has begun to enter my thoughts. Many of peers have described the excitement that they have found the area of nursing that they are most passionate about. In my case, I feel as though I have not experienced a moment in my job as a clinical extern or in my past clinical placements that have made me realize where I want to be. At times this has made me feel discouraged in my nursing journey as I have worked so hard all throughout of nursing school and yet I have not discovered my passion in nursing. Although, I find myself having to remember that it is because of my hard work in nursing school that I will have the opportunity to explore various areas of nursing that will allow me to find my passion, even if it is not immediately. Reminding myself to trust in the person I have grown to become, is what will continue to guide my nursing journey.