1. Career Compass to becoming a Nurse
Kristin Johnson

2. Long and Short term goals
Long Term: Nurse Practitioner
Short Term:
Become certified by the Red Cross (level 1)
Volunteer in hospitals for experience through High School
Get good grades (B’s and above) – Graduate High School
Get accepted into Douglas and do Bachelor of Nursing (RN)
Obtain work experience as RN and gain extra education as a Nurse Practitioner

3. Characteristics of a Nurse
To be a Nurse you need to be:
Compassionate
Good listener
Eager to learn (biology, medical care etc.)
Patient
Responsible
Good at coping
Organized
Understanding
Informative
A people person
Good at note taking

4. Years of Post Secondary High School Courses (Prerequisites)
Education
Years of Post Secondary
High School Courses (Prerequisites)
Registered Nurse
4-5
English 11 or 12, Socials, Math foundations 11 or 12. Two approved electives
Nurse Practitioner 2
(Same as above + second language)
To become a Registered Nurse, you need a bachelors degree which takes 4-5 years
Nurse Practitioner programs usually take 2 years to complete

5. Salary
Full time positions as Nurses or Nurse Practitioner has benefits like
Being a member of the nurses union
Dental coverage
Paid vacation and sick days
Retirement contributions
Full Time RN’s 40, ,000 per year
Part Time RN’s hourly wage
Full Time Nurse Practitioner 50, ,000
Part Time Nurse Practitioner hourly wage

6. Job Descriptions Nurse/Nurse Practitioner
Why I am Suited for this career
Nurse: involves collecting information on patients’ personal, family, and community background; taking blood pressure, temperature, and other vital signs; and performing basic physical exams. Nurse Practitioner: Some of their work with patients may include doing physical exams; diagnosing and treating minor illnesses such as colds, flu, and infections; treating minor injuries; and providing immunization against disease. They also interview patients and take their medical histories.
I Want to help people and make a difference in the community
I want to help reform the health care system
I am compassionate, empathetic, and dutiful
I want to bring new ideas to the nursing union
I am ambitious and determined
I want to work with people

7. Post Secondary Douglas College (Nursing) Bachelor of Science
Eight Semester
30 university transfer credits (minimum of 65%)
Biology, English, English elective, Math, Social Science elective, UT elective
45,924$
Post Secondary

8. Hurdles
Getting above 70% in Math- Go for every tutorial, learn curriculum over the summer, ask more questions in class
Finding a job – keep taking classes like first aid and CPR to add to resume. Get more volunteer experience
Living expenses - get a job, look into trading volunteer hours to pay off student loans