This chapter helps the nursing students to learn about certifications and continuing education programs and to look ahead as a diploma nurse, associate degree nurse and a baccalaureate degree nurse. In the United States, diploma programs are hospital based, although there are a few that operate in a community college setting. A number of nursing diploma programs have closed in recent years, as evolving hiring practices have caused some difficulty for diploma grads in procuring their first nursing job. An associate degree nurse is one who has graduated from a two-year community college. A baccalaureate degree nurse is one who has successfully completed a four-year college program. The American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) is the largest credentialing center for nurses in the United States and they offer certifications for registered nurses and advance practice nurses. All nurses are required by their employers to maintain their basic cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) certification.

This chapter helps the nursing students to learn sources of job opportunities. Jobs are usually not obtained by accident. They are the end product of a strategy comprised of various moving parts—figurative gears that interlock and work together to propel forward the process of job hunting. No one can foretell the future with complete accuracy, so planning ahead in formulating a job-hunting strategy is by no means foolproof. One of the most helpful job-hunting strategies is to choose a health care facility that interests nurses as a future employer and get in the door as a nurse extern also known as a nurse intern, or a patient care tech. Every school have a career development center and staff who are there to assist nursing students in their job procurement efforts. They serve all students and often have specific staff members who possess more expertise in individual majors and professional occupations.

This chapter helps the nursing students to learn nursing and the publishing world. Scholarly journals that are published by the nursing honor society Sigma Theta Tau and other nursing organizations have stringent publishing criteria and are most interested in research. Additionally, most states have one or two complimentary magazines that are delivered in the mail or made available online to registered nurses. Another particular value of nursing magazines is the listing of available nursing positions in the area, as health care entities obviously prefer to spend their recruiting dollars by reaching a targeted audience. Complimentary magazines offer short articles that may include the latest in infection prevention for nursing credit and patient stories. The editors of more informal publications are generally receptive to submissions by nursing students. Nursing students will be required to write a number of term papers and other shorter opinion pieces during their nursing school education.

This chapter discusses the value of relaxation, exercise, and meditation. As an aspiring nurse, they begin to understand that they are their own patient. Nurses can anticipate long days both as a student in the classroom and at a clinical site where they face a twelve-hour shift. One former nursing student confessed that her secret source of relaxation is spending time alone working on “paint-by-number” illustrations. Exercise prompt nurses own natural endorphins to be secreted. One simple method of meditation nurses can practice is learning to slow their breath. Breathing in through their nose to the count of four and exhaling through their mouth to the count of five for three consecutive times may be enough to lower the stress effect on their body. Achieving relaxation through breathing modulation can be particularly effective in alleviating test anxiety. Now more than ever, nurse’s health depends on proper sleep and diet.

This chapter explains proper placement of patient simulation in a nursing curriculum. It also explains the growth of online coursework. The chapter discusses practical value of digital devices to a nursing student. Applied to nursing education, simulation attempts to create a hypothetical patient care environment within which nursing students can safely operate before moving on to an actual patient care setting. Personal digital assistants (PDAs) emerged as a vital technical tool for nurses, but their applicability to the clinical site is much greater than it is in the classroom. Informal observation indicates that students find smartphone apps convenient for clinical site uses such as looking up medications, finding patient diagnosis descriptions, and defining technical terms. On the other hand, students prefer books to electronic resources for studying, preparing nursing journal entries developing nursing care plans, and writing research papers.

Nurses are a vital part of today’s health care system, and tomorrow’s as well. The nursing role requires an in-depth knowledge of physiology and pharmacology along with the insight and empathy to effectively interact with patients who are afflicted physically, mentally, and emotionally. This chapter discusses ten perceptions regarding the nursing profession that includes: patients will always be grateful and positive to nurses; it is easy to find a job as a nurse and so on. It explains the importance of having a real-world perspective. Nursing aides are unlicensed personnel who assist other team members in providing patient care to all clients. Nursing education results in a thorough understanding of the body’s functions and pathologies. As a prospective nurse they begin with a clear and accurate understanding about their role. A student nurse with a real-world perspective will be better equipped to tackle the demands of the nursing profession.

This chapter discusses personal prerequisites for success at the clinical site. It explains rules of the road as a new health care provider. The chapter also explains patient confidentiality. There is a strong correlation between good classroom performance and good clinical performance. In the clinical education setting, students need to apply classroom knowledge to “real world” situations. Many nursing programs have requirements called technical standards that must first be met by nursing students in order to qualify for enrollment in a clinical nursing course. It is not uncommon for nursing programs to mandate that their students receive cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) certification in life support before entering a clinical area. Nursing students about to begin working with patients will need appropriate legal clearances. Confidentiality is one of the first concepts that nursing students must master as a student and then as a professional nurse.

This chapter explains the importance of classroom logistics. It explains how to stay focused during class. The conceptual knowledge that a nurse need is acquired in the classroom. A classroom is a microcosm of a neighborhood. It contains a collection of people whose common interest in a particular subject has drawn them to the same place. However, some instructors make a point of soliciting responses from those who are perched in the far reaches of the classroom as a means of keeping all class attendees alert. Chomping, slurping, belching, drooling, and so forth are out of place in citadels of learning and are a distraction to teacher and fellow classmates. Some students learn to list questions on a separate piece of paper during class and then during breaks approach the teacher with a few questions. Some students choose to record all nursing lectures.

This chapter talks about a high school student named Laura, who had graduated in the top 10% of her class. She coveted a career in health care. Laura briefly summarized her personal profile and her strong desire to become a registered nurse, underscoring her interest by noting that she had been a volunteer during high school at a neighborhood hospital. In her first student nurse association meeting, Laura learned that nursing classes were very different from biology and other classes. Laura experienced the personal satisfaction that occurs in clinical rotations. She began to read about mindfulness-based stress reduction as an antidote for chronic pain and an adjunct to living a more full and present life. As a result of her careful planning and hard work, Laura passed the boards on her first attempt and took a week off down at the beach before beginning her hospital orientation program.