My Goals and Walden Vision and Mission Essay

Being an Emergency Room nurse for 7 years and working as a traveling nurse in many different parts of the country has impacted my future and decision of going back to school. My personal career goal is to become a Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP) with specialization in pediatric critical care area, mainly pediatric emergency medicine. I have known since a very young age that I had a gift for working with children. My colleagues always call me the â€Å"pediatric nurse†. I feel it takes a very special type of person to work with pediatrics, and this is where my heart is. I chose to become a FNP to broaden my area of expertise and to leave multiple doors open to work in different areas. I have looked into numerous FNP programs across the country, but I was particularly looking for a program that would allow me the flexibility with my changing work schedule and lifestyle. A few co-workers of mine are currently going to Walden and informed me about the school and program. After reading the university and School of Nursing’s vision, mission, and goals, I knew that Walden would be right for me. I strongly agreed with many aspects of what Walden stood for as an overall school. I truly connected to Walden’s mission to provide â€Å"a diverse community of career professionals with the opportunity to transform themselves as scholar-practitioners so that they can affect positive social change† (Walden University, 2013a, para. 2). I value that Walden incorporates everyone’s background and experiences to better the learning of other students. Only being a nurse for 7 years, I have worked in over 17 hospitals and feel that I have gained a vast knowledge of how nursing differs in multiple parts of the country. I relate to Walden University’s statement of the diverse community of students helping to bring positive change including nurses from all aspects of healthcare. Furthermore, two of Walden’s University (2013a) outcomes that really caught my attention were to â€Å"demonstrate a commitment to lifelong learning† (para. 5), and also to utilize â€Å"knowledge to positively impact†¦ profession, communities, and in society† (para. 5). I want to continue to broaden my knowledge over the life of my career. I also believe in using this knowledge to positively impact others in all aspects of healthcare. Incorporating Social Change I agree with Walden University’s (2013a) view on social change that â€Å"Walden supports social change through the development of principled, knowledgeable, and ethical scholar-practitioners, who are and will become civic and professional role models by advancing the better of society† (para. 4). I plan to incorporate social change in my profession by applying my past work experiences and knowledge from school to become a better professional role model to my patients, co-workers and community. An example of one learning outcome for the Master of Science in Nursing is to â€Å"exhibit ongoing commitment to professional development† (Walden University, 2013b, para. 3). I am constantly trying to learn new ways to improve and better my knowledge and education. I recently obtained my Certified Emergency Nurse certification and will soon be taking the Certified Pediatric Emergency Nurse exam. I only hope that with my past experiences and my future knowledge gained at Walden University, I will be able to become a professional advocate and role model for the future of pediatric care and the patient population thereof.