Libia Hernandez

Jody Snyder/Alexa Holl

Senior Capstone - Rough Draft

March 14, 2022

About me

As I entered high school, one of the biggest concerns were that I wouldn’t know what

career to choose. Many students with parents that grew up here knew about applying for college,

FAFSA, selecting a career to study, etc. All I knew was that I want to help people. I made a list

of different careers, I could be a doctor, nurse, firefighter, or paramedic. The list went on and on.

I was able to narrow the list down to a doctor or a nurse, since I loved learning about the human

body and its function it would be perfect. Now, how would I get there?

As a child of two hardworking immigrants, I grew up not poor but not rich. We always

had just enough, which is not a bad thing. Both of my parents worked full-time, this would mean

that I would only see them in the evening. My grandmother raised my brothers and I, but it wasnt

the same. Since my parents were not really there while growing up, they always told me I had to

watch over my brothers. I honestly think I grew up too fast. I was always held to a higher

standard than my brothers. My parents always told me that I was in charge of making sure they

were okay. I grew up with the expectation of being more responsible and I would get in trouble if

I wasn’t. Due to that I always have high standards for myself and when I fail to meet them, I feel

disappointed in myself.

After I graduate from high school, I am going to attend Davenport University and earn

my Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree to become a registered nurse. At the moment, I have

earned my Nurse Assistant Certification back in February and now I am working on my Nurse
Technician Certification. I will graduate from high school with two certifications and be able to

work in the medical field straight out of school and utilized my skills while I attend college. The

goal is to work in pediatric oncology. Working as a nurse isnt only about the patient, but it is also

about providing support to the family members that are also affected emotionally. Studies show

that “…parent psychological distress (i.e., difficulties coping with emotions and cognitions

which may manifest as anxiety, worry, sadness, or depression) contributes to the HRQL and

wellbeing of pediatric cancer survivors12.” (Racine 42). It is important for the child and parent

to be able to feel and express their emotions. Research also shows that “​… promoting emotional

exploration, labeling, and understanding (ie, “emotion coaching”) are associated with better child

adjustment,13 whereas parents' promotion of emotion avoidance or punitive responses to

children's emotions (ie, “emotion dismissing”) are associated with children's depression, anxiety,

and externalizing behaviors.” (Faith 1559). Aside from career goals, I would like to be able to

build my own house when I have my career. I also want to live an eco-friendly lifestyle.

It will not be easy to get to my end goal, as I will be doing a sport while attend university.

I have been a student athlete throughout high school therefore time management is a skill that I

already have but I will have to perfect it. As a freshman I have been accepted into the nursing

program at davenport and I will be taking some basic classes before I take the nursing classes. I

will be able to attend clinical my first year of college which not many colleges offer. By the end

of my freshman year I will have 33 credits done. For my sophomore year I will start to take

nursing classes and I will be finishing with 34 credits. I will be taking 28 credits my junior year

and 25 credits my senior year. I plan to work as a nurse tech and gain experience in the field.

Utilizing the skills I have learned is important so I won't forget them.

 High school has taught me many things, academic and personal. It has shown me how to

be responsible, to work with others, and what I want to do with my life. Thanks to the classes I

have taken, I decided that being a doctor would not have been a good fit for me, I love being

hands-on and working with people as well as supporting them physically, emotionally, and

mentally. Therefore, nursing is the best career pathway for me, considering my personality and

characteristics.
 Works Cited

Faith, Melissa A., et al. “Parents’ Emotion Socialization Beliefs Moderate Relations

between Parent and Patient Coping, but Not Sibling Coping, with Pediatric Cancer.”

Psycho-Oncology, vol. 28, no. 7, July 2019, pp. 1559–66. EBSCOhost,

https://doi.org/10.1002/pon.5132.

Racine, N. M., et al. “Quality of Life in Pediatric Cancer Survivors: Contributions of

Parental Distress and Psychosocial Family Risk.” Current Oncology, vol. 25, no. 1, Feb. 2018,

pp. 41–48. EBSCOhost, https://doi.org/10.3747/co.25.3768.