On the last research assistant day of the semester that really was the week after the last paid research assistant day of the semester, I was in the RA office, working on tasks that the PhD nurse I work for had given me. One of the things that I make sure to do, especially after working until midnight the night before, getting five hours of sleep, and then driving 90 minutes to the university, is drink caffeine. A lot of it! Thank goodness the bathroom is down the hall.
On my way back to the RA office, I ran into a very nice junior nursing student.
She and I chatted on the way back to the office, as she was going to one near there.
I asked how she was doing.
She frowned and said she needed at least an 80 on her last med-surg test of the semester. To pass the course.
She turned to leave.
I stopped her and said, as reassuringly as I could, “Of course you will pass.” I smiled and gave her some test-taking strategies, including going for the first answer that pops in your head. And deep breathing is always important.
She smiled and thanked me.
I pressed on and said the first thing to do is read the question fully, decide what the answer should be without looking at the given answers, and find the one that is the closest.
She asked what class I taught. I told her that I was a PhD student and I was a few years out from teaching. She laughed and said that I would do great. Including passing all my courses.
I call that a mutual encouragement session.
I mean my PhD cohort (classmates) are great but sometimes it is good to hear encouragement from a surprising source.
Oh, and next year I will pay closer attention to the ending date of the RA. I could have saved myself nearly 3 hours of driving time.
The more you learn.
I will definitely continue talking to other nursing students. We all need some encouraging sometimes.
Dispatches from the Evening Shift 