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Becoming a Childrens Nurse

Christmas advice…

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So we’re all trying to get into the Christmas spirit – spending time with family, celebrating the end of another year, eating and drinking our body weight in food; I mean that’s what Christmas is all about isn’t it fun and relaxation…

Hmmm, now I’m a third year child student with a dissertation, a mahoosive essay, final placement preparations and a mountain of other work looming… I’m certainly not relaxing this Christmas!

But thinking back to 2014,  I had sent my UCAS application off on my birthday the month before (happy birthday to me!) and I was waiting patiently, nervously, anxiously for anything more than a “thank you, we have received your application email” from my chosen universities.

Despite having until late January to complete my application (so don’t worry if you haven’t quite completed yours yet!) I was eager to send mine off and get the process going. I’d like to think I’m quite organised and I was aware I’d be travelling back and forth to London for selection days, so I wanted time to plan and prepare to give myself the best chance of getting in.

When I was completing my UCAS application and personal statement, I didn’t really have much guidance about what to write and include. But I was very lucky my lovely auntie was an experienced nurse and my other auntie works in management in the NHS, so I had there help and at the time, I don’t think I could have written it without them! So if you’re starting your application and are stuck, please seek help from someone – it’s amazing how someone else’s perspective can make things clearer and ideas just pop into your head.

My first thoughts when I was sitting down staring at the blank “personal statement” screen were… what am I supposed to write about myself in 4000 characters? How do I make myself stand out from the crowd? Why would this university want me?

 So here are my top tips for making your UCAS application stand out!

1: Why nursing? Why child nursing?

  • Make your passion and ambition clear – what sparked your interest in child nursing, what makes it stand out for you?
  • Try to weave your passion for child nursing throughout your whole statement – don’t just mention it at the start then forget about it.
  • Even if your experience isn’t with children, still include it – any experience is good experience!

2: What experience do you have which sets you apart?

  • Any experience is good experience!
  • I was lucky I worked as an outpatient receptionist for a few years before I started my degree so I used that as a basis for my experience section
  • Volunteering, jobs, baby sitting, brothers and sisters, family members
  • Mentoring, tutoring, any roles you took at school (I was a prefect and a school buddy for younger students)
  • Personal experiences with family members

And remember, if you don’t think you have much experience – you’ll have more than you think once you start writing! Some of my fellow students had barely any experience (and some had never even held a baby!) and they got onto the course and are making fabulous children’s nurses.

  1. Other tips
  • Link your experiences and passion to qualities you think a nurse should have. For example, you go to gymnastics every week – that shows real commitment. You did DoE – commitment, teamwork and leadership skills. So even if you don’t think it’s relevant – it can be! Mention your transferable skills and what you can bring to the profession.
  • Get your friends, family, neighbors and even your dog to read, read and re-read! It always sounds different when someone else reads it and you can get a feel of how an admissions tutor may view it. Also, if you need to cut down some words, a new perspective is always helpful.
  • Do a list of all the things you want to write then tick them off as you go along to ensure you don’t forget anything important.
  • Don’t share your personal statement with anyone, or don’t copy anyone else’s! It’s really not worth it.

But my biggest tip, is just remember why you want to study child nursing and how you think you’re going to make a different if you’re given the privileged opportunity to look after children and their families.

Oh and a last bit of advice… If you have sent your UCAS application off, don’t stress and check your emails every 5 minutes over Christmas like I did back in 2014!

Have a relaxing holiday everyone,

Alex 🙂

About Alex Spedding

Hi Everyone! I'm Alex... I'm a City, University of London graduate who is working at Great Ormond Street Hospital as a paediatric nurse. Follow my journey from student nurse to staff nurse! xx View all posts by Alex Spedding →

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