May 1, 2015 | SharkAdmin “Having an associate degree distinguishes me from other transfer students by turning my credit hours into a symbol of my commitment and motivation.” Sarah Senger is a Pre-Nursing major at Northwest Vista College on track to graduate this spring. Her path to graduation began as a dual credit student who completed high school with 25 hours of college coursework. Dedicated to her beliefs of helping others, Sarah was a volunteer at Methodist Hospital in San Antonio. She now works at the hospital part time and says the experience from volunteering helped her choose a career in healthcare. Sarah plans to attend the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio to pursue a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN). “I am interested in ICU (Intensive Care Unit) nursing and would like to work in cardiac or surgical ICU because I find those specialties challenging and interesting,” she said. So why is earning an associate degree important to Sarah? “It symbolizes my character and my willingness to sacrifice short-term pleasures to meet my long-term goals,” she said. “Having an associate degree distinguishes me from other transfer students by turning my credit hours into a symbol of my commitment and motivation.” She explained that both the teachers and learning resources at NVC have helped her not only academically, but also personally and professionally. “The learning environment on campus is one of the most prominent reasons why I have enjoyed my time here,” she said. “Students are encouraged to understand the material rather than just memorize it.” She went on to explain why finding the right balance in life is key for her. “I have learned the importance of prioritizing my time,” she said. “NVC has challenged how I view myself and showed me I was capable of more than I was previously giving myself credit for.” Sarah’s advice for incoming students is for them to use the time here at NVC to develop good study habits. “Identify your personal strengths and weaknesses and use that evaluation to further develop yourself,” she said. Her favorite “Vista Touchstone” is synergy. “My experience at NVC has shown me how important it is to be able to work with other people both in the academic and work setting,” Sarah added. Sarah has been a recipient of the T-STEM and Allied Health Scholarship, the Nancy Smith Hurd Scholarship and was a finalist in the Why A Degree at NVC Essay contest. Contributed by Manuel V. Martinez, editor of the NVC Alumni newsletter. To read more stories from the newsletter, click here.
