Sample Application Essay

Short-Term Goals

Professional goals play a critical role of guiding one’s career and enabling him/her to transition into a practicing NP (Wallace & Boller, 2014). Firstly, after completion of my course at the end of June, I plan to take a full-time job for a period of two years within a primary care setting. Working full time will allow me to advance to the level of an expert practitioner within the two years. The second short-term goal is to identify, contact, and establish a profession relationship with physician mentor who will be giving me insights on how to steer my actions towards successfully transitioning into a nurse practitioner. The third goal is that in two years’ time, I plan to have applied for an unencumbered RN license that will allow me to practice as an expert.

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Long-Term Goals

To begin with, after three years, I hope to have become confident in my role of nurse practitioner. For this reason, I will have collaborated with a physician in preparation to start acquiring more skills to enable me to operate an independent practice. Secondly, after working for four years, I plan to pursue my doctorate degree in nursing which I will complete within three years. Lastly, I plan to have opened and started operating my independent practice in the District of Columbia in seven years’ time.

Explanation for Selection of Goals

            As evident in the preceding sections, I have both short- and long-term goals that I need to pursue in order to develop both professionally and career wise. My first goal is to take a full time job for two years after completing my undergraduate education. I plan to work full time in a primary care in order to enhance my practical skills as a nurse practitioner. The knowledge and skills gained would allow me to develop into an efficient nurse hence I will be able to take good care of my patients (Hinds et al., 2015). I will also take advantage of any learning material in my care setting to advance my knowledge in nursing.

            Besides, identifying a mentor who is a physician would help me to take the necessary steps in my day-to-day work-related activities as well as profession decision-making in order to excel in my area of practice. The mentor education will give me essential information regarding requirements for professional success at every level of my career journey. For example, mentoring will come in handy in my efforts to explore options regarding specialization the prospects of career success upon pursuing my doctorate degree. It will allow me to advance my knowledge in care theories, where my passion in nursing lies.

            After three years, I will have gained enough practical experience from my full-time primary care job. That is why I plan to collaborate with either the mentor-physician or another interested physician so that we can open an independent practice. This would help me gain more practical experience from the physician (Johnson, 2017). This would be setting me to a path of independent practice as a nurse practitioner in future.

            It is for the same reason that I will pursue my doctorate degree in nursing. I anticipate that after four years, I will have gained much experience and I will have a decided mind on my area of specialization that I wish to pursue (Bednash et al., 2014). The goal was selected with my long-term goal of independent practice in mind. My dream has always been to set up my place so that I can provide care to patients. As for my last long-term goal, that of opening an independent practice after seven years, I expect to have completed my doctorate studies by that time. This means that I will possess the relevant skills and knowledge to open my own healthcare facility.

Strategic Plan for achieving the goals

            I project that working full-time will accelerate my rise to an expert nursing practitioner. While at work, I hope to gain ample experience in terms of professional competency, integrity, and probity. I will then resign from my position after three years to work under a physician in an independent practice. This will give me ample time to both pursue my doctoral degree and to acquire the requisite knowledge and skills within an independence-practice environment. This strategic plan will set me on the path towards independent practice.

References

Bednash, G. et al. (2014). PhD or DNP: Planning for doctoral nursing education. Nursing science quarterly27(4), 296-301.

Hinds, P. S.et al. (2015). Creating a career legacy map to help assure meaningful work in nursing. Nursing outlook63(2), 211-218.

Johnson, C. S. (2017). Ten Steps to Integrate Nursing Professional Development in Your Organization. Journal for Nurses in Professional Development33(1), 40-41.

Wallace, D. & Boller, J. (2014). New Nurse Practitioner Competencies: Skill Development and Reflective Writing Rubrics. The Journal for Nurse Practitioners, 10(7), 13-21.

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