Tell us a little bit about yourself and your plans for nursing school.

My name is Maria Urena. I am 17 years old, and I am currently a senior at South Central High School. Along with this I am also dual enrolled at Pitt Community college. Here I have already taken 8 college courses towards my prerequisites for nursing, and I took the TEAS exam. I currently live with my legal guardians after being in foster care for a year. I currently have a high school GPA of 4.1 and a college GPA of 4.0. I am the president of the HOSA chapter at my high school. I am also a member of the Pitt Health Sciences Academy along with the Phi Theta Kappa Honors society at Pitt. I have participated in a job shadowing program at ECU Health through the Health Sciences Academy. I am currently taking a nursing fundamentals course through my high school, and I will be taking the CNA exam in May of this year. I have devoted 150 hours of my time volunteering in my community while having a part-time job.
To pursue my career goals, I plan on attending Pitt Community College for two years. Here I will obtain an associate degree in nursing. During this time, I will be studying and also completing clinical hours to meet the graduation requirement. After Pitt, I plan to transfer to a four-year university where I will obtain a bachelor's degree in nursing.
I want to earn a bachelor's degree in nursing so I can become a Trauma Nurse. I chose this career path because it requires you to be on your feet and have critical thinking skills. These are important so that nurses are able to provide the best care for every patient that comes through the emergency room doors.
This career has always intrigued me for as long as I can remember. I have always wanted to help the people in my community. What also pushed me even closer to this decision was my mother's passing. She passed away from a heart attack. I have devoted my efforts, time, and attention toward my studies so that I am able to become a nurse and do my very best to prevent another son or daughter from losing their mothers.

Maria from North Carolina
High School Senior
South Central High School