To the nursing student that made it through freshman year,

Wow, look at you, it is finally finals week.

How many times do you think you said, "I can't do this anymore"? I bet you didn't think you would make it. But look where you are now. Many people say freshman year is the hardest, especially for nursing majors. But why you may ask?

Being a freshman nursing major I have heard many times that the first year is meant to see who is actually meant to be here and who isn't. By that I mean who will make it through the nursing program and who won't. It is almost like natural selection, only the best will survive and make it through to next year and the others will change their major or keep trying. But look where you are now, you made it.

I bet it feels awesome to finally be finishing up those awful science exams, like organic chemistry and anatomy. Also, sitting in those awful three-hour labs. You finally will be taking nursing classes next semester, finally something to look forward to rather than boring old lecture classes. You finally can look forward to that clinical you have been dying to experience, that simulation lab you have been dying to see and work in, the scrubs you have been dying to get and try on. (And of course post a picture pretending you are Meredith Grey).

But do you want to know why you can look forward to all of this? It's because you worked so hard your freshman year and you deserve it. You deserve that you are getting closer and closer to your dream of being a nurse.

While the road to get there won't be easy, you have already begun to take the road.You've already started your journey. You spent endless hours studying for that anatomy practical, endless hours in lab looking at dead cats, sheep hearts and sheep brains just to take that exam that is only a small portion of your grade. You then spent hours studying for the lecture exams every few weeks which are of course the majority of your grade. Oh, and you spent hours studying for those annoying general education courses that have nothing to do with you're major! You spent endless hours in the library, and more nights than you can remember up all night studying.

While you probably didn't always get the grade you wanted, you still tried your hardest and that is all that matters. You have made it through your freshman year as a nursing student. Crazy how fast time flies when your whole life is consumed by school. But now, you can look forward to next semester when you actually begin to feel like your dreams are closer to reality. You're one-fourth of the way there now, please do not give up.