 "Photo: Mary Kang/The Daily Texan")
UT nursing senior Maranda Neal said she decided to go into nursing because she enjoys making people feel better.
“I have a passion for helping others, and I believe nursing is a skill everyone should have,” she said.
The number of students interested in the nursing profession has steadily increased in recent years, according to enrollment increases at the UT School of Nursing. More and more students have attended information sessions for the school’s undergraduate and graduate programs, said Patricia Carter, assistant dean of student and clinical affairs.
Carter said enrollment has been pretty steady, but the school was able to increase the number of students it admits by 10.
“We would love to admit all qualified applicants,” she said.
This increase in interest may help with the shortage of nurses Texas has experienced in recent years, but many schools are limited by how many students they can admit.
In response to this shortage, the Texas Legislature created the Texas Center for Nursing Workforce Studies in 2003. The center serves as a resource for data and research on the nursing workforce in Texas. It also collects and analyzes data on nurses in Texas concerning educational and employment trends, supply and demand trends, migration of nurses and nursing workforce demographics.
The center reported that schools are unable to produce sufficient registered nurses to meet health care demands through 2020.
According to the center’s 2008 Update on Student Admission, Enrollment and Graduation Trends in Professional Nursing Programs, “in 2007 and in 2008, lack of budgeted faculty positions is again the most frequently cited reason for failing to admit all qualified applicants.”
Carter said in order to admit more students, UT’s nursing school would need more funding, a larger building and more faculty members qualified to teach.
“Unfortunately, everyone needs these things, but we’re doing the best we can and are making slow and steady improvements,” she said.
Carter said this increase in nursing applicants is partially due to the lagging job market and ailing economy, but said some people just want to help others.
“[Nursing] affords the opportunity for people to make a difference in the world,” she said. “But it also helps that you can a get a nursing job anywhere.”
UT’s School of Nursing offers an array of programs that are specifically tailored to the needs of current and prospective students. It offers bachelor’s, master’s and associate’s degree programs, a doctoral program and others.
“I chose the University of Texas at Austin because it is the best nursing school in Texas,” Neal said. “Because I am being exquisitely trained, I know I will be ready for anything after graduating.”
Neal said the nursing profession has staying power and that it provides a variety of job opportunities.
“People know that a nursing career can lead to job stability,” she said. “People are always going to get sick.”
Nursing senior Lauren Bradshaw said nursing provides the opportunity to heal more than just a person’s body.
“You’re taking care of them as a whole person, their body, mind and soul,” she said.
