Meet your new nurses.
1. Lauren Wilson, Eimear O’Donnel, and Zara Smallwoods
Friends Lauren Wilson, Eimear O’Donnel, and Zara Smallwoods said they were delighted to have all graduated in Nursing. Zara and Lauren are both going to be working in the same ward, while Eimear has a position in A&E. Lauren said: “It has been a crazy three years. If you didn’t have friends, I don’t know how you would get through it. I would do it again.” Zara added: “We had each other.” Photo: Jack Tibbetts
2. Ryan Doole
Ryan Doole from Magherfelt, who graduated with a degree in Adult Nursing, said he felt very proud. “At the start of it, I didn’t think I would get here, but now I am very proud of myself,” said Ryan. He added: “It’s not your average degree. All degrees are challenging, but when you are in university studying and then you are going out and doing full-time hours on a ward or in the community, it’s very intense, but it’s very eye-opening. It’s phenomenal, it’s a great profession to be in.” Ryan offered advice to first-year nursing students: “Don’t doubt yourself. There are a lot of people who started our degree who unfortunately didn’t finish it. It was self-doubt. The lecturers we had in Ulster were fantastic, Deirdre O’Donnel especially. It was actually a former lecturer who got me to go on and do the degree, Jacinta Lynch, who is unfortunately no longer with us. Honestly, she was phenomenal.” Photo: Jack Tibbetts
3. Jennifer Campbell and Claire O'Brien
Jennifer and Claire, from Top of the Hill, said they both felt so proud after graduating. Claire said: “We are so proud, so ecstatic. It’s brilliant that we are finally at the end and we both got posts, so we are waiting now to start our new jobs. We can’t wait to be nurses.” Jennifer added: “We started this journey together and we ended it together.” Claire said she will be posted in Altnagalvin. Jennifer, who previously completed an HNC course at North West Regional College to get into nursing, said being a single parent with three kids made the course especially challenging. “But it was all worth it,” said Jennifer. Claire added: “I went back to the tech at 35 to do the access course, which I recommend anybody to do, and then got into nursing and never looked back.” Photo: Jack Tibbetts
4. Sorena Kimberlin
Sorena from Derry, was delighted to say that she had just graduated in Nursing. Describing her journey to graduation, Sorena said: “It was so difficult. I wasn’t so keen on it to start, but my family and friends helped me stick with it. Very difficult, but I tried my best.” Photo: Jack Tibbetts