Wednesday, November 4, 2009
As the national economic recession continues to limit the number of nurses organizations are able to employ, the demand for them has grown significantly during the last eight to 10 years. Debbie Ford, assistant dean of student affairs in the School of Nursing, said that right now the school didn’t have the space to accommodate all of the applicants.
She said for the Fall 2010 semester 120 students would be accepted out of an estimated 550 applicants.
It’s a struggle Merica Schreiner, Frankfort sophomore and president of the Pre-Nursing Club, came to understand.
“When I hear that only 100 out of 500 applicants are getting in, it still makes my stomach drop,” Schreiner said.
In the midst of this nursing crisis, the Pre-Nursing Club seeks to educate and guide its members to become nurses in the specific fields they want to work in.
Because of the nursing shortage, there has been an influx of student applicants attempting to enter the field. Ford said the school doesn’t have the space to accept all these students so the application process often becomes competitive.
Some students, like Schreiner, said they joined the club to get that experience and the wealth of knowledge they can learn from the speakers.
The club meets on the first Tuesday of the month at Watkins Memorial Health Center. Each meeting brings one or two speakers to talk to members about the nursing fields they might want to pursue and what to expect from the position.
“There’s a great need for nursing right now,” Chris Gordon, Leawood senior and treasurer of the Pre-Nursing Club, said. “So I try to set myself apart and get as much experience as I can.”
Schreiner said the club had grown from last year to the point that they had to begin talking about finding a bigger venue for their meetings.
As the one who keeps track of the funds and membership fees, Gordon said the club had between 100 and 200 members.
The Pre-Nursing Club is funded by money the group receives from the membership fee, which is $3 per person, and the basic $200 funding from Student Senate available to every student group.
In addition to the monthly meeting, the club also does charity work around Lawrence. This Friday, the club will be serving breakfast at Jubilee Café to Lawrence’s homeless community.
The club’s leaders said they hope their extracurricular activities and high grade point averages will get them into the School of Nursing.
“We’re there to tell you about the opportunities available and the things we think will increase your chances if you’re really interested in getting accepted,” Schreiner said.
— Edited by Samantha Foster
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