By Niaz attributes her success as a student to self-discipline and her evolving ability to practice time management. “The workload at school can be very time-consuming,” she says. “I find myself not being able to do many of the things I used to do before.” To juggle a hectic workload, she is learning to spend more time on subjects and skills that require the most practice. “Sometimes I find this very hard to do, especially because all subjects are important in nursing school,” she points out. She also seems to have developed a good system when taking the myriad of exams that nursing students encounter: “I’ve learned to stick to my first answer on tests and to not over-think questions.”
Besides standard behavior practices such as getting a good night’s sleep and having a healthy breakfast before an exam, Niaz was willing to share some of her other success secrets. “I listen to soft and slow music when driving to school before a test, which helps relax my mind—something I learned from a friend. And I’ve learned not to look over my notes right before a test. I find that this can confuse me.”
Mostly, it is Niaz’s relentlessly positive attitude that wins the day. “I have yet to be perfect with managing everything, but my approach helps me stress less about the small things. I like to think positively and have faith in myself—something I’ve learned from my mother. I believe in myself and I tell myself I’m going to do great!”
This semester, Mount St. Mary’s students are on clinical rotation at a variety of locations, including Childrens Hospital Los Angeles and Northridge Hospital in the San Fernando Valley. Watching Niaz in uniform, on the floor in the postpartum wing of the Maternity Ward in Northridge, it’s obvious that she relishes the role she is training for. She confidently assesses a mother and her newborn, checking vital signs with a bedside manner that puts everyone in the family at ease, including a precocious three-year-old boy, whom she escorts to the kitchen for some juice. Her instructor on the floor, Cheryl Burton, offers advice and direction, which her pupil absorbs with interest.
