Spring — 2008

Emelia Noralez

Nursing

“I got accepted to another school, but I was, like, ‘Oh, please, just let me wait another six months for SMC.’ And I got accepted!”

She’d been on the waiting list for almost two years, so it was a triumphant day when Emelia Noralez arrived at SMC’s Nursing Department. “Oh, I’m just sooo excited!” she says, “because I’ve always heard that this program is really topnotch. But right now, I’m completely intimidated and overwhelmed…. And this is just the first week!” she shouted. “But everyone else I’ve talked with feels the same way, so we’re all in the same boat together.” Emelia’s story—though not untypical—is one of almost superhuman effort made by SMC Nursing students to get into the field of medicine.

“Right now, the really biggest problem is on the financial end of things, because I’m a single mom with two kids. And if I have to work, it’s gonna be nearly impossible to keep up with studying and take care of the kids, too. So I’ve made an appointment with the Financial Aid Office to see if I can get a scholarship, so I won’t have to get a job. And after my first week in this program,” she adds with a weary laugh, “it’s pretty clear how absurd trying to also have a job would be.” It was a very personal experience that led Emelia to SMC and a new career.

“It all started when I went to visit a relative in the ICU and I realized—right then and there—that that’s where I wanted to be. It’s so intense in there, and everything can change in just a few seconds. It’s sort of like being a shortstop in baseball: You not only have to move fast, you also have to be incredibly accurate.” Emelia says, “I think the word ‘caregiver’ is a good description of me. I think we’re all here to help each other, but some of us just have a larger capacity for that. I’d eventually like to be a Nurse Practitioner, and then possibly teach others,” she says. “But for now, it looks like I’ll just be hitting the books with my kids for the next two years.”

Back