This blog post explores how the spirit of sacrifice cultivated through volunteer experience can be expressed as a compelling goal in a nursing school statement of purpose. It focuses on explaining how to effectively connect real-world experience to academic competencies.
Writing About Academic Experience and Reflections
“I will study the entire assigned amount before sleeping!”
The most important thing I prioritized while studying was adhering to rules. I set daily rules for how much I could realistically accomplish each day and then did my utmost to stick to them. Even if I couldn’t maintain a strict hourly study schedule, I made every effort to complete the daily study volume I had committed to. And if I broke that promise, I wouldn’t sleep. Sometimes I couldn’t concentrate and would spend five hours on something that should have taken only five problems. That meant I’d get only an hour of sleep at night. But even then, I never reduced my study load or gave up midway. I had made that promise to myself.
The reason I adhered to this promise so strictly was because I had a dream. Through volunteering I started by chance, helping the nurses with their work, I gradually nurtured the dream of becoming a nurse myself. Honestly, my grades weren’t good enough to get into nursing school. But once I set that dream, and once I set the goal of getting into ○○○ University, I was determined to achieve it. So, after setting a grade target aligned with my dream, I calmly began studying in a way that was realistic for me. Because of this, I strove to spend each day diligently and strictly disciplined myself to never fall short of the set amount.
As a result, I achieved good grades, and my scores steadily improved, increasing my chances of admission to the nursing department at ○○○ University. Though my grades still have room for improvement, I continue to strive. This effort has taught me many lessons. The most significant realization was that living each day with dedication is difficult and truly remarkable. Anyone can perform an action temporarily, but consistently doing it every day is challenging. Understanding this, I became even more committed to living each day diligently, striving to plan my day upon waking and follow through.
Writing about major school activities and reflections
“The nurse sisters I first met through class support”
Meeting the nurse sisters for the first time was my biggest turning point. It happened during class support when the nurse sisters came to school and gave lectures on first aid, visiting each class. Due to events like the Sewol ferry disaster, the school was implementing mandatory education, which is how I got to meet them. I listened especially intently because, just before this training, my five-year-old brother had choked on rice cake. Seeing his face turn pale made me wish I knew how to help in such moments. So I paid close attention.
During the class, I was struck anew by how small actions could save a life in a crisis. The human body felt mysterious, and I learned that small actions can bring about miracles. That’s why I listened intently. When support was offered for those who wanted to attend more sessions after school, I applied and was able to take additional classes with the older sisters. Seeing how passionately I listened, they asked if I might be interested in volunteering. From then on, I joined their volunteer activities on the condition that I assist them.
“Finding Appeal in a Profession Demanding Great Sacrifice”
Watching the nurse sisters up close, I realized nursing was far more demanding and exhausting than I’d imagined. It was a job where they couldn’t sleep properly, always had to be ready for emergencies, and had to endure so much. In other words, without a sense of mission, one couldn’t continue in the role of a nurse. But precisely because of that, those nurses had a sense of mission for their profession. I also met nurses studying at nursing college, and they too held pride in their future. And that looked truly admirable. In a world obsessed with money, I witnessed their effort to uphold their convictions. It felt like seeing a new world. It felt like encountering people who valued concepts higher than money or material possessions. I felt a strange fascination with this profession—one that demands great sacrifice yet remains noble and radiant.
“Solidifying My Dream Through Volunteering”
So I continued volunteering alongside those sisters. I came once a week, and during exam periods, once every two weeks to help with their volunteer work. My job was just cleaning, but simply working with them was enjoyable. Seeing the sisters come out to volunteer even in difficult situations, I thought they were amazing. While helping the older sisters with their talent donations and volunteer work, I found myself gradually solidifying my dream. I began to decide that I too must become a nurse. When I shared this dream, the sisters told me I needed to be truly resolute and to think it through carefully, but their words actually encouraged me. I solidified my dream and from that point on, I set my goal and studied.
Examples of Consideration, Sharing, and Cooperation and My Reflections
“Helping Sick Friends: Feeling a Sense of Mission!”
During my school years, the thing I worked hardest at for my class was helping sick friends. By actively participating in volunteer activities, I learned first aid techniques from the people I volunteered with. I also actively attended and listened to various first aid lectures held at school, gaining the knowledge to stop bleeding for minor cuts and handle fractures. I used this knowledge when friends got hurt, and since I wasn’t a professional, my role was to immediately move them to the infirmary. Especially since our school was co-ed, boys in the boys’ classes often got injured. While girls entering boys’ classes was rare and technically against school rules, I would go in without hesitation whenever a boy was hurt, help him, and take him to the infirmary. Additionally, within my own class, if friends were struggling due to physical discomfort or mental stress, I would help them relax by giving acupressure or similar techniques.
What I felt during this time was a ‘sense of mission’. Initially, I started doing this work because I liked hearing friends say ‘thank you’. But as I continued, there came a moment when friends started taking my help for granted, and even felt disappointed if I didn’t help them. If I had gotten upset or tried to seek praise at that point, I wouldn’t have been able to keep helping my friends. But I didn’t do that. Instead, I tried to hold onto that sense of mission. I believed all these experiences would become part of my training process. So, even when my friends complained, I apologized and listened to their grievances. Surprisingly, friends who recognized and appreciated my efforts began to appear around me. I was able to share deep friendships with them, and I also met a friend who shared my dream of becoming a nurse. We became good companions, walking together toward our shared dream.
Motivation for Application and Future Career Plans
“I want to become a nurse who knows how to sacrifice for others.”
My motivation for applying to the Nursing Department at ○○○ University College of Medicine is, first, because I want to become a nurse. And second, because I want to become a nurse with a spirit of sacrifice.
Truthfully, I haven’t had the dream of becoming a nurse for very long. Even when I entered high school, I didn’t really know what kind of job nursing was; I just thought of it as a profession I saw around me. However, through volunteer work, I met people working as nurses. If I were to choose a career to pursue for a lifetime, I wanted to choose nursing. I hoped to find a profession where I could directly help people, not seeking material gain, but where I could receive and feel emotional fulfillment by caring for them. Money is important, and we live in a society where you really can’t get by without it. But I didn’t want to follow that trend; I wanted to do work that values what is truly human, the inherent value of people. That’s why I applied to nursing school.
And secondly, I wanted to become a nursing student with a spirit of sacrifice. The older sisters I met through volunteer work were all nursing students at ○○○ University. They took pride in being nursing students and felt a sense of honor in being trained at ○○○ University, a leading institution in medical education. Seeing them influenced my decision to apply. That’s why I’m determined as I write this application. Learning nursing will undoubtedly be demanding work. And since it involves handling people’s lives, it must be learned with precision and clarity. Keeping this in mind, I will dedicate myself fully to my clinical practice and studies throughout my time at university. Then, I will confidently knock on the doors of hospitals. I aspire to become a nurse who gives my all wherever I can work, whether it’s a challenging place or an easier one, and to be someone who can contribute, even in a small way, to brightening the world.
