Third-year PhD student Urszula Snigurska shares her daily routine as a nurse scientist.
My life as a Gator Nurse scientist begins with a steady routine. I wake up early in the morning and go to the gym. Exercise gives me the motivation which I need for the rest of the day. Once I get ready, I make myself lots of coffee and begin working. I do the most difficult things first. For example, if I need to write, I avoid leaving it for later in the day when my brain is not as sharp as it is in the morning. In the afternoon, I usually attend one of our research lab meetings. After I have had dinner, I simply keep working until I get tired!
While this may sound like a dull day to many, I find it exciting, because I have an opportunity to learn. I thrive when I learn! Every day is a new opportunity for me to learn something new and do this in such an intellectually stimulating environment which is the UF College of Nursing! Knowledge makes me feel powerful, especially when I am able to apply it to real life. A day in the life of a PhD student can get “lost” among the many similar days but each brings me closer to my goal, which is to make hospitals safer for patients