Luke Sander didn’t have a specific major in mind when he applied for college, but he did know that he wanted to attend Northern Kentucky University.
Luke, who hails from West Chester, Ohio, is the fourth child in his family to attend NKU.
“My three sisters all graduated from here,” he says. “I feel like I grew up here.”
Luke always thought he would become an engineer like his father, but he quickly realized that career path was not for him. He had an interest in the health field when he began taking classes on campus, so he kept his options open for the first year. As he considered nursing, he recalled the care he received as a patient in his hometown—how the nurse practitioners and nurses worked with passion and remembered small details about his life during his yearly checkups.
Choosing
Nursing as a major was a gradual decision, but Luke is ready to learn as much as he can. He has hopes of becoming a nurse practitioner in cardiology or pediatrics.
“I care about people living the best lives they can,” he says. “I’m putting myself in situations that will make me a better nurse. I hope I can make people feel comfortable in their most stressful times. I am so fortunate to pursue this profession—it’s a truly special and supportive community.”
Luke’s experience is a little unconventional for the average nursing student because of the COVID-19 outbreak, but he couldn’t be happier that he joined the program.
“This semester was a first for everybody, but I do applaud our faculty and clinical instructors for what they have done,” he says. “They made the best of the situation. From the staff to the students, everybody is looking out for everybody. It’s a passionate and caring bunch.”
