June 23, 2025
A native of Rush, Kentucky, Victoria Badgett decided to stay close to home to complete her education after discovering the wide variety of health care degrees offered at AIɫɫ. Always wanting to enter the medical field, but not quite sure which area, she ended up deciding to pursue an Associate Degree of Nursing (ADN).
“When I graduated high school and first came to AIɫɫ I had no idea what I wanted to do, but I always wanted to be in the medical field – I just didn't know what specifically,” she said. “I ended up choosing nursing because of its versatility and its endless opportunities.”
Connecting with her classmates and professors within her classes, Badgett has been able to see her nursing education play a part in several patients’ lives during her clinical rotations at local hospitals. Looking towards her future, she’s still deciding on the specialty she believes is for her.
“I hope to become a pediatric nurse or a labor and delivery nurse,” she said.
To students considering a career in nursing, Badgett encourages them to take the time to learn about the profession to understand if it’s the right fit for them.
“My advice to students who are thinking about nursing would be to research it, watch videos of nurses and their day-to-day lives, talk to people you know who are nurses, and ask them questions,” she said.
The ADN program at SSU prepares students to enter the nursing workforce in just two years. Through in-person labs and hands-on clinicals completed at regional hospitals, students learn several nursing specialties that prepare them to care for patients on their first day on the job.
To learn more about the Associate Degree of Nursing at AIɫɫ, visit shawnee.edu/adn.