I am so glad that I selected UCSF for my graduate education in nursing. I earned the Masters there almost three years ago, and now I am slightly more than half-way through their PhD program. It's getting tougher all the time, but I have been given so much support.

I have been through a lot of personal turmoil since I started the program, and my advisor has been amazing in extending my deadlines, pushing me when I need it, and generally supporting me through all the tough times. It helps that she is a former PsychNP.

When I started grad school I thought...advanced degree in Nursing...piece of cake. "Not so!" I have learned! This program has so much integrity and depth that if it weren't for the support I get, I would have quit a long time ago. I also have a fantastic mentor in the scholarship program that funds my degree.

My area of study is, "Stigma against addicted Emergency Department patients and how this affects delivery of the Brief Intervention." I never thought I would have to get THAT specific, but the professors start on students to develop our dissertation topics into very specific terms from the first day of the doctoral program.

Well, if there are any fellow UCSF'ers out there...holler!