“My only regret is that I didn’t do it earlier. For anyone thinking about changing careers into nursing, I would encourage them to go for it.”
Junga Kim, MS, RN, always had an affinity for health care and had the intention of becoming a physician; however, after finishing high school, she wasn’t sure medical school was the right path for her.
Kim studied biology instead and began working at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), first as a data analyst contractor and then as a full-time staff scientist. After seven years, Kim says, she longed for a career that involved more human interaction and left NIH in search of something that fulfilled that desire.
“I felt like I had checked all the boxes: I’d gotten a great education, achieved my master’s, and had a family,” she says. “I needed to finally do something for myself.” Encouraged by friends who were also going through mid-career shifts, Kim decided to pursue nursing and began taking prerequisite classes at Montgomery College in Takoma Park, Maryland. “Nursing was perfect,” she beams. “I love the one-on-one interaction of bedside nursing. It’s so incredibly rewarding for me.”
Shortly thereafter, Kim went in for a routine mammogram and was told she was at high risk for developing breast cancer. Within a couple of years, the cancer had developed, but because of the early detection, Kim was able to undergo a lumpectomy and has since been cancer free. “I feel so fortunate,” she says. “If it had been found a little later, who knows how fast it could have developed?”
The experience caused her interest in oncology to blossom, she says. A few months later, at the age of 50, Kim continued her nursing education at Montgomery College, taking advantage of UMSON’s Dual-Admission Partnership program to earn her Associate Degree in Nursing and accelerate her path to a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) degree in UMSON’s RN-to-BSN program.
Concerned about the financial hardship of continuing her education, Kim applied for and was awarded UMSON’s full Conway Scholarship. “The Conway Scholarship made me feel like I could finish my program without undue stress for my family and for myself,” says Kim, who anticipates graduating in December.
Kim has returned to NIH, but instead of analyzing data as she did two decades ago, she is part of a small cohort of recent nursing graduates in NIH’s competitive residency program. There, she works as a clinical research nurse on the hematology oncology bone marrow transplant unit, providing clinical trial patient care and supporting research teams.
Upon graduation, Kim plans to stay within oncology. “It’s a big investment to train a nurse in the hematology oncology bone marrow transplant unit,” Kim explains. “I plan to give back to the Nursing Department in the NIH Clinical Center by being active in my unit and within the shared governance committees.” Kim also hopes to earn a graduate degree so she can teach part time while still practicing.
“My only regret is that I didn’t do it earlier,” she reflects. “For anyone thinking about changing careers into nursing, I would encourage them to go for it.”
THIS ARTICLE FIRST APPEARED IN THE FALL 2021 ISSUE OF MAGAZINE.