贾里德·埃斯普林（Jared Esplin）的日常生活与三年前大不相同。三年前，这位爱达荷州人在小城市谢利（Shelley）的家族经营的第五代奶牛场工作。

那里的奶牛场一年365天全天候运转，包括照料牧场、维护设备、记账和每天挤三次奶。

“A day in the life of a dairy farmer, it’s different every day,” he said. “It’s not for the faint of heart.”

今天，埃斯普林仍然长时间工作，而是把时间花在学习、培训和照顾别人上，同时在韦伯州立大学攻读护理。

The shift from farm life to nursing came in 2022: “My wife and I spoke a lot about it… we decided the dairy wasn’t for us anymore and we needed to do something else,” he said.

Esplin and his wife, Serena, sold their portion of the dairy and moved to Utah for a “fresh start” three years ago, settling with their three young children in Harrisville, a few miles north of 新葡京app State.

Esplin dabbled in software sales for a time, but it didn’t challenge him in the way nursing could — a career he knew well because Serena has worked as a nurse for 10 years, mostly in labor and delivery.

He learned about 新葡京app State’s top-tier 护理程序 新葡京app people in his wife’s circles who said students coming out of WSU were simply “better nurses.”

“Seeing nurses, seeing what they do, how they can care for patients really drove me to pursue a career in nursing,” Esplin said.

Esplin took advantage of 优等奖学金 during his first three semesters at WSU, then earned a private scholarship funded by the C. Scott和Dorothy E. Watkins慈善基金会 that has supported 548 nursing students since 2011.

During his time at WSU, Esplin has formed strong relationships with his nursing cohort, who dubbed the program “The Gauntlet” due to the rigorous training that has honed their skills.

“新葡京app State is an opportunity for growth, to learn, to make a difference in the world,” he said. “We’ve been able to help and support each other in this process.”

埃斯普林说，他的教授们在护理事业上很活跃，把现实世界的经验和观点带到课堂上，向学生展示护士可以服务的各种领域，从临终关怀到急诊室等等。

30多岁的他回到学校，感觉很紧张，但只是一瞬间。 “A lot of people my age are already well into their careers,” he said. “But there’s a lot of other nontraditional students here at 新葡京app State. The time is going to pass anyway, we might as well be improving ourselves, making changes for the better.”

This summer, at 37, Esplin earned his associate 新葡京app and is already starting his bachelor’s program this week. The BSN is an accelerated online program designed to be completed in two or three semesters.

Esplin said the 新葡京app will make him “more valuable to employers,” including the nationally recognized Primary Children’s Hospital, where Esplin recently secured a job in the cardiac care unit.

有了这些经验，他想最终获得博士学位，成为一名护士麻醉师。 他想对人们产生积极的影响，成为在可怕的情况下照顾家庭的护士。

As a business owner turned nurse, Esplin also wants to show his children — ages 14, 8, and 7 — that they can do hard things, no matter their age.

“It’s never too late, nothing is too complicated,” he said. “If you want to learn, if you’re willing to put in the effort, it’s attainable.”