There’s no doubt that the world is changing faster than ever. And, with new developments in AI, machine learning, science and technology, how can you choose a career that will support you into the future?
Thankfully, nursing is a career with great prospects. Health care and social assistance is Australia’s largest employing industry, accounting for more than 15 per cent of the country’s workers. This includes almost 400,000 nurses and midwives.
But it’s also much more than a future-proof career.
For Aakriti Poudel, her passion for nursing came from an experience she had growing up in Nepal when she had to go to hospital for hand surgery.
“I saw the nurses and doctors. They were so kind and compassionate about their profession,” she explains. “I told them, ‘I want to be a nurse like you’.”
Now, she’s working towards her dream future, studying for a Bachelor of Nursing at Charles Sturt University’s Port Macquarie Campus.
Read on to learn more about Aakriti’s experience and to discover why nursing is a career of the future.
Why is nursing a career of the future?
There are already plenty of nurses in Australia, but is nursing really future-proof?
It appears so. According to McKinsey, the increased automation of tomorrow means the demand for high-skill workers will rise, particularly in STEM and health professions.
In Australia, there’s a constant and growing need for nursing professionals. The Department of Health and Aged Care says the demand for skilled nurses is beginning to outpace supply and predicts that there will be a shortage of around 70,000 by 2035.
This is also the case on a global level. According to the World Health Organisation, there will be a shortfall of 4.5 million nurses worldwide by 2030.
So, if you’re looking for a career with opportunities in Australia and abroad, nursing might be the perfect fit!
How to future-proof your career
Stay up-to-date with developments
The pace of change is increasing, and breakthroughs are being developed seemingly every day. Recent key developments in health include the rising popularity of telehealth, the increased popularity of 3D bioprinting and the opportunities created by mRNA vaccines.
As we leap forward into the future, nursing professionals will have to stay up-to-date with the latest tools, techniques and technologies.
At Charles Sturt, students are getting ahead of the curve with access to HealthiERSim. Developed by the university itself, the program is Australia’s leading medical record simulation technology.
“For nursing as well we have clinical labs,” Aakriti adds. “In Nepal, we didn’t have all the resources during the study, but here we have all the resources and a good learning environment.”
Build soft skills
When you’re studying to become a highly skilled professional like a nurse, soft skills might not be front of mind. But these capabilities, which are the transferable, non-specific competencies required by all professionals, will be a key to succeeding in your future career.
In particular, workers of tomorrow will need to demonstrate:
- Communication
- Critical thinking
- Collaboration and relationship-building
- Self-awareness
- Entrepreneurship
- Digital literacy
- Creativity
While university can help you build these competencies, the best place to hone your soft skills is in real workplace settings. That’s one of the reasons Charles Sturt has included work-integrated learning as a key part of its nursing programs.
Never stop learning
With lots of change on the horizon, future nursing professionals will need to adopt a growth mindset when it comes to their careers.
This means continual professional development and learning to ensure all your skills — hard and soft — are refreshed regularly.
This could look like attending conferences and events, reading up on new techniques or even undertaking further study at a postgraduate level.
Find your niche
As automation takes over more and more routine, menial tasks, people can increasingly focus on what machines can’t do.
This means nurses will likely spend more time on patient care and complex tasks. Figuring out which aspects of care you enjoy the most can help you figure out where your career could go.
For example, if you’re particularly fascinated by a particular area of health, you could end up becoming a specialist. Alternatively, if you love interacting with patients, you could become a nurse liaison. There are also exciting opportunities in research and academia!
For Aakriti, there’s no other job she’d rather have.
“Nursing as a whole profession, it’s kind, compassionate, loving and caring for others. I can’t imagine myself being in another profession other than nursing.”
Charles Sturt University is an Australian University, TEQSA Provider Identification: PRV12018. Charles Sturt University CRICOS Provider Number: 00005F. Bachelor of Nursing CRICOS: 010599C.
