Hammerfest, Nursing Education | I think an additional NOK 100,000 will make people from Søring stay: – For me, this is a passion

– This is profitable for us and for the students, and perhaps also for the place of education: that they receive a scholarship and at the same time we can secure employees for the future, and also that the campus can secure students, he says. Mayor Elisabeth Poulsen at Hammerfest.

As a result of the sharp decline in the number of applicants for nursing education at Hammerfest, the municipal council adopted a new scholarship scheme in December:

NOK 100,000 in loans and grants per year, for up to three years, for up to ten local students in nursing education at the Hammerfest study site.

This amounts to a total of NOK 300,000 per student.

Paulsen says they don't have all the details of the plan yet. It must be prepared by the municipality's personnel department.

The decision stipulates that the loan and scholarship will be written off after graduation, in exchange for a period of commitment in the municipality of Hammerfest.

iFinnmark has previously discussed the new nursing education, which will be group-based from the fall. As with the scholarship programme, this should serve as a recruitment measure to encourage more people to apply for nursing education.

In the fall of 2023, only 12 students began their nursing education at Hammerfest.

– From the southern point of view, I feel very welcome

Andrea Halvorsen Stelander (23) from Haugesund, Karina Pedersen (25) from Hammerfest, Joachim Igneilsen (30) from Bergen, and Marius Waksvik (22) from Ålesund started nursing studies at Hammerfest in the fall of 2021. By summer, They will have completed training as nurses.

The four students think the new scholarship scheme offered by Hammerfest Municipality sounds good.

– I think the action they are taking now, offering scholarships, is very important for them to get nurses, says Karina.

He adds:

-And it is very nice in terms of the new study opportunity. It also gives people from the south the opportunity to come here to study. The extra 100,000 NOK will be very useful for travel and accommodation, so I think this is important.

– From a southern perspective, I feel very welcome, continues Marius, who is from Ålesund.

– There are many job opportunities here since we have the hospital, and many opportunities in the municipality, says Karina, from Hammerfest.

She believes it is positive that the municipality is now taking employment measures, as it did.

– To have an additional bonus, higher salary and plans, I think this is essential. “That's good,” Karina says.

She and her fellow students believe the new cluster-based system, where she teaches full-time, could work well.

– Then you have the opportunity to work on the side. There are a lot of people who return home as soon as they get the chance. Plus, you have more freedom whether you want to be here and live here, or live at home, says Joachim.

-I also think it is very good for adults who want to get an education. I think it is very nice for those who live in Finnmark. What may be the downside is that traveling here is expensive if you live in the south and have to travel by plane. It is very expensive to travel here once a month, says Karina, who would have considered studying on a full-time basis if there had been an offer when she started.

Was a little skeptical at first

-What is your reason for coming here?

– For my part, this is where I come in. I'm a few years older, and then I'm tired of working. I discovered that now I have to start studying, answers Joachim (30).

He came from Bergen, and was number one on the waiting list. Two days before classes started, he was told he was in. Then I went straight in and booked a plane ticket.

– You had no doubt?

– I was a bit skeptical when I came, because I didn't have a place to live, says Joachim.

But it worked for him very quickly. After the first night in the hotel, he got help from the school and hospital to find a place to live.

As for Andrea from Haugesund, she applied to the wrong place, but she jumped in and has no regrets.

– There are a lot of beautiful people here, and I also have a partner, she says.

Andrea and Joachim met at university and bought a house in Haugesund. After completing their studies, they head south again, but the main reason, they say, is to be close to family.

– We need as many as possible

Figures on the number of people applying for nursing studies have fallen dramatically, both nationally and locally.

– Why did you choose to become a nurse?

– For me, this is a passion, confirms Marius.

He decided to become a nurse after his initial service and training in sanitation. It is clear that he did not choose to enter the profession either because of salary or status.

– I think that all these measures with decentralized education can lower the application threshold, because we need as many people as possible in this profession to move forward. “I think this is becoming more and more important, and it is clear that something has to happen eventually,” Marius emphasizes.

Karina agrees that it is important for the future that something is done.

– So I think that's important, rather than lowering the degree requirements. She says they are facilitating more and taking recruitment procedures as Hammerfest municipality does.

-It is a very rewarding career, and you have a varied daily life. You never know what you're going to get and I think that's good. You have something new to deal with. If you enjoy being around people, it's very rewarding, says Joachim.

-It's also very interesting. Identifying the human body, diseases, and the like. It's very exciting,” says Kareena.

– You meet patients and their lives, and hear many stories. I find it very rewarding and beautiful. Kareena continues to feel a little lucky when you get to experience everything you do.

She says the advantage of a nursing career is all the job opportunities and additional education opportunities you have. And you don't just need to work in nursing homes and hospitals.

– You can work in prison, company nurse, teacher, cruise ship, insurance. It is now more common to become a 'busy nurse', to work in a temp agency where you can choose when you work.

The most prestigious profession in the world

– What do you say to those who will apply to study now? Would you encourage those who are applying to study now to apply?

– Absolutely. If they want to enter the most important profession in the world, they need to apply. Because it is, says Marius.

He explains the fact that you have high job security and says that with the current situation today, he believes it is almost impossible not to get a job once you finish your education.

– There will only be a greater need for nurses, Karina adds.

-It is very rewarding and you can constantly develop and learn new things. It never gets boring. “You never learn, and that's very beautiful,” says Karina Pedersen in conclusion.