After 18 years as a medical assistant, Dyan Wojnarowski was ready for a new professional chapter.
Her path had taken her from her home state of Pennsylvania to Dallas, Texas, and back again, giving her experience in cardiology, blood donation services, and medical exams for life insurance underwriting. After transferring with her medical screening employer to Pittsburgh, Dyan began thinking about pursuing nursing.
“I was living close to the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center Washington School of Nursing and was intrigued,” Dyan says. She explored the nursing program and admissions process and felt it was the right next step in her career. She worked her way through school as a restaurant server and graduated with a nursing diploma in 2009.
A Start in the Cardiac Stepdown Unit
Dyan’s first nursing position was in the resource pool at UPMC Washington. After eight months, she decided to move to Georgia for better career opportunities. Her background as a medical assistant in outpatient cardiology made her a strong fit for Northeast Georgia Medical Center’s cardiac stepdown unit. “I came onto a great team of people that I’m still close with to this day,” she says. That camaraderie made the intensity of the job manageable, and Dyan stayed on the unit for six years.
During that time, Dyan also returned to school for a Bachelor of Science in Nursing online, completing the degree in 2015. “The hospital was moving toward Magnet status, and I needed to hold a bachelor’s degree to take on relief charge nurse responsibilities,” she says. From there, Dyan expanded her nursing experience, working on the transfer center, the cardiac observation unit, and the intermediate medical and cardiac unit as a charge nurse and assistant nurse manager.
Pursuing a Master of Science in Nursing – Nursing Education
While at work one night in 2023, Dyan saw a flyer from Post University about its nursing programs at American Sentinel College of Nursing and Health Sciences. When a university representative came to her unit later, she made a point to talk with them about the Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) – Nursing Education Specialization.
“I’d been teaching clinicals for the University of North Georgia for several years by that point, and I really enjoyed sharing my knowledge and skills with new nurses,” she says. Dyan was drawn to the flexibility of the competency-based SIMPath® program, which allows students to complete courses at their own pace. The format of the MSN program along with the tuition discount offered through the hospital’s educational partnership with Post made it an easy decision to enroll in the MSN in Nursing Education.
Dyan was also planning for her future. “I can’t do bedside forever, but I’m still very enthusiastic about nursing,” Dyan says. “I hope that as an educator, I can help others find that same passion for patient care.”
A New Chapter Begins Following Her MSN Achievement
After 14 years at Northeast Georgia Medical Center, Dyan accepted a new opportunity at Northside Hospital in 2024 in the post-anesthesia unit. When she learned of a clinical educator opening in pre-surgical and pre-admission testing, she wasted no time applying. “The manager I interviewed with knew I was almost finished with the MSN,” she says. “I believe that made me a stronger candidate for the position.”
In November 2025, Dyan finished the MSN in Nursing Education. She put her education to work in her role leading onboarding, staff and patient education, and quality improvement for pre-surgical and pre-admission testing. She will return to Pennsylvania this summer to start a job as a house supervisor for a specialty hospital that serves critically ill patients. One day, she hopes to teach at a nursing school or work in clinical education for cardiology.
More Than a Milestone
For Dyan, the MSN represents more than just a professional credential. It is a reminder of her perseverance.
“I had some difficult things happen in my life during the program, and it was challenging to keep pushing through sometimes, but I knew I had to,” she says. As a first-generation college graduate, Dyan sees each new educational milestone as significant, especially given her background. “I am the youngest of five and the only one in my family to get a college degree, so this means much to me. My parents are enormously proud.”
Earning the MSN in Nursing Education has already expanded Dyan’s opportunities, and she is eager to take advantage of new ones. “I am very glad I got my MSN at Post,” she says. “I feel it will open more doors in the future for me. I am excited to see where it takes me.”