It has been four years since Ameen graduated from American Sentinel University (now American Sentinel College of Nursing and Health Sciences at Post University), but the pride he has in earning the Bachelor of Science in Nursing(BSN) has not diminished at all.
The Nebraska native who moved to California at the start of high school says that growing up, he was greatly influenced by his family’s Mediterranean background. “My ancestors were the earliest contributors to the medical field in serving the human population by catering to health needs, so I consider it a duty to serve humanity by mastering the human body,” says Ameen. An uncle who is a geriatric physician took Ameen under his wing at a young age, encouraging him to consider an educational path that would lead him to healthcare.
From Licensed Vocational Nurse to Registered Nurse
After graduating high school in Sacramento in 2013, Ameen became a Licensed Vocational Nurse. “I chose nursing because I feel that nurses are key contributors to the healthcare field and help people live better lives,” he says. He continued in school, working toward an associate degree of nursing while gaining a variety of clinical experiences.
Ameen worked in a long-term acute care hospital, a Veterans Affairs hospital, a skilled nursing facility and a mental health/alcohol detox facility. “I’ve worked with all age groups and many different specialties,” he says. As he neared the end of his associate degree program in 2019, Ameen researched his next step: a bachelor’s degree in nursing. That research led him to American Sentinel.
BSN Via SIMPath®
There were many reasons Ameen chose the RN to BSN program, but the biggest was the SIMPath® track. “The flexibility that would allow me to pay by term and complete as many courses as I could each term was very appealing to me,” he says. By September 2019—in just four months—Ameen completed the BSN. He earned the degree while working per diem at the University of California Davis Medical Center.
Since then, Ameen has referred many colleagues and friends to American Sentinel College at Post University. “The return on investment is high for people who are motivated and willing to work hard to achieve their educational goals,” he says. “The program offers avenues to those who want to push themselves.”
A Life Plan that Includes Medical School
For years, Ameen has continued to update his “life plan” that he wrote as a teenager. His latest addition to the plan is his intention to start the Master of Science in Nursing – Education Specialization (MSN) in early 2024. Once again, he will take advantage of the SIMPath track so he can move as quickly as possible to his next goal: medical school.
“My goal is to become a trauma surgeon,” says Ameen, who is planning to eventually apply to Weill Cornell Medicine in Qatar, the first American medical school established outside of the U.S. Right now, he is continuing to build his clinical experience as a travel nurse throughout California—currently at Stanford University Medical Center—while preparing to return to school for the MSN.
Post University: A Big Part of the Journey
Furthering his education at Post University has been “an important and big part of the journey,” Ameen says. “I run a personal nonprofit LLC, Holistic Humankindness Medicine, where I mentor many people free of charge about the walk of life. I tell them all during my sessions that revolve around educational plans that American Sentinel at Post University is a college that offers students excellent support.”