WEST WINDSOR, NJ – In her hometown of Ben Debbab in the city of Fes in Morocco, Samira Sadqi discovered her passion.

It was back in 2003. Samira was 15 years old and her father was diagnosed with a brain tumor. Due to the family’s financial constraints, he was shuttled from public hospital to public hospital while Samira and her family cared for him. It was then that Samira discovered her love for nursing.

“It is customary for relatives and neighbors to pitch in and take care of people who need help in town,” explained the Mercer County Community College three-time scholarship earner. “We spent a lot of time at the hospital with surgeries and things like that and I loved being there to help him,” she explained.

As much as she enjoyed caregiving and the medical field, however, Samira didn’t have the means to attend nursing school. She worked to help support her family and to save some money for herself. As the years went by Samira made alternative plans. “Unfortunately, I was not able to apply in Morocco because I couldn’t afford it,” said Samira. “My dad was sick and no one was going to support me financially. I was working so I can help my family, so I studied civil engineering because it was a lot cheaper.”

Things changed for Samira after she got married in 2014. She moved to the United States and started a family. Eventually, she went to school to learn English, got her driver’s license and took a job at a gift shop in Princeton so she could improve her language skills and become familiar with the environment and the culture. Little did she know what the future held. 

Eighteen months after the birth of her first son she became a caregiver once again when her second son was born prematurely. “My son was born early — at 29 weeks — so I spent three months in the hospital,” explained Samira.

Surrounded by doctors and nurses, Samira became involved with practically every aspect of her son’s caregiving. “I was with the nurses all of the time and and I learned so much from just watching,” she said.

Soon, Samira began to hear words of encouragement to join the nursing profession. “I knew the nurses because I was always at the hospital and they would say ‘why don’t you go for nursing, you’ll do great,’” said Samira. “They encouraged me to apply, and I thought, I don’t know, can I do that?”

Serendipitously, Samira learned that her friend’s husband was studying to be a nurse at Mercer County Community College. “He told me I could sign up at Mercer,” said Samira. “I met a great advisor …. and she told me what I needed to do so I went and took my placement tests.”

After passing placement tests Samira took her first class, English 101, during the summer semester of 2018 and thereafter she registered for the necessary classes with the help of her advisor. 

Samira has continued on track with her nursing studies earning nearly all straight As. Last year she received the Walsingham Family Scholarship for continuing students who demonstrate financial need and this year she was awarded a merit-based nursing scholarship called the Area VII Physicians Review Organization Scholarship as well as second nursing scholarship for New Jersey residents with GPAs that meet the requirements. She has also added Phi Theta Kappa (PTK) honors society member and member of the National Student Nurses’ Association (NSN) to the list of her recent achievements. 

“All of my advisors and nursing school professors are all great,” said Samira. “They want you to succeed.”

Samira will have two more semesters to go after her second semester this fall. She plans to graduate in December 2021 and wants to pursue her bachelor’s shortly thereafter to become a certified registered nurse anesthetist (CRNA). 

Samira explained how she loves the healthcare field and the experiences she had doing her clinical work during her first semester. She is eager to learn as much as she can. 

“I will go to Rutgers, but through Mercer,” explained Samira. “I love this community. I love knowing all my professors and the staff. It is like a comfort zone and I like all of the services that Mercer provides.”

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Samira Sadqi of Lawrence Township was recently awarded several scholarships to help her pursue her degree in nursing at Mercer County Community College. Originally from Morocco, Sadqi eventually plans to become a Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist. (Photo by Andrew Aupperle)