The first time Jaden Dalrymple shadowed nurses in Maine Medical Center’s Medical ICU, her instructor practically had to pry her out of the unit. Four years earlier, nursing was still just an abstract plan — she spent most of her time training with a D1 dance team. Now a graduate of the University of Southern Maine’s School of Nursing, Jaden is back in that same ICU this October, only this time she’s there as a registered nurse.
Finding the right accelerated program
For most of Jaden’s life, dance came first. Raised in New Jersey, she went to Saint Joseph’s University in Philadelphia for her undergraduate degree, where she danced all four years on the school’s D1 team. Even with a full dance schedule, Jaden kept pace in the classroom, eventually earning a degree in health sciences.
“I realized soon after my first college chemistry class that medical school was not where my heart lied, but it was actually nursing that I was being pulled to,” said Jaden.
What stuck with her wasn’t the coursework or content so much as the idea of being the person at the bedside — someone whose actions could shift the course of a patient’s day.
With her bachelor’s degree now in hand, a traditional four-year nursing program held little appeal to Jaden, so she set her sights on accelerated programs (ABSN). That May, after she graduated and finished her dance career, Jaden moved to Maine.
“What drew me to USM’s nursing program was its reputation — seeing how successful students have been,” said Jaden. “I also weighed all the schools in Maine that were offering ABSN programs at the time, and what tipped me toward USM was the cost, the location, but most importantly the ‘home-like’ vibe I got from researching the university on social media and online.”
A fast 15 months in USM’s nursing school
The accelerated program took Jaden through 15-months of intense classes, clinicals, and long nights. If it wasn’t for her cohort, leaning on each other throughout, Jaden isn’t sure she’d have gotten through it.
“I was always inspired by the collective work ethic, drive, curiosity, and creativity of my fellow classmates,” said Jaden. “We really leaned on each other through this rigorous program and I think that became clear in our successes.”
Clinical rotations took her to hospitals across Maine — Maine Medical Center, St. Mary’s, and MaineGeneral — enough variety to figure out what she liked and didn’t. Classes, like Med-Surg 1 and 2, also opened up new possibilities. Through a professor in one of these classes, Jaden ended up shadowing nurses in the Medical ICU (MICU) not once, but three times.
“I knew after my first day shadowing in the MICU that there was something special about it. I was so obsessed that my professor, Britney Meunier, had to pry me out of there or else I would never leave,” said Jaden. “If you told me at the beginning of my program or even during my first clinical that the ICU is where I would end up, I simply wouldn’t have believed you.”
During her final semester, a critical care practicum showed Jaden a different side of nursing. Caring for critically ill patients, some of whom didn’t survive, taught her how to be a source of steadiness for them and their families. It reshaped how she saw the job itself.
“The role of a nurse is so much more than administering medications or assessing patients around the clock,” she said. “Instead, it is an art demonstrated through compassion. Sometimes just your voice and reassurance can be what gets that patient through a very hard day.”
By the end of those 15 months, Jaden knew exactly where she wanted to be: back in the same ICU she’d spent time in as a student.
Landing the dream job
In the spring of 2026, Jaden applied for just one of three new-graduate openings at Maine Med’s MICU. She knew it was a longshot, but one interview led to another and suddenly everything started to fall into place.
“During my second interview, I couldn’t have felt more at home,” said Jaden. “In early July, I found out I got the job during a lunch break between classes at USM”
She got the news sitting with her two best friends, and they celebrated on the spot. Later that day, she ran into Britney Meunier, the instructor who’d gotten her into the MICU in the first place.
“Sharing the news with her was the most rewarding feeling,” she said. “I manifested every day that this opportunity and dream would come true.”
This October, Jaden will step into the MICU, not as a student, but as a registered nurse. Looking back, she has a few pieces of advice for anyone considering USM’s accelerated nursing program.
“Take in every moment, be present in what you are learning and doing, and believe in yourself,” she said. “Take advantage of the amazing nursing faculty — they are so passionate about their students’ success. The journey won’t be easy, but it will be worth it. I always told myself: if it was easy, everyone would do it.”
