When considering a school for her undergraduate studies, Amanda (Aschinger) Buse ’12 discovered that Morningside had many of the features she was looking for: small, close to home, and a sister on the track team. 

Her passion for helping others guided her towards a path in nursing. After completing her Bachelor’s of Science in Nursing at Morningside, Buse went on to earn her Doctor of Nursing Practice at Creighton University in Omaha, NE.. Here, she would continue to pursue her goal of opening her own medical clinic.

“I always had an interest in human sciences and I found myself to be more happy with the nursing model of holistic care, so I pursued that with intentions to continue my education from BSN to DNP immediately after graduation in order to achieve my goal of being a provider and serving rural Iowa communities.”

Inspired by her mother and father, Buse had dreams of becoming self-employed. After passing her board certification exam, Buse began researching a multitude of categories necessary to opening a medical clinic. “The process has been pretty smooth, believe it or not… I was able to collaborate with contacts who I had formed relationships with through past jobs, and everyone was very helpful and supportive.”

Finally, she was about to open Mary’s Care Memorial Clinic in her hometown of Wall Lake, IA. The clinic is dedicated to and named after her mother who passed away from ovarian cancer just one month after Buse passed her board certification exam. 

In reflecting on her time at Morningside, Buse says, “I am particularly fond of the memories made while playing volleyball my sophomore year; playing intramurals; forming bonds with my nursing classmates; and making memories with friends in the dorms, cafeteria, and at sporting events.” 

She explains that maintaining these friendships after graduation have been very important to her.

“The relationships you form during these four short years will have so much more of an impact on your future than you can ever imagine, so have fun, learn from each other, and follow your heart.”

 Her advice to young alumni goes right along with this theme, “Preserve the relationships you have made with other students, faculty, and staff—they are more valuable than you will ever know.”