Alumni Profile: Andrea Hartgraves '10N

The year was 2010, and the job market was the worst in decades.

“I applied to an embarrassingly high number of places,” said Andrea (Silvis) Hartgraves ’10N, who graduated from the Accelerated Bachelor’s Program for Non-Nurses (ABPNN) at the University of Rochester School of Nursing, but faced long odds in her job search. According to the Economic Policy Institute, 2010 was the worst year to graduate since at least 1983—and possibly the worst since the end of World War II.

Finally, two offers came through. One option was a research fellowship at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) as part of its post-baccalaureate intramural research training awards program. Hartgraves’s mentor and former ABPNN co-director Elaine Andolina, was quick to offer encouragement.

“Elaine said, ‘Go for the NIH,’” Hartgraves recalled. “‘If the NIH asks you to be a janitor, you take the job.’”

With that advice, Hartgraves headed to Washington, D.C., to begin her nursing career. As a research nurse at the NIH’s Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, Hartgraves conducted both clinical and laboratory research of treatments for pediatric metabolic genetic disorders.

After one year working in research, Hartgraves wanted to gain experience on the clinical side of nursing in a hospital setting. She took a job on a cardiothoracic surgical unit but knew she wanted to get back to pediatrics. Hartgraves also craved a new home that would allow her to spend more time outdoors.

“I knew I wanted to be closer to the mountains and water,” said Hartgraves, who then applied to positions based on proximity to those geographic features. Now a genetics nurse at Seattle Children’s Hospital, Hartgraves synthesizes her passion for working with children with her research background in an ever-evolving field of health sciences.

“I love genetics because there’s so much to learn,” Hartgraves said. “There is new technology developing daily, and we work across all systems with families of diverse backgrounds."”

Hartgraves hadn’t always planned on becoming a nurse. As an undergraduate student at Penn State, the Pittsburgh native envisioned a career in early childhood education. She majored in biobehavioral health and worked in an adult group home, but soon realized that she wanted something different.

“I wanted a career where there was something new every day,” said Hartgraves. “I chose the University of Rochester School of Nursing because it was a great program, and I loved the town.”

In her current role, Hartgraves works within a diagnostic genetic clinic alongside a team of providers and genetic counselors who collaboratively evaluate patients to determine whether genetic testing is appropriate. She acts as a patient advocate and care coordinator in the diagnostic testing process.

“We help these families find answers that they’ve been searching for, possibly for years,” Hartgraves said.

In addition to her clinical responsibilities, Hartgraves serves as co-chair on the professional practice committee of the International Society of Nurses in Genetics. She’s also currently in the data analysis stage of a nurse-led study examining how satisfaction scores respond to an educational video developed to help families understand what to expect from the evaluation process. “There is sometimes a nine- to 12-month wait to see a pediatric genetics provider, and families often come in with unrealistic expectations of the process," said Hartgraves.

Encouraged by then-APNN co-director Elaine Andolina to take a one-year research fellowship at the National Institutes of Health, Andrea Hartgraves used the experience as a stepping stone to chart a career path unique to her and her interests. She now works as a genetics nurse in Seattle, where she can enjoy the mountains and outdoors with her husband, Matt, and son, Owen.

“We identified a need and an opportunity to reset expectations during the wait time and developed the video."

Of her unexpected career path, Hartgraves said, “I feel like I’ve been very lucky, and I’ve had great support along the way. Nursing is a great place to be if you’re interested and motivated. There’s a place for everyone.”