Mannat Dhaliwal grew up thinking her path lay in engineering or even leading a company, but her family and friends thought otherwise — prompting her to study nursing, where she feels a sense of belonging and stability.
Dhaliwal grew up in northeast Calgary, where her parents worked long hours, leaving her grandmother to help raise her and her twin sister.
From a young age, structure defined Dhaliwal’s life.
Her parents put her in activities such as Kumon, swimming, skating, tennis, basketball, and dance.
Her mother wanted her daughters to be well-rounded, competitive, and successful, and overall experience everything she didn’t get growing up.
“We were just always busy,” Dhaliwal said. “It was mostly just like a typical immigrant household of, like, you need to get really good grades.”
While her sister was quiet and reserved, Dhaliwal was outgoing and drawn to creative outlets, including theatre and art. She even showed strong ability in science and math.
In high school, she considered becoming an engineer, a doctor, or even running her own company.
“I wanted to be a teacher, to be a doctor, to be a vet, to be a computer scientist, to being an engineer,” said Dhaliwal.
New school, new mindset
Leadership and ambition appealed to her, but her path shifted when she moved from a private charter school to a public school.
The transition brought her a new sense of freedom and distraction. Without the close supervision she had grown used to, Dhaliwal began skipping classes and spending time with the wrong crowd.
The discipline that had been drilled into her during childhood began to fade.
“I took a little bit too much of an advantage of that,” she said. “My grades started to plummet because of it.”
But while things were certainly more challenging, she does not fully regret that period in her life.
“That’s where I made the most memories and like I had the most fun I would say in a sense,” said Dhaliwal.
Still, as graduation approached, Dhaliwal still didn’t know what she wanted to pursue. She lacked confidence in her academic abilities, making her question every decision.
“Like, what if I’m just overreaching for something that I can’t do because I don’t think I’m smart enough.”
Passion for the care of others
Hearing her friends say, “We see you becoming a nurse,” put things into perspective for Dhaliwal.
“They could never picture me being a freaking engineer,” she said.
Her experience as a babysitter reinforced that idea. That’s when she realized that she genuinely loved working with children and began to view nursing as a career.
“I loved working with kids… I’m just hanging out with the kids,” said Dhaliwal. “There’s always going to be a need for nurses.”
Henna Pannu, a friend of Dhaliwal’s, says nursing suits her personality and natural ability to connect to others.
“I feel like nursing is the best suit for her because she fits the position,” Pannu said. “You can tell this girl’s going to be a nurse.”
Now enrolled in Mount Royal University’s nursing program, Dhaliwal says the program is quite demanding.
Students must maintain a minimum grade of 60 per cent to pass, and failing a course twice results in removal from the program.
Close friend Ramniq Sanghera says Dhaliwal always tries her best.
“She’s always studying and, like, she rewards herself afterwards,” said Sanghera.
Despite the stress, Dhaliwal says nursing feels right.
The profession offers stability, financial security and a clear path forward — something she did not feel when she imagined engineering or leading a business.
Dhaliwal plans to become a registered nurse, gain experience in high-intensity units such as the ER, NICU or even the ICU, and eventually pursue further education as a nurse practitioner or move to the States to become a certified registered nurse anesthetist.
In the long-term, she hopes to become a professor and teach.
“Becoming a professor is the end goal. But being a certified registered nurse anesthetist is one of my main goals because you get to do tiny surgeries and stuff like that,” said Dhaliwal.
As her parents continue to work long hours, she hopes her career will allow her to support and eventually retire them.
“They’re still working their asses off every day. Like my dad won’t call in sick ever. Even when he gets sick, like he is actually just slaves himself away where it’s like, OK, I need to lock in.”