Nursing School and Being a Military Spouse

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Hey everyone!

I have a few questions for any nurses or nursing students that are also military spouses.

My husband and I are currently living in the Norfolk, Virginia area, but are moving overseas to Japan in a few months. I'll be finishing up my Associate of Arts in Interdisciplinary Studies this upcoming summer, and will be in Japan for 3 years. I have plans to apply to nursing school after we get back to the States in a few years.

First question, what would you suggest I do during the three years I'll be in Japan? I don't plan to start a Bachelor's program since I have plans to apply for nursing school. Volunteering at the base hospital or Red Cross? Take classes?

Second question, what do you think is the best route to becoming a nurse nowadays? I've considered applying to an LPN/LVN program first and then bridging to an ADN program and then finally getting my BSN. I've also considered doing my ADN and then my BSN. My husband is up for new orders every three years, so I most likely couldn't get my BSN to begin with because we'd have to move before I'd complete it.

Third, how easy is it to get nursing jobs when you have to move a lot? I know I'm not required to disclose that my husband is military, but I feel like it would be obvious if my resume shows new locations every few years.

Fourth, any other advice regarding any part of the process (prereqs, school, NCLEX, etc.) would be great!

TIA!

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I was a military spouse for 18 years and became a nurse a few years before my husband retired. I'm not sure what you can do in Japan that would help. We were stationed in Germany and job opportunities were not great but working or volunteering in the clinic or hospital may help you get familiar with the medical environment if you do not have a background in it. I worked as a scheduler and did medical billing before starting nursing school. You mentioned you will have your associates, but if you have any prereqs you need to complete for nursing school, you may try to get them done online or on post if they hold classes where you will be stationed. I recommend a medical terminology class even if it isn't a prereq. I took one online and it helped a lot through nursing school!

As for LPN vs ADN vs BSN...I would recommend ADN if you can get accepted pretty quick at your duty station when you return. It will take 2ish years and you can hopefully complete it before PCSing again. If you do LPN, you would have to find a bridge program. They aren't available everywhere. We were stationed at Fort Drum, NY, and you still had to do the whole RN program there if you were a LPN but you could challenge the first two semesters. I only know a handful that successfully challenged 1st semester and do not know of anyone that successfully challenged the second. Some programs will allow you to sit for LPN after a certain point in the ADN program anyway. You would just have to check if that is an option at whatever school you select.

I did my BSN online in 14ish months after I got my RN through Chamberlain. It was totally online and could have been completed from anywhere (no clinical component). I would much rather advise you to get your ADN and work on BSN later than you end up moving in the middle of a program. We had one 19 month duty station once, so the three years is never a guarantee (hubby was selected for AIT instructor).

A lot of the nurses I graduated with were also military spouses. The ones that stayed in our area had no problem finding a job at the local hospital. There were 4 that I know of that moved right after finishing school that had a little more difficulty finding a nursing position (one was even an LPN before RN school), but I think they moved to areas that did not have a shortage of nurses. All were employed within a year that I have kept up with, though. I had 2ish years of experience when we moved back to our home state and had no problem finding a job. Took about a month of looking to get my first position but have changed jobs since I came back. I feel I have had less issues finding a position since I got my RN than when I was doing secretarial jobs.

Good luck!

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L8RRN,

Thank you for the advice! On the base that we'll be moving to, they do offer classes but not many. I'll be able to take A&P 1&2 while there, and I'll also be able to finish up all the other prereqs online. I will still have to take Micro once we get back to the States since they don't offer it on base. Our base offers a free Medical Assistant program, and once completed, they volunteer with the Red Cross and the Naval Hospital, so I plan to try to get a spot in that program to give me some experience and also some volunteer hours.

I've decided to just apply for an ADN program since those seem to be the most common in the areas we could possibly get sent to after Japan. My husband is hoping to go to San Diego after, so I've started looking into various community colleges and their prereqs.

Thanks again!

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Specializes in ICU.
L8RRN,

Thank you for the advice! On the base that we'll be moving to, they do offer classes but not many. I'll be able to take A&P 1&2 while there, and I'll also be able to finish up all the other prereqs online. I will still have to take Micro once we get back to the States since they don't offer it on base. Our base offers a free Medical Assistant program, and once completed, they volunteer with the Red Cross and the Naval Hospital, so I plan to try to get a spot in that program to give me some experience and also some volunteer hours.

I've decided to just apply for an ADN program since those seem to be the most common in the areas we could possibly get sent to after Japan. My husband is hoping to go to San Diego after, so I've started looking into various community colleges and their prereqs.

Thanks again!

Be be careful in Ca. It's the most competitive area in the nation. Years of waiting to get into programs and a 40% new grad unemployment rate. I would look at BSNs out there.

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Thanks. I've heard that. Unfortunately I wouldn't be in the area for long enough to finish a BSN. I'm not sure what I plan to do now after I've done some more research.

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