Navy Nurse Candidate Program Summer 2013

Specialties Government

Published

I was accepted to the Navy Nurse Candidate Program back in January 2012. I will be graduating this coming August and hopefully be at ODS sometime next fall!

I just wanted to post and see if there is anyone else that will be graduating around that time on here. We have a pretty good Facebook group page for my School of Nursing class, and I think we should get one started for the NCP summer graduates...but we have to have people to add to the group to make it first!

Holler if you're out there!

does the NCP cover graduate degrees or just BSN?

Only BSN.

Hello, I am considering the nurse candidate program, is there any advice you can give me on doing everything I need to do that would increase my chances of being accepted?

Specializes in Adult Critical Care.

If you're a new grad without experience, apply at least a year ahead of time. Get some volunteer time in a medical capacity and/or get a nurse aide/EMT type of job. You don't have to be licensed as an RN to take PALS and ACLS; doing that would give you a leg-up on the competition. I did all of the above.

By time I would actually be able to apply I will have already had a years worth of experience as an RN. And thank you, I am definitely looking for more ways to get an edge on the competition. I will definitely look into getting certifications and so forth once I graduate from the program I am in now. The hospital I want to work at makes all of their RNs have an ACLS certification, so that's a plus. And thank you for the response, if there is anything else you think of that may help please let me know.

The NCP is for (BSN) nursing school students. Are you an ADN right now going for BSN? There were a couple of people at ODS with me who did that. If this is the case, I think just getting a certification in a certain unit is the most beneficial thing you can do. I don't think PALS/ACLS really does much for you as far as your package goes since the navy puts you through these classes if you are on a unit where they are needed. People who are ICU nurses, or ED nurses or oncology nurses etc. probably have so much better of a chance getting into those units off the bat which would be very nice. So if you are on a unit working as an RN while getting your BSN try to get any kind of credentials you can on that particular unit. Might help, or it might not haha

Specializes in Adult Critical Care.

All I can tell you is that the military values extra education. If you are a med-surg nurse that takes ACLS, PALS, TNCC, and ENPC, then you will definitely have an edge. Few med-surg nurses have all 4. Board certifications help you. The chief nurse at my current base as well as the two I interviewed with to get into the military all agree.

Sure, ICU/ED nurses are often required to have those. Sure, the military will put you in those classes eventually if they are needed in your specialty. The key is to do more that what's required. It's not any 1 certification that matters. It's that as a group they demonstrate a pattern of behavior consistent with a life-long, continual learner. That's how you get in and that's how you get promoted.

I'm considering the NCP program and I just started my BSN program. I graduate in 2 yrs. My husband is in the Marine Reserves for a minimum of 2 years and his duty station is in NY. We currently live in MD. I am trying to see what are the chances that I will be stationed close to MD upon graduating. Being in the Marines for 11 years my husband understands that I do not get to choose where I will be stationed however, I do not want to be too far away from him. It's hard for me not to be selfish and consider his career and time he has put into serving our country. I'm just wondering is there a balance to it. :( Any help will be appreciated. I really have to decide what I will do to pay for school. I have 36k in federal loans and still will need about a significant amount to pay for the ABSN program. Thank you all

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