Need help or advice for my plan to be an Army Reserve Nurse

Hello,

I really want to serve in the Army as a Nurse in the Reserves. I have been researching my options for how to go about achieving this goal and was hoping to solicit some advise from those with more experience than I that frequent this forum.

I currently have a Bachelors degree in Communications. I need to go back to school, but having a house and child, I am limited in methods by which I can finance a career change.

My first step is to enlist as a 68W "Health Care Specialist". If I ship to basic and AIT at the start of the year, I should be able to enroll in my local community college for my prerequisites. I have been told I can get assigned to my local CSH unit. I will have to take one year of prereqs before I am eligible to apply to the nursing program. This program is pretty competitive (800 applicants for 100 accepted) but with my previous degree, good grades, and the experience as a 68W, I ought to be accepted.

I am hoping to get the following benefits when enlisting:

1) Student Loan Repayment - I want to pay off my existing loans (about $7k)
2) Reserves GI Bill
3) GI Bill Kicker (hopefully)
4) Federal Tuition Assistance
5) Enlistment Bonus - I hope to get between $7K and $10K
6) Education Career Stabilization - a 2 year deferment from deployment to Iraq or Afghanistan.

The first five options should help me pay for the next three years of schooling to get my ADN. I will probably have to take out some additional student loans, but I hope to be able to repay future loans later. The sixth benefit (ECS) is to help me get my prereqs and my first year of nursing school completed in one swoop before deploying.

After my two year deferment from deployment is up, I would be eligible to be deployed. This would be during my second year of nursing school. I have spoken with the people at the college and they assure me that I would still have my place in the program when I came back though I may need to retake some classes.

After I get my ADN and pass the NCLEX-RN, I would have one more year of classes to get my BSN. Enrollment is automatic after getting the ADN. Yay! I hope to go through AMEDD to go from an enlisted 68W to an officer getting the STRAP stipend and the HEALTHCARE PROFESSIONALS LOAN REPAYMENT PROGRAM to pay off whatever incurred loans I would have needed to get.

I should then be an officer in the Army Nurse Corps serving with my local Combat Support Hospital.

Well... that is what the big plan is. Followed by 20+ years of service.

Here are some of my questions:

Does anybody else have any experience going from an enlisted reservist to an officer in AMEDD?

I have been told that if I enlist for 6 years, AMEDD shouldn't have any problem getting into the officers program before the full 6 year enlistment is up.

Does anybody have any experience with ECS (Education Career Stabilization)? Does it work as advertised?

Does anybody have any insight into any pitfalls or stumbling blocks I may face in my journey to becoming an Army Nurse?

I really want to serve and am trying to map out the next few years. I have spoken with enlistment and AMEDD recruiters. I was just hoping to see what insight this forum could add.

Thank you for reading this and any help you may provide.

Sorry for the long-winded post.