Nursing Officers in Canadian Forces

Fiona59 · Oct 7, 2013

Ask to have this moved to the Canadian Forum. There is an nursing officer who post infrequently and will have a better chance of seeing it there.

Just remember you have to be physically able to pass the BFT for your age and gender.

mnbue · Nov 16, 2013

Hi Mahima17, nice to chat with someone with common interests :)

I've been a medical technician (think military paramedic crossed with some nursing skills) for 12 years, and was selected to change trades to become a nursing officer this year, through the same program you've applied to (ROTP). I had to go through essentially the same process you will, although some elements I skipped (like the CFAT) because I'd done them when I was first recruited. So hopefully I have a background to be helpful. I did also work in CF recruiting for a couple of years, so have that background, although I'll admit there's been some changes in how things work since...so take what I have to say as just my opinion. Regarding your questions:

1) The CF certainly seems to be trying to increase it's representation of visible minorities and women (I've always had the impression we're focusing on attracting a broader variety of applicants), but I'm not aware of any "advantage" in terms of being selected once you apply - I think all applicants are compared on a level playing field. It's possible that has changed (I haven't heard of any EE regulation changes...?) but you'd need to clarify with your recruiting office.

However, being already in nursing school may be something of an advantage. As far as the CF is concerned, it means less subsidization (less cost) for them. I can't say for sure how much this is factored in. You could see it as an advantage to you, as well, since you'll likely owe less "obligatory service" afterwards than someone being subsided for the full 4 years.

2) Every year, the recruiting system re-evaluates their estimate of how many people they'll need to hire in each trade to "keep the ranks full", so to speak. Sometimes there are trends year to year, and sometimes there's a sudden change...so it's hard to anticipate. Last year, I was told they were selecting 11. The year before, I think I remember hearing it was 4 - these numbers are the total hired nationally. I'm not sure how many apply nationally - when I worked in recruiting I'm guessing we'd have anywhere from 2-20 ROTP nursing applicants for ROTP each year, and there were perhaps a dozen similar recruiting centres across Canada. But applicants also varied widely in how competitive they were, and most hadn't yet been (and some never were) accepted to nursing school - so it's hard to know how much competition there will be - not all of those applicants can be counted as "actual competition" (since you can't be offered enrolment unless you get into nursing school).

I can tell you that I was lucky to get in. My marks and aptitude test were pretty good, I'd already been accepted to my school, I already had a lot of relevant experience and training, and of course I'd already met the standard for the CF's medical and security clearance screening (that's an area where many people have issues too, unfortunately). However there are typically only a few people who apply who have my background (already in the CF with more than a year or two of experience, in a similar trade) each year.

The best advice I can give you is to continue being proactive. It's not so much an issue of "the squeaky wheel gets the grease", as it is that you need to do everything YOU can to make the paperwork part of the application flow smoothly. The people handling your file at the recruiting centre may only be able to devote a few minutes here and there to clarifying, correcting, filling in paperwork, or phoning you with instructions and reminders. The less you leave it up to them, the faster things may get done. And be educated! Figure out the most important questions and ask them. Then, don't be afraid to ask again, after a reasonable amount of time, if you'd like an update...as long as you're polite, and reasonable, they'll be happy to fill you in...that's their job.

Good luck!