Air Force or Navy as new BSN grad?

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I have 10mos left to complete my BSN and starting to give serious thought to joining military. I'm not new to military life, my husband is soon to end his 10yrs of active duty AF service due to medical issues. Naturally I just went with the idea for me to also go AF, however I wondered as a nurse what branch would be better between AF & Navy (I know country first but looking in regard to treatment, advancement and individual say on specialty, base, etc)? Also is it better to be active duty or reserve w/ civilian job too for flexibility/independence?? I see some pros & cons either way but would love to have some insider knowledge or advice!! :) Thanks!

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I am no insider, but I would say pick the branch that you feel more comfortable with. As far as I know the Air Force has some pretty nice facilities, but it really depends on what base. As far as advancement rank wise the Air Force is one of the slowest. Advancement academically or skills wise both offer on the job training and opportunites to get an advanced degree/ take classes through the Uniformed Services University of Health Sciences. The flexiblity part is up for you to decide with your family, so I would weigh the pro's and con's. One last thing, like everybody else here I will tell you the same...Start the process now of talking to a recruiter, be it the Navy, Air Force, or both because it is a long process to get everything completed for selection.

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Thanks for the advice - I really appreciate it. I have also heard that the process is long, I plan to start meeting w/ the recruiter soon! Thanks again.

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Specializes in ICU, ER, OR, FNP.

I don't know where the nice facilities are that you mention. WHMC (the flagship - and yes that is a running joke) is 50 years old and shows every minute of its age. Portsmouth Naval was immaculate everytime I transfered PTs there.

As far as one vs the other goes - only you can answer that. The USAF deploys onsie twosies from all over the world and forces ppl who have never worked together to live and work together 6 months at a time. The Navy deploys as a unit and maintains the integrity of the unit and command structure (so does the Army BTW). All services are allowed to wear the flag of the good ole USA on their uniform - except the USAF - we just aren't that proud of it. All services have advancement programs in place for you to compete for grad school when you get to that point. It really comes down to - do you like being stationed on the water - or is an Air Force base more your style?

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Specializes in Anesthesia.
I don't know where the nice facilities are that you mention. WHMC (the flagship - and yes that is a running joke) is 50 years old and shows every minute of its age. Portsmouth Naval was immaculate everytime I transfered PTs there.

As far as one vs the other goes - only you can answer that. The USAF deploys onsie twosies from all over the world and forces ppl who have never worked together to live and work together 6 months at a time. The Navy deploys as a unit and maintains the integrity of the unit and command structure (so does the Army BTW). All services are allowed to wear the flag of the good ole USA on their uniform - except the USAF - we just aren't that proud of it. All services have advancement programs in place for you to compete for grad school when you get to that point. It really comes down to - do you like being stationed on the water - or is an Air Force base more your style?

The Navy deploys a lot of their medical personnel individually just like the AF. It has a lot to do with your speciality.

Don't forget to look at USPHS also. Many nurse corps officers from all the military branches would have went to USPHS if we had known about it when we were looking into the military.

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