air force nursing

allnurses Guide · Mar 5, 2007

I am currently deployed as a combat medic in the Army stationed in Iraq. Later I would like to persue nursing in the Air Force and I am currently enrolled in Excelsior Nursing School. My question if anyone could answer is how picky is the Air Force about where your degree is from and if a degree from Excelsior would be accepted for commission. On the Air Force website it seems Excelsior fits their standards. Any help or guidance would be appreciated thank you.

As far as I know as long as it is an accredited school, you are a U.S. citizen, have a Bachelor's in nursing and pass your NCLEX you should meet the basic eligibility requirements. Also, I would advise you to look at all your choices as a nurse in the military: AirForce, Army (which I am sure you are pretty familiar with), Navy, and even public health. Each service has it is pros and cons. The Army has some awesome training opportunities and much better promotion rates than the AirForce nurse corps.

Good Luck,

Capt E, USAF

CRNI-ICU20 · Mar 5, 2007

Excelsior is an excellent nursing program....and is accredited in most states and all areas of the service and some overseas countries....

Where you may run into problems is if you become a civilian nurse, and apply for a nursing license in a state that will not accommodate Excelsior's nursing program....I think Florida is one....although, the last I heard there was only one or two states that were having a hissy fit over this school.....which was and is dumb....because it's a good school....it just makes some traditionalists squirm a little....but if you stay in the service, you should have no probs.....

And....stay safe....I think about all of you in Iraq every day....and wish you could all come home soon....so glad there are such good medical support systems there for our soldiers and also the civilians....

I will keep you in my prayers....hhhoooooorah!

EDTEd · Mar 5, 2007

Like others have said just check with the different services before you make your decision. I too am enrolled in Excelsior and am almost done (6 months). I retired from the military one year ago and am now working at a level one trauma center. I plan on finishing and working at Madigan Army Medical Center at Ft. Lewis. The Excelsior program works and it is accepted by Wisconsin, where I live now. Next month I start training some medic from the AF that have not had any real experience. They will be working in our ER/Trauma for a couple of weekends. They will learn IVs, and other items in a live ER. Maybe help them a little bit when they deploy to the desert.

Stay safe there, and thanks for caring for our troops. I love them all!

Ed

BULLYDAWGRN, RN · Mar 6, 2007

First Harmon 642 let me say Thank You For Your Service and Sacrifice. I tell you I think Airforce Nursing would be great. I have a 2nd cousin that is 1lt flight rn for them. I get a post from her time to time. The job she dose sounds awsome in everyway. That might be something to check into.

JaxiaKiley · Mar 8, 2007

Last I heard, Texas doesn't care much for that school, if you plan to settle there...

Good luck

ameritow · Mar 9, 2007

Thank you for doing what you are doing, stay safe. Good luck in whatever choice you make. From my own research it would appear that the Army has the most to offer nurses right now. (Of course, that is coming from my recruiter, so take it as you will.) Whatever you decide, good luck.

allnurses Guide · Mar 9, 2007

Thank you for doing what you are doing, stay safe. Good luck in whatever choice you make. From my own research it would appear that the Army has the most to offer nurses right now. (Of course, that is coming from my recruiter, so take it as you will.) Whatever you decide, good luck.

That is very open-ended statement.....lol. Would you care to quantify that, because I can easily make a case for the USAF, USN, or USPHS. I think before committing to one branch you should spend the time researching and talking with representatives from all the different branches.

Capt E, USAF

ameritow · Mar 9, 2007

That is very open-ended statement.....lol. Would you care to quantify that, because I can easily make a case for the USAF, USN, or USPHS. I think before committing to one branch you should spend the time researching and talking with representatives from all the different branches.
Capt E, USAF

Don't get me wrong, I would love to go USAF, I've always wanted to. However, USAF won't take ADN's. Also, what kind of bonus do they offer? And what kind of loan repayment? And where do the in service CRNA's go to school?

Not trying to be argumentative, but I did research the Air Force. I have wanted to go Air Force my whole life, however, they didn't have much to offer me. I cannot speak for the Navy, I didn't even research that branch because I knew I didn't want to go there, and I am not at all familiar with USPHS. So yes, I suppose I spoke too quickly and for that I apologize.

allnurses Guide · Mar 9, 2007

Don't get me wrong, I would love to go USAF, I've always wanted to. However, USAF won't take ADN's. Also, what kind of bonus do they offer? And what kind of loan repayment? And where do the in service CRNA's go to school?
Not trying to be argumentative, but I did research the Air Force. I have wanted to go Air Force my whole life, however, they didn't have much to offer me. I cannot speak for the Navy, I didn't even research that branch because I knew I didn't want to go there, and I am not at all familiar with USPHS. So yes, I suppose I spoke too quickly and for that I apologize.

Don't get me wrong there is no need to apologize. I thought the comment was amusing and no offense was taken.

Here is some info for you though: The Air Force doesn't take ADN's, and I think only the Army does right now. ADN to BSN is a one year program in most cases (depending on the amount of pre-reqs you need), and you can get deferment on your student loans if you are going atleast half-time.

As far as the sign-on bonus in the Air Force it is either 10,000 or 15,000 right now for a 4 yr contract. There is also a loan repayment program in the Air Force. As far as CRNA school all the branches offer CRNA school. I would say that the Army has the most school slots and probably is the easiest to get into (that is subjective though). There are only two military CRNA schools one is at Fort Sam Houston and the other is Maryland at USUHS. I will be attending CRNA school at USUHS starting this summer.

Here is the link to USPHS web site. They are another alternative. They start new nurses out as an O-2 instead of an O-1 and their promotion rates are faster than the other branches. It is worth taking a look at before making a decision. One more thing you will need your BSN even if you go in the Army to continue to progress and it is a lot easier to get before coming in the military. http://www.usphs.gov/

Good Luck!

Duncan3178 · Mar 10, 2007

just met with the air force recruiter yesterday at the local college. he said that they have just changed the sign on bonus for the AF nurses. for a 4 year contract, you can get $25,000 lump sum (taxed of course), OR up to $32,000 in student loan payback. for a 6 year committment, you can get BOTH...

allnurses Guide · Mar 11, 2007

just met with the air force recruiter yesterday at the local college. he said that they have just changed the sign on bonus for the AF nurses. for a 4 year contract, you can get $25,000 lump sum (taxed of course), OR up to $32,000 in student loan payback. for a 6 year committment, you can get BOTH...

Ouch, that hurts.....it sure beats my 5,000 that I got 5 years ago!