Any Army Nurses?

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Hello all!

I will be graduating from nursing school in one month. I'm interested in joining the Army as an Officer and I want to hear opinions from current Army Nurses.

What is the pay like?

Do they really give you money to pay back loans?

Do you get to choose what hospital you want to work at?

What are the better military hospital in the country?

Can I work internationally my first year?

Any information would be great. I know talking to a recruiter will simply tell me things that I wanna hear.....but I wanna hear the truth.

Thanks.

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As you read this, keep in mind I was never an officer, but spent 6 years in various enlisted mos's active duty and two years as a reservist. I looked into the officer route, but decided i liked being a civilian too much.

Hello all!

I will be graduating from nursing school in one month. I'm interested in joining the Army as an Officer and I want to hear opinions from current Army Nurses.

reserves or active duty? you must have a bsn in order to be commissioned active duty, but as a reservist they only require an associates.

What is the pay like?

You would start as an O-1 in either active duty or reserve status. Pay in the military isn't as great as its cracked up to be...but it is a decent check at regular intervals

http://www.dfas.mil/militarypay/2006militarypaytables/2007_Web_Pay_Table.pdf

Do they really give you money to pay back loans?

Depends...officers don't necessarily qualify for the same programs as enlisted. Contact an officer recruiter for details....note i said OFFICER recruiter, don't talk to a regular recruiter or youll get hosed. I know they do have bonus programs for officers in medical fields that can be used to pay back loans, but yet again, i doubt its like the enlisted loan payback program.

Do you get to choose what hospital you want to work at?

Not usually, for officers its something called "needs of the army", theyll send you were they need you while at the same time fullfilling your career necessities. You can request certain places and theyll have you fill out a dream sheet, but you arent usually guaranteed anything on your first go round (unless you put something like Korea, then your a shoe in, but there are benefits to that as well...pm for more details).

What are the better military hospital in the country?

Personally, I always like Womack at Bragg, a couple hours from the beach and the mountains, and all the high speed units are located there. BAMC and the Hospital in Lewis are supposed to be pretty good as well. Don't just look at the hospital, look at the whole base as well. Just a personal preference: Stay away from Ft. Polk & Ft. Bliss.

Can I work internationally my first year?

Yes, this includes such lovely duty stations as Camp Liberty and Bagram. It is very possible to be stationed overseas. Alot of realignment is going on in the army right now and bases are shutting down and reopening, but vincenza (italy) is VERY nice.

Just a word of caution though: don't limit yourself to the army, check out the other branches. The air force and the navy also have different programs for nurses, find the service and program that is right for you.

If you have any questions, pm me and ill answer what i can.

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I was mostly a reservist with some active duty time. I enjoyed training. Texas is nice around San Antonio, lots to do. I would have loved duty in France also. Keep looking for something you might enjoy and stick with it. Have FUN

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Did you ever go to the area on this forum called military nurses? It is under specialty.

Pam

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I just was given a 10,000 sign on bonus, and they will pay up to 114,000 back in loans. I just got my NP and didnt spend a dime getting it. OH look for a medical not officer recuiter to speek with.

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Specializes in med/surg, home health, oncology, psych.

This is wigsajumper, hikergirl88's boyfriend. Former NCO from the Army.

Just wanted to re-emphasize colm_bri's comment. Make sure that you talk to the medical recruiter. Don't walk into the recruiter station. They are focused on the enlisted ranks and filling them.

Depending on your degree you might not be able to enter as an officer. You need to have at least a Bachelor's degree for the officer corp, an AS for warrant (this might have changed in the last year I am a little out of the loop).

It is true that you can get college loans paid back. Plus after that the army will often pay for your continued eduction. In fact often times your OER (officer evaluation report) will take a hit if you are not regularly taking additional education or learning classes of some sort.

Just remember. ALWAYS get it in writing (especially when it comes to money and promises). You might be able to get an overseas assignment but it will most likely be Korea or a Mid Eastern country. Again to quote a former poster. When it comes to duty assignments AT THE NEEDS OF THE ARMY reigns supreme.

Womack (Fort Bragg) will keep you busy both with deployments and trauma when home from the high tempo training exercies.

Fort Bliss is one of the local hospitals plus it is a haven of the retirees so expect alot of VA care there.

Fort Irwin (Run away...in the middle of the Desert USA)

Fort Jackson, Fort Benning could be fun I had a blast there but was enlisted.

Your extended training if not done locally will be San Antonio

If you have any other questions let me know. I can probably get you some contacts with the some of the officers I trained...er...served with.

wigsajumper - former airborne geek

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The op ended up joining the Air Force AD.

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