Becoming a Nurse in the Air Force

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Hello Everyone, I have a question :lol2: ...I'm currently in the process of enlisting in the Air Force and want to further my education. I currently hold an associates in arts and want to get a bachelors in nursing. My question is how easy is it to get your bachelors through the Air force, i know that the AF college is going to be offering bachelor's programs next year. I'm going to try to put in my "wish list" big cities so that maybe I have more options, can anyone help? maybe give me some advice...I have talked to some military nurses in the army and other services and they told that it is a good choice to have the military pay for it and that is feasable but some other people are telling me to do my bsn before hand. Not sure i really want to start my military training right away rather than waiting 2 years to complete my bsn, after all i'm already getting an age waiver, don't want to loose the opportunity to join by waiting...thanks to all :thankya:

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I would say to go ahead and get your BSN first before joining the AF. If you go in enlisted, it could be hard finding the time to go to nursing school, not to mention the fact that you can be deployed for long periods of time, work weird hours, etc., and these factors might not allow you to finish nursing school. Also, when you first enlist, you may be moving around a lot for training, depending on what your enlisted job would be. Your best bet would be to find a university that offers ROTC. Through ROTC, they have a program for nursing students that will pay your tuition while you learn about the AF and military life. I was enlisted in the Air Force for 4 years. I loved it, but with the job I had, there was no way I could attend college at the same time. Good luck in your decision!

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Oh, I also wanted to add that if you come into the AF already having your BSN, they will waive your age up to 42 years old. Hope this helps!

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I agree in that it is best to get your degree before you go in to the AF. I was enlisted for 4 years. I managed to get a some of my pre-reqs in while I was enlisted, but that is it. One of the reasons is that if you are medical, you rotate being on the floor and being in a clinic. I was able to do most of my classes when i worked 12- hour shifts on the floor. However, you rotate onto the clinics, and you work Mon-Fri 8/hr shifts. You could definitely not be in nursing school and already be working 5 days a week. What I did was get my pre-reqs done (and paid for) while I was enlisted. Then, I got out after 4 years, used my GI Bill ($1285/month for 36 months) to finish out my degree.

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Specializes in Anesthesia.

I would have to agree it is going to be very difficult getting your BSN while on Active duty. It will probably take at least 1.5-2yrs before you can even start taking classes after you come in.

What your recruiter didn't mention is that you will not only have to complete your BMT and techinical training, but also get your 5 level before your allowed to even start taking college classes.

You should stick it out and finish your classes on the civilian side. Get student loans if you need them and have the AF pay them back, and don't forget you can also get a 25,000 sign on bonus as a nurse.

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:lol2: thank you all for your responses, they were very useful.....unfortunately i do not qualify for student loans or any kind of financial aid, which is one of the reasons that i wanted to join. i heard that there is a way to go to school and have the AF pay for plus give you a stipend as long as you sign year for year....does anyone know if this is true and how to go about it?...thanks:monkeydance:
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Specializes in Anesthesia.
:lol2: thank you all for your responses, they were very useful.....unfortunately i do not qualify for student loans or any kind of financial aid, which is one of the reasons that i wanted to join. i heard that there is a way to go to school and have the AF pay for plus give you a stipend as long as you sign year for year....does anyone know if this is true and how to go about it?...thanks:monkeydance:

Almost everyone can get student loans. The difference is the type of student loan that you can get subsidized vs. unsubsidized. http://www.staffordloan.com/federal-student-loans/

I don't think the AF has a nursing cadet/stipend program other than ROTC for student nurses. There are enlisted to officer programs that do offer stipends and educational benefits, but you usually have to be in for 3+yrs before you qualify for any of those full-time programs. There are educational benefits that you can use while on active-duty, but again it is very difficult to go to nursing school while on active-duty. Here is a link that should help explaining some of the educational benefits. http://www.airforce.com/education/enlisted/index.php

Good Luck,

Capt E, USAF, NC

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Thank you wtbcrna, unfortunately i had a couple of issues w/ school and i cannot get financial aid, they say that i have too many credits and then a couple of my student loans went into default (i'm making payments for it but until i complete the agreement and it goes out of default i cannot apply for finaid)....:thankya:

I guess i'll try talking to my recruiter and see what other options i can get

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Hello,

I've been in the AF 12 years and i do have a BS in Supply Chain Mang. I guess i just wanted to give you a good website to look at. It's the NECP program, that the Captain was typing about. I'm currently getting all my pre nursing courses done so that i can join the program. If you don't have your pre nursing classes done, start now . http://usmilitary.about.com/od/airforcetrng/a/necp.htm so, you can be ready for the program. Chose a school that you want to go too and then find out what their requirements are or wait till you get to your first duty station. They (AF) will send you were you want to go to school but, you must do the foot work to get into the school program. The Air Force will fund the rest. Check it out!!!!

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I am new to this website and I decided to join because it seems like alot of folks know what they are talking about. I am curious, has anyone recently been selected for the NECP in the Air Force. I am applying in a few months and was wondering if anyone would be available to answer some questions. No questions in particular right now but I am sure there will be some as it gets closer to time. Thanks

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Will you be applying for the 2010 May board. If so, I am right there with ya. I have been in the USAF for 6 years.

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I just had a general question. I am in my early 30's. I know the cut off is 42 years old. My question is: are there a lot of new RNs joining all in their 30's? I was in boot camp at age 19. there were some women that were in there late 20's and early 30's that were in bootcamp trying to keep up with the 18 yr olds. I also know that it wa hard to take direction from someone that was younger than them? I hope I didn't offend anyone. I just want to know just in case I decide to take this route.

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