becoming and RN and military

SmilingBluEyes · Mar 10, 2005

I am veteran of USAF service myself, and a military spouse for 16 years now. Maybe I can help.

If you want to be military nurse, you need to go for your bachelor's degree and that takes a MINIMUM of 4 years' fulltime study to do this. In order to be commissioned in all the branches, Army, USAF, Marines or Navy, you will need a minimum of BSN to practice as an RN (unless you go reserve in some cases, then an Associate's degree may work). Speak to a recruiter about military nursing and get clear and in writing what you need to be a nurse in the active military service.

Also, I really hate to be the bearer of bad news but: the military is NOT concerned in the LEAST with spouses' (or families') needs and/or desires and will not make anything work for you, unless it suits them first. So, if your future husband gets orders to go someplace , it will be on YOU to follow and make it work, or not. The military only cares about putting people where they are needed when they are needed. Family concerns are way down on the list of priorities, and unless you have highly specialized medical needs, you will go where they tell you, when they tell you to, simple as that. So, I suggest you try and figure out where you will be the LONGEST and go to school, there, if at all possible.

When you get married, and settle at your first duty station, try and take the "basics" first, e.g., English, speech, algebra, government, etc. Make sure you take classes that transfer best, so as not to have to waste time if you DO move. Get a degree plan from the college of nursing at the university and find out what coursework you will need to complete prior to applying to nursing school.

Try visiting this site for a list of nursing schools by state and type (e.g. BSN, Associates Degree, LPN, etc).

http://www.allnursingschools.com

Hope this helps you a bit and congratulations on your upcoming wedding. I wish you happiness and success.

ilovemymarine · Mar 11, 2005

Sorry, I didn't make myself very clear now that I read over that. I don't want to be a military nurse. I just want to become an nurse not related to the military. What I meant was when I'm going to start nursing school and I live with my future husband who is in the military will the military help with the moving around part, like is there a school that I could go to that is in different places so that if we would move then I could still finish becoming an RN or would I have to put that on hold? Again sorry I didn't make it clearer, but thanks so much for your help!

SmilingBluEyes · Mar 11, 2005

Transferring course work, especially out of state is a gamble, at best. Colleges/universities can be SO arbitrary when accepting or refusing to accept, your prior coursework. Your best best is to TRY to figure out where you will be for at least 2-3 years and THEN begin school there. Try to stay in ONE school throughout in order to NOT have prior coursework discredited or unaccepted from a university. It will save you a LOT of aggravation and money/time to stay at much as possible with ONE school. Good luck.

Chad_KY_SRNA · Mar 11, 2005

A lot of general education classes, math, english, PE, computers can all be taken online. To do well in internet classes you must keep up or you are throwing money away. I hope that all goes well for you.

Fiona59 · Mar 11, 2005

As an old RSM said to my husband when we were first married: "If the Army had wanted you to have a wife, they would have issued you one".

Been married over 20 years to a serviceman and mine nor the childrens needs have never been considered when it came to a posting....