Best way to be Navy nurse

Editorial Team / Moderator · Aug 3, 2016

Why not do the associates degree RN and then do an RN-to-BSN bridge while working/getting RN experience? Then you can apply to the Navy in a direct commission capacity. Don't saddle yourself with a ton of student loan debt (bio degree) if it's uncertain that it will even help you reach your goal.

I realize you want to do this NOW, but anything involving joining the military takes time. But if you go about it the right way, it'll be worth the investment!

jeckrn, BSN, RN · Aug 4, 2016

I agree with Pixie. Get some experience as a RN while you finish your BSN bridge program. This will give you a leg up on other new BSN grads. It will also give you time towards a specialty certification which you will need if the needs to not change.

lasarazen · Aug 5, 2016

Are you saying that you've already started your 2 year program? And there were no traditional BSN programs in your area? If it's not too late to change schools, and there is a BSN program (NOT an RN to BSN bridge, a full time BSN program) in your area (or you can move to one!), there is the Navy Nurse Candidate program. This is NOT the same as NROTC.

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I tried attaching a flyer from my recruiter's office (I'm in southwest Texas) , I don't know if it will come out when I post this comment lol. Anyways, the bare bones of it: You apply within a certain time of graduating with your BSN, they give you a small stipend while you're in school (with no drill or training commitment during school), you pass your NCLEX, and you will be then commissioned as a Navy Nurse Corps officer. Obviously, you will have no RN experience at that point, but after attending some Navy officer training, you will be stationed at one of the "Big Three" naval hospitals (most likely on a med/surg unit), and that's where you will learn to be a nurse.

There is also nothing wrong with what the previous responders to your post suggested. I myself knew I wanted to re-enter the military after I finished nursing school, but this is a harsh time for getting into military nursing. And I had missed the window for the Navy NCP program. Most of the services (ESPECIALLY the Army) are overstrength and are cutting more personnel than they are accessioning. BUT!! Where there's a will there's a way, if you come to a recruiter with the strongest application packet you can possibly come with. I was recently selected for direct accession as an ER/Trauma nurse (after only ONE year of working in a civilian ER - granted, a SUPER busy one lol), and this is what I brought to the table: Summa Cum Laude BSN graduate (3.95 GPA); certified in almost every possible Emergency Nursing certification outside of a CNS; 1 year of all-ER work experience; relevant letters of recommendation from a former commander and from a few of the ED physicians I worked with; and prior commissioned officer service (non-medical). Whatever you decide to do, attack EVERYTHING like your future depends on it...you will have to compete hard to get in. Who knows, this may change in the next few years, and it may go back to like it was in '03 - ' 08, when they were letting anyone with a pulse into all the branches. But for now, it is what it is. Best of luck!!!

Kellcat · Aug 7, 2016

Hey thanks for your reply! I got the flyer too.

So first things first: I have not started the 2 year RN program yet,just planning to apply. When I apply to the community college I will also be applying to a BSN program at a four year school. I'm not sure if I'll get into either one, as they are competitive, and every bubbly Princess Peach in the area where I live thinks she's qualified. My high school is an off-the-map hippie/liberal school that refuses to give their students GPAs. however, I'm taking college classes over the summer at the aforementioned community college and my GPA seems to rest in the 3.5 - 3.8 range.

I did know of the Navy Nurse Candidate program, but I'm still figuring out how all this works, and I knew I wanted to serve on a ship- active military duty... I thought the navy nurse program was more for those who want to work on land while still being considered part of the navy.... I feel like this seems way of, as I used to think everyone in the Navy serves at sea... so if you or anyone wants to clarify this I would be super grateful.

I also heard that the navy wasn't in need of personnel too, which was pretty disappointing. I'm kind of basing my entire career off of getting into the navy. I'd be the first woman in my family to even try entering a branch of the military. I know I won't really respect myself until I prove to myself I can get in.

You mentioned your application process. I'm assuming (correct me if I'm wrong) you went to a four year university for your BSN, got certified for everything you could on the side, and received a lot of recommendations. How long did all this take to accumulate, if you don't mind me asking.

Lastly- do you think there's a way an average student could get to this point? Where I live, people are sort of anti-military, so I have no real support in this endeavour. Any other thoughts you have would be appreciated.

Kellcat · Aug 7, 2016

Posted twice by accident

lasarazen · Aug 10, 2016

Interesting about your hippie HS!! Weird, they are doing a disservice to all their students. Anyways!

To answer your questions in reverse order:

1. Average student: if you mean grades-wise, possibly. "Average" to me means in that range you mentioned, 3.5 - 3.8; not to sound like a snob, but GPAs reflect effort as much as they do intelligence and the military wants people that throw everything they have into an endeavor. I achieved a 3.95 GPA as a mother of a preschooler who's spouse deployed frequently. There is NO excuse for anyone with less obligations than I to achieve less, IMHO.

DON'T FORGET though...in any branch, you will be a Sailor/Soldier/Airman FIRST, and a nurse SECOND. For application purposes, this means you need to demonstrate some kind leadership ability - think volunteerism, think creating/directing community projects, along those lines. Think outside the box - I started a local FB community for nursing students who are Veterans, pretty informal, but it made an impact and I even got my nursing school and the university's Military Student Services Center to endorse it. If you are into any kind of sports (running, biking, swimming etc), look into Team RWB (Team Red, White & Blue - Home), it is an organization dedicated to further the lives of Veterans thru community outreach (usually via physical activities like races etc) - there are local chapters all over the country. Team RWB is always looking for volunteers and will usually have leadership opportunities open to anyone who wishes to step up. This would look AMAZING on a young person's application. Or you can look into volunteering at a nursing home or Veteran's home. Anyways, those are just some examples of things that can make your kit (application packet) shine above the rest.

2. Application process: well I already had a Bachelor's so I got to jump in mid-stream to a BSN program at the University of Texas in the city I'm in. That was 5 semesters (pre-nursing is one semester before you start the "meat" of nursing school) - not counting the generic Bachelor's degree courses that I got to bypass. I didn't take a summer break, so actual nursing school was a little over 2 yrs. I was hired at my ER job before I even passed my NCLEX - I graduated May 2015 and went to work that July. I did EXACTLY 12 months at that job, it all just happily worked out that 2 days before my last day, I got my selection letter! And I took all those certs pretty much within those 12 months (except ACLS and PALS, which I did during winter break before my last semester).

I started working on the elements of my kit in February 2016 or thereabouts. The Navy only requires 3 months of RN experience to "credential" you as an RN (in my case, I am credentialed as an ER/Trauma nurse) - so I was in like flint for that portion. BUT I had a lot more to do for my kit than you will, I am prior service Army so that's more paperwork; also I had to clear up some medical clearance issues (THAT was a whole huge hot mess in itself lol). I have an EXCELLENT recruiter which made a world of difference. Not every recruiter would push so aggressively as mine did. Even with her efforts, I had a LOT of admin hoops to jump thru (mostly related to the medical stuff), so we were aiming for the April board , but I wasn't medically cleared by then, so I got rolled to the next board...and the next...lol. Finally got put in for the June board and found out as I mentioned in early July. I would say 3 to 6 months or longer is not uncommon to complete a kit - I would not start one with less than 3 months unless you had a SUPER motivated recruiter lol.

3. Personnel needs of the Navy: even the recruiters don't know what the follow fiscal year's needs will be exactly until they get the billets from NAVPERSCOM. My recruiter was VERY forthcoming and reviewed the past few years' billets with me to give me an idea of what a crap shoot it is lol!! One year can have 12 ER slots, the next year 2 slots (or 0!). And these days, with the battlefield changing as it is...who knows what it will be like in the future.

ONE constant I can tell you about (and this is true for Army and Air Force as well) - they need perioperative nurses BAD. Now, this is a catch-22 because in most areas, you cannot get an OR job as a new grad nurse. BUT! If you live in an underserved area like I do, there are new grad nurses being hired into periop since hospitals are so short of them, and they are doing something like an extended preceptorship to get new RNs trained up for the OR - I very nearly accepted a job just like this, but I couldn't do the on-call requirements with having my son and my husband gone all the time. SO! If this field interests you, look into that possibility.

In general, across the board, all service branches are cutting all classes of personnel. But there are always people retiring or getting out, etc. DON'T let yourself get discouraged, you have SO much more time to achieve your goal of being a Navy Nurse!! I am turning 40 in September, it took me this long a** road to get where I wanted to be :) But here I am and I am not letting go lol. Don't be scared to get the eff out of whatever area you live in - if you don't have kids or an unwilling spouse, GO where your dreams are! Go start your nursing career in San Diego or Newport, big Naval medicine hubs, somewhere other than where you are now.

4. Navy Nurse is a Navy Nurse - I have yet to get to my first duty station, but after EXTENSIVE research into Navy nursing opportunities (and having been around military bases in my time) I can tell you there is a huge rainbow of possibilities for you as a nurse. There are nurses on ships, as well as the hospital ships (USNS Mercy and USNS Comfort) - as for the hospital ships, I hear that there are actually waiting lists to get assigned on them, they are highly sought after positions. I think there's someone here on Allnurses that is currently on a fleet ship (not hospital ship) I can't think of their name tho. What I was offered for my first duty station choices were Newport (one of the Big Three naval hospitals), several Marine bases, and Naval Hospital Jacksonville - all are ER positions. I'm hoping to get the chance to deploy once I get settled. I do know that Navy nurses can end up in hospitals/forward clinics in combat theaters (such as Kandahar, Afghanistan, where I was deployed). It's my general impression that nursing jobs on ships are far less numerous than the jobs on land - i.e., not every job type will go to sea, or at least not on a regular basis (anyone with more experience is welcome to correct me on that tho!).

I hope this helps if just a little bit. Keep that fire that you have!!!

Kellcat · Aug 11, 2016

Hey thank you for providing such great information! I think I'm starting to see how much work this is going to be, but I'm far to invested in this future to call it quits just because it sounds hard, lol.

Most of my family has no idea that I'm interested in joining the Navy- except my father. He was enlisted and served on the USS Nimitz. He supports my desire to join, but things have changed so much since he was in the Navy that he doesn't know what the process of applying is like now. Again, thank you for giving me some insight on that.

I think my first step is to prove myself through my grades. This is something I definitely struggle with, but getting into a four year university will likely help with that. I also really need to get out of my parents house. I am never able to get work done there, I have no car, and even though I am eighteen I am "not allowed" to leave whenever I want. Once I achieve my BSN I might move to an area that I can work in better and that would give me better access to the Navy. San Diego would be amazing, lol.

I am extremely interested in preoperative nursing. I mean, at this point in my life I am interested in almost any kind of nursing, but if there's a need for it, ill definitely look into aligning myself on that career path.

Thanks again for the wealth of information you've given me! Congratulations on your career success too!

lasarazen · Aug 12, 2016

Thanks, you're welcome, and fair winds and following seas to you!!! :) Feel free to PM whenever you like, I will definitely have more useful info to share once I get underway at my duty station in November. :)

vinstafa · Aug 22, 2016

GPA isn't the end all be all for deciding your acceptance into the Nurse Corps. My GPA wasn't great and I got accepted first look, so don't think because you didn't have a 4.0 you won't be accepted. The board looks at your entire package and every piece has importance, especially references and interviews with NC officers.

The Navy does place nurses everywhere, but for your first tour as a new grad you will be at one of the big three (Portsmouth, Bethesda or San Diego). Being on a ship or assigned to a FST (fleet surgical team) are more like a second or third tour, and reserved for ER and ICU nurses, sometimes OR nurses as well.

As of now, deployments are minimizing for the NC. Unless you are a ships nurse, FST, or assigned to a Marine battalion, the main deployment opportunities are the Role 3 (ER/ICU/OR nurses) and hospital ships which take all flavors of nurses.