Military Nursing and working overseas

[alexaway]

Hi All,

Out of curiosity which military branch(es) would allow me the widest opportunity to be stationed overseas, mainly Europe? It would be a main motivating factor in my becoming a nurse officer. Also how much say would a new nurse officer have in choosing his or her station? Are some branches of the military better about this than others?

I am in an accelerated nursing program (Masters for people holding non nursing degrees) and I know I have a long way to go with finishing school and getting experience, but it is something that excites me about the field and I think the military would be my best chance to be a nurse overseas. Thank you for your responses!

[jfratian, DNP, RN, CRNA]

I would not join the military solely to work as a nurse in Europe. That's just not a big enough reason to undertake such a big commitment. That's not going to end well for you.

There certainly are opportunities in all branches to go to Europe, but they are few and far between these days. You certainly get some say, but you don't get enough say to really feel confident at all about getting what you want. Ultimately, they can send you wherever they want. Plus, overseas is overall difficult to get. The reason is that the bulk of the slots for nurses are actually stateside. For the Air Force, I can tell you that the big needs overseas are actually Turkey, South Korea, and Northern Japan. Europe is kinda a pipe dream.

Based on my knowledge of the Air Force, I would encourage you to apply for a GS job(civilian U.S. government job) in Europe or apply for a work visa in a European country. The military doesn't seem like a good fit for you.

[Lunah, MSN, RN]

I agree with jfratian - if that is your motivation, definitely look for civilian positions once you have some nursing experience. GS civilian jobs are listed on usajobs.gov. Your chances of being stationed in Europe are pretty slim, especially as a new military nurse. One thing to understand about the military is that unless you have a strong desire to serve, giving up personal freedoms ultimately becomes a bitter pill if you aren't where you want to be. Best of luck in the rest of your RN program.

[alexaway]

Thanks guys, it's not the my only reasoning but I am also asking out of curiosity. I'm not in real decision making mode yet because of being in school so it's fun to entertain different possibilities. I have a friend who married a guy who I believe is in the Navy. Anyway they lived in Hawaii for a few years and are now living outside of Amsterdam. I was like "woah, dreamssss." He's not a nurse but it makes me interested in what's out there. I promise you all I won't join the military as a nurse just because I think I'll be partying it up in London or Berlin every night. More trying to find what's out there for years and years down the road.