YAY! I made it - I graduated from COT yesterday and am now on my way to my first duty station, Lackland AFB/Wilford Hall Medical Center in San Antonio, TX!
I was going to post a nice "column", if you would, on my experience, and I still might - but feel free to post any questions you have here and I'll answer what I can.
It's not so bad (but remember, I'm prior enlisted), but I won't say it's easy. Compared to BOT (the regular officer's training that lasts 13 weeks) and compared to what the Army does to get the same direct commission, it's a cakewalk - but it's not "knife and fork" school, so don't let your recruiter fool you. Some of the civilians experienced a bit of culture shock - but trust me when I say it was nothing like BMT.
Look, I'm just honored that my posts are helpful. :0) Congrats and take some time while you're in COT to actually smell the figurative roses - it is going to FLY by...
(And keep in mind that a certain Captain isn't as bad as he seems - when he yells at you in the DFAC about your heels being together and do you think you're in the buffet line at the Golden Corral - I've had a drink with him in the O Club and he's actually pretty funny, but don't tell him I said that!)
i got the call from my recruiter this morning too. i will go in May COT instead of March...then NTP in Scottsdale and stationed at Travis! i'm happy i got my first choice of AD base.
anybody else going or has gone to Scottsdale for NTP? my recruiter told me it's a new major hospital. i'm excited to be there.
I will also be going to scottsdale NTP and Travis as my assignment (my first choice as well). Do you know anything about the scottsdale hospital. Its new? I go to COT on Monday.. eek!
All I have to say is, if you want to make friends and keep them, stay away from the Social Officer position. Unless things have changed, they are the ones that have to collect money from everyone starting day one and ending the day before graduation. I was the group Social Officer (in a group of 300+ people) and EVERYONE knew who I was because I was always coming by to collect for something. I'm lucky to have made it out alive :)
I don't know much about the hospital, but I know the area around it has tons of great restaurants and is really close to the best mall in all of Phoenix (in my opinion, if I remember correctly!) I'm glad for the restaurants since we'll be getting per diem while we're there... There will be a lot of options when we ask ourselves "which restaurant do we want to go to today?" I'll have a car there, too...
I don't know much about the hospital, but I know the area around it has tons of great restaurants and is really close to the best mall in all of Phoenix (in my opinion, if I remember correctly!) I'm glad for the restaurants since we'll be getting per diem while we're there... There will be a lot of options when we ask ourselves "which restaurant do we want to go to today?" I'll have a car there, too...
what does per diem mean? Thats cool, and that state has great weather!
Specializes in ED. ICU, PICU, infection prevention, aeromedical e.
I'm in Phoenix. If you are coming to NTP in Scottsdale in the summer, be aware it is HOT. lol. After 20 years I'm used to it. There is a ton of great stuff to do in Scottsdale. And if you have time, I would love to join you for at one of the great restaurants to celebrate your success! (and pick your brain about cot!)
Good luck Jess... don't you have a plane to catch?!
Specializes in Med/Surg, PCU, Geriatrics, Family Practi.
Carolinapooh,
Congrats! I just found out I was accepted into the Air Force myself. I will also be stationed at Wilford Hall in the NICU and going to COT in March! I was wondering if you could give me some in sight on everything there and what to expect? If you could pm me that would be great. I don't think I have posted enough to pm you.
THX!!!
Hey Jazzy...I don't know if you heard but we have a facebook page USAF COT Class 10-03. Come visit us if you haven't yet.:)
I don't know much about the hospital, but I know the area around it has tons of great restaurants and is really close to the best mall in all of Phoenix (in my opinion, if I remember correctly!) I'm glad for the restaurants since we'll be getting per diem while we're there... There will be a lot of options when we ask ourselves "which restaurant do we want to go to today?" I'll have a car there, too...
You don't get a whole lot of per diem because you'll be drawing BAS - I think your per diem is only something like $3.30 a day.
And for the other person who asked, "per diem" is Latin for "per day" - meaning a certain amount of money you draw a day.
First of all - Congratulations on your graduation!
Secondly, I found out in November that my NTP and my duty station is Lackland (Wilford) in L/D. Thanks so much for all the great information about COT that you've provided, I just have a few questions about Wilford specifically. I would really appreciate it if you could give me your opinion about Wilford and Lackland, or maybe some direct pointers on how to get "settled" in the area. Also, I know that the base realignment is happening as we speak, but do you know when the hospital is actually consolidating across town?
as far as extra supplies for COT, what kind of 'school supplies' are needed? i bought a black backpack yesterday...and i assume pens/highlighters and that sort of thing but what about notebooks, binders, notebook paper, computer paper...do we need a lot of supplies like that and if so do they all need to be black/dark and plain?
also, in the welcome packet link on the cot website there is a question that asks if you would want a leadership position while at cot- would it be to my advantage to say 'yes'? i kind of wanted to say 'no' so i might not have as much to worry about but didn't want to kick myself later...not sure where that question may take me.
as far as extra supplies for COT, what kind of 'school supplies' are needed? i bought a black backpack yesterday...and i assume pens/highlighters and that sort of thing but what about notebooks, binders, notebook paper, computer paper...do we need a lot of supplies like that and if so do they all need to be black/dark and plain?
also, in the welcome packet link on the cot website there is a question that asks if you would want a leadership position while at cot- would it be to my advantage to say 'yes'? i kind of wanted to say 'no' so i might not have as much to worry about but didn't want to kick myself later...not sure where that question may take me.
A laptop and a printer is probably the most useful thing to bring to COT.
I took a printer, but I only used it about a half-a-dozen times, and it was impossible to use a personal laptop for anything other than, well, personal stuff because all the Fed connections are locked up tighter than Fort Knox. We used my printer to print photos to put up on our flight bulletin board! If you don't have a portable printer, don't bother buying one just for COT. I took my laptop because I was going to take it anyway - I was going straight from Maxwell to Lackland, so my car was full of wonderful things. Plus, I like to write and journal, so I did all that on my personal laptop. Take some blank CD-RWs, though, because you can't use flash drives on government computers anymore, and if you wanted to build a document on your own laptop for ease of use, you'll need the CD to transfer it.
Take copy paper, though, because if you want anything printed it will be useful to use your own paper. I'd take at least a ream.
Take favorite pens, highlighters, sticky notes, and a looseleaf notebook. The black backpack is a smart thing to have; I stopped in Atlanta and bought one on my way down.
You can tell them you want a leadership position, but there aren't that many available. I was the wing Admin Officer, and it wasn't that bad - but I wasn't there during the summer surge; I can't imagine doing what I did with three hundred-plus people (we had just over a hundred). If you don't want one, don't ask or volunteer for one; it's really not that huge of a deal (at least I didn't think it was).
I like San Antonio; there's lots of stuff to do here, great shopping, and the people are nice. Be aware, though, when you're apartment/house hunting, the neighborhoods around here drop off really quick and go from really good to really bad so choose carefully. The hospital is indeed in the process of moving across town to BAMC, but don't let that be a deciding factor in where you live. I live on the Lackland side of SA and BAMC is less than a twenty minute drive from me; there are so many interstates around here that you're really not far from anything. Traffic can be horrendous, though, especially at rush hour. It's a typical large city in that respect.
I like Wilford Hall; I have a lot of respect and regard for our command section here. We are our own wing (you'll learn about Air Force structure at COT), and we reside on Lackland Air Force Base but operate independently of the 37th Training Wing (which is actually what IS Lackland Air Force Base). So when our commander, Gen Travis, makes a decision, we have essentially a hospital administrator/doctor running our hospital and not a pilot (many wing and group commanders are pilots) who may or may not know what is best for a hospital and for patient care. And we are subject to the rules of our wing commander, not that of Lackland's colonel.
Incidentally, the last commander of Wilford Hall was a nurse!
I believe I'm right in saying the consolidated hospitals will be run by an Air Force officer, and the Lackland-Sam Houston hookup will be headed by an Air Force officer as well.
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carolinapooh, BSN, RN
3,577 Posts
Look, I'm just honored that my posts are helpful. :0) Congrats and take some time while you're in COT to actually smell the figurative roses - it is going to FLY by...
(And keep in mind that a certain Captain isn't as bad as he seems - when he yells at you in the DFAC about your heels being together and do you think you're in the buffet line at the Golden Corral - I've had a drink with him in the O Club and he's actually pretty funny, but don't tell him I said that!)