Hospital Corpsman to Navy Nursing

jeckrn, BSN, RN · May 24, 2014

You will not be able to work much as a HM in the civilian world. The most you will be able to work as is a EMT ir CNA since you do not have the right papers. Others have stated that there are was to transfer the training to help you get your RN. They are listed in this forum so with a little reasearch you should be able to find the contact of others who went this route. They should be able to point you in the right direction.

jfratian, DNP, RN, CRNA · May 24, 2014

You won't have the time to complete a BSN on active duty. The only time I've ever heard of enlisted medics becoming nurses or PAs is through special enlisted commissioning programs that allow one to go back to school full-time. Those programs are very competitive and not guaranteed. There is no way to fit the clinical rotations into the crazy rotating days/nights/weekends schedules that many healthcare people work on active duty.

If you don't mind getting experience for 4-6 years, separating for a few years and then going back to school on the GI Bill, then I say go for it. I have heard of medics successfully challenging for LPN. However, there aren't a lot of LPN to RN programs that I'm aware of in existence. Do the research to find those programs that credit LPN experience before you start this journey.

RunBabyRN · May 24, 2014

I would get your CNA certification, and work as a CNA while you do your nursing stuff. HMs can't do a thing in the civilian world more than a CNA can (in CA, we can't even do EMT). Enlisting doesn't guarantee you a commission as a Navy Nurse Corps officer. You may also have to drill on a weekend when you have a major exam or something. You don't know what your school schedule is yet. I know one of the schools that has clinicals where I did is there on Saturday nights. You can't make up clinicals, and you can get dropped from the program for missing them.

Also, the scope of practice as a HM is very different than a nurse, and the thought process is as well. CNAs learn more about nursing, which is part of why I often suggest it for people planning to pursue this field.

Zii2013 · May 25, 2014

Thanks for all of your advice ! I was planning on going into reserves before I go active , I was aware that I have to go to A school to become before I can go back to school. My recruiter told me that I shouldn't be off track and able to complete school . So should I wait till I graduate or go ahead and join to use the financial assistance for school? and I'm also sure the school would be aware that I'm in the military and work around the monthly drills ?

RunBabyRN · May 25, 2014

Thanks for all of your advice ! I was planning on going into reserves before I go active , I was aware that I have to go to A school to become before I can go back to school. My recruiter told me that I shouldn't be off track and able to complete school . So should I wait till I graduate or go ahead and join to use the financial assistance for school? and I'm also sure the school would be aware that I'm in the military and work around the monthly drills ?

Clinicals aren't flexible, and schools don't make exceptions for people, even military, when they have hundreds of other candidates who CAN attend all clinicals. Also, be aware that recruiters will say anything and everything (I've had friends who were recruiters). They CANNOT guarantee when you'll go to boot camp and A school and when you'll return home. You won't know that until you go to MEPS, and even then, that's only when you'll ship out. It means nothing about when you'll class up, and you can be at both boot camp and A school for weeks before you class up (which means that the clock doesn't start ticking until you class up). You won't know when you'll be home until just before it happens. There's also the risk that you get rolled back, which can happen for any number of reasons, including medical or educational or even failing your swim test. If you've already been accepted into a program, don't risk everything to go into the reserves, and if you haven't, don't limit yourself by cutting down your availability, especially if you still have to work on top of all of this. Wait until you have your RN and are eligible to commission. Also, be aware that the Nurse Corps is requiring prior RN experience at this point- they are NOT accepting new grads.

Zii2013 · May 25, 2014

Thank you , that helped a lot.

Zii2013 · May 25, 2014

What was your path through out your time in the navy ? how did you reach the goal of becoming a RN after being a hospital corpsman ?

jfratian, DNP, RN, CRNA · May 25, 2014

I assume you're asking the other guy. In case your not, I was never enlisted. I direct-commissioned as an experienced RN. I'm also Air Force---not Navy. Although you need a very high GPA to even be eligible to apply (3.5 right now I think), the Air Force is still taking a small number of new grad RNs right now.

RunBabyRN · May 25, 2014

What was your path through out your time in the navy ? how did you reach the goal of becoming a RN after being a hospital corpsman ?

Not sure if this was directed toward me, but I'll answer.

I went into the Navy in 2003. I had to wait 11 months from the time I went to MEPS to the time I went to boot camp (I was ready to go that day if I'd had my way, but that was the wait back then). Our boot camp division classed up after a couple of weeks, and corps school classed up after a week or two as well. When I graduated from A school, I'd been in about 6 months. I then PCSed to Rhode Island, where I worked in a clinic in a variety of departments. I was medically discharged in 2005.

While I was working as a corpsman, I realized I really enjoyed women's health, and considered becoming an OB, but with time saw that midwifery was more my style, and so I've slowly been on the path toward this goal ever since. I used my GIB (first Montgomery GIB then Post-9/11 when that came out) for my prereqs, and then used vocational rehab through the VA (due to my disability rating) for my BSN program (voc rehab basically extends your Post-9/11 benefits for one extra year or until you reach a specific goal, lots of messy details). I just graduated with my BSN earlier this month, but along the way have gotten married and become a mom.

Zii2013 · May 25, 2014

Congratulations ! , but I see that if I join now it will be a long time before I can get back to school , considering the long process that I have to go through. I really want to go because working as a Corpsman sounds like a great job that I will enjoy and giving back to the country at the same time. Just really confused how to go about everything.

RunBabyRN · May 25, 2014

Congratulations ! , but I see that if I join now it will be a long time before I can get back to school , considering the long process that I have to go through. I really want to go because working as a Corpsman sounds like a great job that I will enjoy and giving back to the country at the same time. Just really confused how to go about everything.

I think the first thing you need to decide is if you want to be a corpsman or if you want to be a nurse. If you sign up as a reservist, it's usually an 8 year commitment (unless things have changed a lot since I was in). That would interfere a lot with nursing school, unfortunately. What about waiting until you have your RN, and going in as a nurse? If you're already on that path, continue to do so. My corpsman experience was great, and I REALLY enjoyed my job. I got some great experience that helped me in my prereqs and nursing school. BUT it would frustrate me now that I'm in nursing to go back to being a corpsman.

It's great that you want to give back to the country, and I encourage you to pursue that. Just be sure you're on the right career path for YOU when you do so.

If you choose to wait until you're a nurse, be sure to get in touch with an OFFICER recruiter (NOT the same as the regular recruiter) to go from there.

For fun, if you haven't already, research USNS Mercy and Comfort. If you ever get to do any disaster relief, you may see some time on one of these as a reservist. I got to tour the Comfort once, AMAZING!!