I'm in the process of applying for the Air Force as a new BSN/RN grad, and I'm anxious about the interviews (as well as MEPS and COT). From what I have read and heard, the NP is a phone interview and the chief nurse is in-person. How are the interviews like? What kind of questions do they ask? Are they the same kind of questions that are asked at civilian hospitals? Is it more or less intense? Please tell me any pointers as to what kind of questions I should focus on thinking about so that I don't fumble during the interview. Any pointers will be great!
I thank you all in advance. I love allnurses.com. It helps relieve at least half of my anxiety that's been fast approaching as I try to find my place in the nursing field.
I also interviewed at Scott but Col. Farley was brand new. I think he had only been on the base a week or so. I interviewed with Lt. Col Juliette Robinson who is over the Aeromedical evac operation. They are not a part of the base officially but the hq is located there. It was awesome. The first five maybe ten minutes were a general discussion about me, my qualifications, my specialty interest (cardiac-tele). She made sure that I understood the mission statement, core values, etc and asked if I felt okay carrying a weapon if I were to be deployed. She also explained how to move rank and grow professionally in the AF.
The rest of the interview was spent on the flight line watching an aeromedical evac operation. I was able to tour plane they use to transport soldiers, speak with the flight crew, see a C-130 tanker plane and watch the transfer of wounded warriors from Andrews to planes going closer to home. It was awesome. I didn't know if it was an interview or a field trip some of the time. lol.
Hello - Do you know who does the chief nurse interview at Lackland, because that is where I will be interviewing because I am in San Antonio. The reason I ask is because I have been reading this thread and they mention specific names of people in the Air Force that do chief nurse interviews... I have some neuro experience, some ortho experience, and a little bit of stepdown ICU experience. any help will be greatly appreciated. Thanks. I hope to interview next Monday... the clock is ticking until game day.
Thanks - Sachin
QUOTE=carolinapooh;3791275]Know the mission of the Air Force and the core values; I feel certain you'll be asked about them. When/if they ask you patient care questions, if you're unsure of the answer, there is ABSOLUTELY nothing wrong with saying you might not feel completely sure of what to do and you'd seek out the assistance of a more experienced colleague (the answer in the Air Force, or any branch for that matter, is NEVER 'I don't know'). If it's about something you're unfamiliar with, I personally think it's appropriate to say you'd use all resources at your disposal to get the answer (like an unfamiliar drug or procedure). Remember your ABC's, though - you'll almost never go wrong with that if you start there.
Have a solid answer as to WHY you want to cross into the blue - make sure it's more than flag waving (although a bit of that never hurt anyone either). I'd say it's a given that you want to serve our country and saying it never hurt anyone.
If you need a moment to think about an answer, take it - don't rush in with the first thing that pops into your head.
Be uber-professional; remember to address the interviewer as sir or ma'am.
Dress appropriately - it disturbs me when folks ignore this one thing that's the most important because this is one time you REALLY don't get a second chance to make a first impression! I wore a suit (because I own three of them), but if you don't have a suit, just dress as professionally as possible, and if you don't own anything appropriate (some folks just don't, and that's OK), invest in something nice if you can (you don't have to spend a fortune to do this, either). I don't know if you're male or female, but if you're female, you don't HAVE to wear a skirt; dress slacks are quite appropriate. If you are a girl, easy on makeup, and if you have long hair, I'd recommend pulling it up. Look the part as much as you can walking in the door; it will go a long way for you.
Don't be nervous (easier said than done, I know) - you'll do fine! Keep us posted and good luck!
I don't remember her name, but she was a O-6 who had specialized in OB in her early years, but she was the HEAD nurse, so she didn't do OB there.
She was SUPER nice and easy to interview with. We basically talked the entire time, wasn't much of an interview.
Look nice. She will ask a time when you were faced with an ethical dilemma. Ask you about your fitness (want to make sure you are fit to be in the military), ask about the AF mission and core values. Short/long-term goals? Why AF? Why nursing?
Okay, from reading these threads on the CN interview with the Air Force, I have three more questions:
1. Does the chief nurse interviews favor prior service? I am thinking they would because that shows a person's loyalty.
2. Can someone tell me the name of the chief nurse at Lackland and if he or she is nice and not intimidating?
3. Does the Air Force favor brand new fresh nurses out of school or do they favor nurses with a little bit of experience? I only ask this because I only have about 15 months of nursing right now.
4. Any other tips from people who have already interviewed are always welcome. I am on pins and needles waiting to interview. It may be early as Monday the 21st of December or after the holidays.
I don't remember her name, but she was a O-6 who had specialized in OB in her early years, but she was the HEAD nurse, so she didn't do OB there.
She was SUPER nice and easy to interview with. We basically talked the entire time, wasn't much of an interview.
Look nice. She will ask a time when you were faced with an ethical dilemma. Ask you about your fitness (want to make sure you are fit to be in the military), ask about the AF mission and core values. Short/long-term goals? Why AF? Why nursing?
VERY EASY interview.
Our chief RN here (I'm at Wilford Hall) is an O5.
But the rest is correct - she's awesome. I actually had my welcome interview with her on Friday and she is one of the nicest people I've ever met. May or may not have been the same person.
I am joining the Air Force. My recruiter told me that I would be meeting the Jan. 26 deadline for having everything done, including the MEPS and the Chief Nurse interview. He told me that the COT class I would be able to get into should I be accepted will be at the end of May. I will be going to the Wright-Patterson AFB in Ohio for my interview. Anyone else gone there for an interview?
I am supposed to go to Wight-Patterson to interview, but nothing has been set up yet. I keep getting screwed in some way or another. So not sure when this will happen. My recruiter is really familiar with everyone there and said that he would rather me go there to interview.
You will pay federal tax on your pay overseas because you are an employee of the federal government that is not tax-exempt. You will also pay state income tax if your state of residence requires it. The military is never tax-free on your base pay, only on allowances.
I spent three years in Saudi Arabia, was deployed twice, and was once extended TDY to Germany. You will always be taxed overseas. Contractors aren't up to the first eighty thousand dollars, and private citizens working overseas aren't up to the first eighty grand, but the military always is.
I was just reading through this post and wanted to add my experience from the Army standpoint in regards to taxing and deployments. When a service member is deployed to a combat zone (Iraq, Afghanistan, etc.), base pay is not taxed federally, you are taxed on the SS/Medicare side though. There is a cap for officers, which is the maximum enlisted pay. My husband is on his 3rd deployment and each time his pay is exempt from federal taxes. I don't know when this was put into effect, but it has been this way since his first deployment in 2004.
I was just reading through this post and wanted to add my experience from the Army standpoint in regards to taxing and deployments. When a service member is deployed to a combat zone (Iraq, Afghanistan, etc.), base pay is not taxed federally, you are taxed on the SS/Medicare side though. There is a cap for officers, which is the maximum enlisted pay. My husband is on his 3rd deployment and each time his pay is exempt from federal taxes. I don't know when this was put into effect, but it has been this way since his first deployment in 2004.
There's a difference in being paid in a combat zone and your regular duty pay. What you're referencing has been in effect since the First Gulf War, since the 1990s (I know this because I never paid taxes while deployed when I was enlisted). What the original post was talking about was regular pay - which you will pay federal income tax on if you're stationed overseas. Deployments are different - any pay earned while you're deployed in support of a combat operation does not have federal income tax withheld. That's actually a federal mandate, not a service-specific deal; no one's pay is taxed in support of combat ops.
There's a difference in being paid in a combat zone and your regular duty pay. What you're referencing has been in effect since the First Gulf War, since the 1990s (I know this because I never paid taxes while deployed when I was enlisted). What the original post was talking about was regular pay - which you will pay federal income tax on if you're stationed overseas. Deployments are different - any pay earned while you're deployed in support of a combat operation does not have federal income tax withheld. That's actually a federal mandate, not a service-specific deal; no one's pay is taxed in support of combat ops.
My misunderstanding...I thought when you said that the base pay was never tax exempt that it was more of a generalized statement, not specific to overseas pay. Sorry about that! :)
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HNELLA
114 Posts
I am also in the Jan boards, but I was informed that the earliest COT is May or possibly Aug.