Joining Air Force Reserves

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Some questions about joining the Air Force Reserve as a nurse with a bachelors degree in nursing. (I would like to be a psychiatric/mental health nurse.)

1) What location in the United States is the best unit to join as a nurse in the Air Force reserve? (Ex. Baltimore, MD; San Diego, California; Phoenix, AZ, etc.?) 

2)Would I be able to serve as a mental health/psych nurse in the reserves?

3) Would the reserves pay for you to get a MHPNP degree and if so, what might that look like as far as years of service and if it would be active duty as a NP etc.

4) What are the pros and cons of joining the Air Force reserves as a Nurse Officer?

I will appreciate any information, I don't know anything at all about the military, but am very interested in going this route, I have worked as a nurse for about 7 years (I became a nurse in my 30's, so I was not young when I became one and therefore my path looks different than perhaps younger nurses who might have a different career path/goals) I have always been supportive of the military and would feel privileged to be a part of it! 

Thanks in advance! 

 

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Specializes in Adult Critical Care.

The age limit for healthcare officers in the Air Force is 48.  Men must have body fat %<26% and women <36%.  You must be a U.S. citizen with a BSN from a U.S. nursing school.  Assuming you have all that, contact a healthcare officer recruiter near you using the Air Force website's "find a recruiter" feature.

There are mental health nursing slots in the Air Force Reserve, however there aren't any opportunities for deployment in that role.  Deployment is really the whole job in the reserves; you're a call up list that meets once a month.   There isn't any inpatient psych in a deployed location; they get shipped home.  That essentially means that you'll be limited to drilling one weekend a month with no mission; to me that wouldn't be very fulfilling.

If the military reserves is something you really want to do, I would encourage you to look at changing specialties.  

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