New Grad nurse wanting to join the Army

[nursefitz23]

I have read almost all the feeds from regarding the army. I have contacted army recruiters, and no one has called me or emailed back. I have emailed directly to the AMEDD recruiter. I was told by the National Guard Nurse Recruiter that there was no need for nurses in my state. I tried to set three appointments to meet here without any success. After the third attempt, she told me she scheduled another appointment with someone else and never heard from her again. I tried to email her with no response.

I am motivated and driven. I signed up for a three year BSN program and completing it in 2 years. I am 26 years old finishing my BSN in May. I currently work for the same private practice for the past two years (jobs here are very tight, and require a BSN). I have worked with the Medical Reserve Corp in my state. I was an EMT prior to becoming a nurse.

I have to admit after reading some of the posts; I am feeling like it's going to be a tough road ahead of me. This is a dream of mine and I am willing to put in the effort. The only issue I have found is my GPA. I was not the strongest student when I first went to college. I was never the strongest student in the class, but I worked hard. Now that I have returned for my BSN, I have gotten all As and Bs but has not significantly changed my GPA. My GPA is not where. I would like to be. I'm looking for any advice, suggestions, comments.I am a little lost on what to do. I want to thank everyone for their imput and advice.

[jkesler]

If you are strongly interested in joining the military one there is another option. Focus on finishing your BSN and then go to work in a high demand area such as ICU, Psych Nursing, or Emergency Nursing. Once you have one or two years experience in those areas then talk to an AMEDD recruiter. The attitude change may surprise you.

Caveat #1 if they direct commission you as an ICU nurse be sure the recruiter puts it in WRITING. If it isn't in writing he or she is LYING to you. LOL

You talked about the National Guard. Have you talked to an Army Reserve recruiter? Air Force, Navy, Coast Guard and Public Health Service also recruit nurses. the PHS is an interesting branch that uses Navy ranks and sends healthcare workers to places such as Indian reservations or inner city public hospitals. If you want to get "combat" experience there is a job for you.

A third option, although you are almost too late with already acquiring your BSN, is to talk to the ROTC. Find an ROTC adviser on campus and talk to them. They may not recruit you for the ROTC but they may have contacts with the recruiting command and may know someone who will help.

[miatagirl707]

I hope you can find the right recruiter for the Army, but if not or while you are waiting go talk to the Air Force. We are all serving the same country, USA!

[nursefitz23]

If i could get to talk to someone I would tell them that I am one semester away. I have talked to the guard didn't get much of a response except they are not looking for nuses. I contacted the air force and have heard nothing back from the I am too late for ROTC. My university does have a ROTC program but they said it is too late seeing this is my last semester. I checked the PHS and they are not taking anymore applicants. I have done my research and put in some leg work. This is something you work hard for and thats what I am doing.

[jkesler]

you probably have checked with just about everyone but just in case try looking at this link Nurses | GoArmy.com

They have some links that allow you to search for a recruiter and/or contact them directly. The drawdown is impacting the medical people and the financial uncertainty at the moment isn't helping. But, I do know that we always seem to need nurses.

And that is part of the paradox. I know we are short on nurses but the recruiters may not be recruiting depending on if they have met thier recruiting goals already and other factors. If you live in an area where the recruiting goals are low you may need to actually find a recruiter from an area who is having trouble filling his allotment.

[Enthused RN, BSN, RN]

OP - I just wanted to pass along a bit of information to you. I am starting up applications and per the Army, they are now only considering nurses with at least 6 months of nursing experience for the Nurse Corps. So obviously no new grads. I received this information in an email yesterday when I posted a question with the online recruiter. I then received a call later on from a recruiter who confirmed that is a new requirement.

As far as I know, USAF and Navy still take new grads.