Nurse Enlisted Commissioning Program USAF

csbrock78 · May 23, 2010

I agree, quality is subjective. If it was just by the numbers then there wouldn't be as much stress. Maybe its not relevant but here is the exact quote emailed to me on 8 April. This was before all applications were in, im sure.

'There are 50 quotas available. However, if we don't have 50 "quality" applicants. We won't fill all 50.'

Take it how you want. Quality is in the eye of the beholder. Just trying to help letting you know what I went through and what I have been told. I truly hope all of you are selected. Best of luck

Casey

RDY 2B A RN · May 23, 2010

2012RN2b said:

Hey Rdy 2b- I just notice your at Scott. Jkdcgill03 and I are also at Scott.

yes I am at Scott and I conversate with Jkdcgill03 via email.

kynchanted · May 23, 2010

csbrock78 said:

the academic evaluation actually had me with a 3.47 overall GPA due to an error. they basically took one of my A's and made it a zero. I didn't find that out till after the board. I talked to the Col that was in charge and they said it wouldnt have made a difference and that they couldnt just reconvien the board to see if it would have made a difference. I still had a 4.0 science though. Actually my ch nurse couldnt believe I didn't make it either. One thing I had against me was I still had courses in progress but I had an acceptance letter from the nursing school. The school I was going to attend reserved slots for military. I wouldnt get your hopes down cause I don't think anyone really knows what the board is looking for. I don't know how you quantify it. that is probably why I did well with the PA board cause they very focused on your academics due to the fast pace. I really don't know what to tell you about the NECP board. I had a friend going to the same school I was and applying to the same nursing school and he got accepted. His GPA's were not as high as mine. Maybe they didn't like my letter. I was taking 15 cr hrs and working full time. Still don't understand that one. I do know that they had a high volume of quality aplicants last year. I think this year is down so you should have a good shot. As far as the PA program notification...I know my commander had the notification days before the release but had to wait to tell me. I would think it was similar for NECP. Hope all you guys make it. I just want to get out of Afghan.

Hi! A friend of mine was also accepted to the PA program...she is in the Aug 2011 class. Maybe you will meet her? Anyhoo, congrats to you both! ?

faye27 · May 23, 2010

csbrock78 said:

I had a 4.0 science GPA and an overall 3.61 GPA. All 5 eprs and a recommendation from my group commander. After that I came really close to getting out and just going to nursing school on the GI bill. I really don't know what they are looking for in applicants.

I just wanted to ask whether you had an unconditional acceptance to a nursing program and not a conditional one... conditional acceptance are, if I'm not mistaken, waitlisted form the get go... so if you had all these stats AND an unconditional acceptance yet you still didn't get picked up, then that is quite alarming...

SSGTALI · May 23, 2010

It's my understanding that if you don't have all the pre-requisites completed, you cannot get an unconditional letter of acceptance. Nursing schools want to make sure that you have everything accomplished before getting admitted into their program. I can see how that could have a detrimental affect on someone's overall application to NECP.

csbrock78 · May 25, 2010

kynchanted - i am also in the aug 2011 class but trying to move to the december.

faye27 - it was unconditional but i still had courses in progress at the time of application. in my school you can be accepted into the nursing program as long as you are able to finish the prereqs before the fall. also, the nursing advisor typed up a specific letter of acceptance just for the necp. my friend that was accepted into necp also had prereq classes in progress. when i talked to the col at dpamn after the board she said if they had a few more slots i probably would have been picked up. if i had all of the prereqs complete it would have probably made my application stronger. the prereq classes that were still in progress were a&p ii and chem. i think if you have all your classes complete prior to the board your chances are better. i ended up with a's but that board doesnt see that. i dont think the letter was the issue maybe the prereqs.

csbrock78 · May 25, 2010

csbrock78 i appreciate your story. and just to provide some support to your posted email, these are almost the exact same words i was told by mr. baker. he told me that they would not just fill the quota, they were seeking quality not necessarily quantity. i believe that is why they have change the number of selectees this year from an exact number to a range of 30-50. but it is what it is and you are right quality is in the eye of the beholder. and what the board was looking for last year is not the same simply b/c i am sure the board this year consisted of different people, so we know how that goes. one persons perception of a "quality applicant" may not necessarily be the same for the next board member. anywho congrats on your selection to pa, i hope everything goes well for you in that process. in the meantime keep your head down and up, get back home safe to your family!!!!

rdy 2b a rn thank you for your comments...yeah the only thing i am really worried about is just getting home in a few months. i will start worrying about school after that. it will be nice to see af people again. the army mentality it way different...i would have really cut it close if i had went into necp this year only getting back a few days before class started. wow, i am way off subject now. i think the necp should have a better way for the applicant to gage if they have a good chance to be accepted or not. the only thing they have is the gpa, epr's, dec's and what the ch nurse says. last year i truely thought i would be accepted but i guess i shouldnt have assumed.

airforceguy · May 26, 2010

kynchanted - i am also in the aug 2011 class but trying to move to the december.
faye27 - it was unconditional but i still had courses in progress at the time of application. in my school you can be accepted into the nursing program as long as you are able to finish the prereqs before the fall. also, the nursing advisor typed up a specific letter of acceptance just for the necp. my friend that was accepted into necp also had prereq classes in progress. when i talked to the col at dpamn after the board she said if they had a few more slots i probably would have been picked up. if i had all of the prereqs complete it would have probably made my application stronger. the prereq classes that were still in progress were a&p ii and chem. i think if you have all your classes complete prior to the board your chances are better. i ended up with a's but that board doesnt see that. i dont think the letter was the issue maybe the prereqs.

i would definitely say that not having the prereqs completed held you back. in fact, i emailed mr. b in may of last year asking about that very topic. i was projecting that i would still be completing prereqs specific to the school and wouldn't be finished until after the board met (i think philosophy and communication classes). my question was whether or not that would hold me back. the school ended up dropping those prereqs from the curriculum so i was able to finish everything before the board, but you might find his response interesting.

any prerequisites (other than those listed in the necp guidelines) that [school name removed] requires you to complete prior to being accepted, are between you and the school. i only care about the nursing prerequisites listed in the guidelines and whether they are completed prior to the board. normally the board is held during the first week of may so any nursing prerequisites not completed prior to that time will require you to wait an submit an application the following year.

given this response i'm surprised that the academic evaluation letter they sent you stated you met the criteria to apply.

i'm still a little hung up on the discussion of quality applicants but hopeful that this year's board focused on current academic success (as opposed to grades i got pre-af that drag my cumuluative gpa down)...i know there's always next year, but it's silly to think that the only way to raise my cumulative gpa to a more competetive level is to take classes i don't need/don't apply to nursing. i could take basketweaving, gym, etc. and make my gpa look better, but how will that make me a better nurse!? i would hope the a's i got in the last 2 years in a&p i/ii, chem, micro, and patho spoke loudly to this year's board...

kynchanted · May 26, 2010

Hello....I also had one outstanding prerequisite (I have not taken Chem II to date) but my academic eval said that I met all criteria to apply. Not sure if they looked at what schools I was applying to or what (the schools that I applied to did not require anything more than 4 S.H. of Chemistry with lab, also by the time I had my eval the rest of the courses were already completed). I know that as long as your degree plan shows that these courses are not a requirement, you do not need them even if they are an NECP requirement. I would think that it would be hard to waive A&P II though since I have not seen any schools (in my experience) that did not require 8 S.H. of A&P with labs. Not that these are the same, but my friend who was just accepted to the PA program tried to apply to it in 2008 (may have been 2007, can't remember for sure). She contacted the POC and she/he told her that she would have to wait another year since she had A&P II and Chem II in progress still and not completed.

faye27 · May 26, 2010

I'm still a little hung up on the discussion of quality applicants but hopeful that this year's board focused on current academic success (as opposed to grades I got pre-AF that drag my cumuluative gpa down)...I know there's always next year, but it's silly to think that the only way to raise my cumulative gpa to a more competetive level is to take classes I don't need/don't apply to nursing. I could take basketweaving, gym, etc. and make my gpa look better, but how will that make me a better nurse!? I would hope the A's I got in the last 2 years in A&P I/II, chem, micro, and patho spoke loudly to this year's board...

My husband is in the same boat. His science GPA is excellent, but his cumulative GPA is not so great because he didn't drop his classes when he left university. When you're young, you don't really think about stuff like that, but if they really do mean the "whole person" concept, then little details like that should be taken into consideration, especially since it was over 6 years ago. My biggest fear for him is that the board will pick up his packet and decide that his GPA isn't high enough. If that was the case, they shouldn't lower the cumulative GPA to begin with!

I think everyone on this forum has a truly good chance at getting picked up by NECP. My opinion is (and this is just MY opinion) they lowered the GPA because they acknowledge that some people may have other reasons for having a lower cumulative GPA, like not thinking about their future because most 18 year-olds don't have their priorities straight at that point in their lives. GPA is not a reflection of a person's entire academic aptitude, because it not just depends on what classes make up this GPA as airforceguy has said, but as well as what the caliber is of the school a person went to. A 3.0 from Berkeley is not the same as a 3.0 from University of Alaska (which is where I go to nursing school). Either way, all nurses take the same boards, so in the end, its really up to the person to do the actual learning. A good GPA doesn't translate to passing the boards.

Sorry for the long post, but so much investment has been made by everyone on here for this program and to become a nurse and I think for a lot of us, this has consumed most of our lives probably for the last few years (taking pre-reqs, long nights of studying) and this forum, at least to me, is sort of a comfort zone and an overall positive space. The Air Force is hurting for nurses, and having previously enlisted people who are committed to the military mission, I think, is a great way to strengthen retention rate. Young nurses are separating at triple the rate from a few years back, so the Air Force is not just short on nurses, they're losing them faster as well.

On another note, my husband ran into the Chief Nurse at his clinic and she told him that NECP did not receive as many packages as they were expecting so that should be good news for everyone who applied since there is not a lot of competition for the 50 slots. Take that however you want it, but I for one want to remain positive until the fat lady sings!

jkdcgill03 · May 27, 2010

I completely agree with you in that they should look at the "whole person". I have grades from over 10 yrs ago that brought my GPA way down. Since I have been in the USAF, I have taken 48 sem hrs and have a 3.4 GPA. Honestly, I think they should look at the pre reqs and take the GPA from those but thats just me.

brookeND · May 28, 2010

Hey all! I am trying to decide what classes to take for Fall semester and I was looking at the AECP Newsletter for the 2010 year and I was sure that Microbiology was a requirement to apply, however I can't find it listed as one only A&P 1&2 and Chem. 1 with labs of course. I'll post my link to where I am seeing this I'll feel so dumb if I am overlooking it because I am sure that Micro was a requirement. I'll be taking it anyways because of course I will eventually need it but I know a lot of you applied to AECP this year and you all of course know if you needed it by the time you applied. Thanks in advance, here's the link of which I speak lol http://www.afoats.af.mil/afrotc/enlistedcomm/AECP.asp the info. I'm looking at is in #7 Nursing Major letter B of the Newsletter.

-Brooke-