Shimano0606

Current student at USAGPAN. Your stats look fine. I know USAGPAN is changing some of their entry requirements since they are going to transition to DNP this year. Keep on the lookout for that. In our class are several OR, PACU and ER nurses..they are...

You'll have pros and cons no matter how you do it. I had a great orientation at CHLA, so I was comfortable going into PICU right off the bat. Had I not been given 6 months to learn nursing and PICU simultaneously, then I would have had a much rougher...

Application is due sometime in June usually. You should hear back around September-October. I got notification in September but I know others who weren't notified until October. Good Luck

Sorry for the loose language...I meant parts of the hospital are being converted for more inpatient beds to take the patients who would've gone to Wilford Hall. Still stand by Alamo Heights being one of the closest/safest areas to rent near BAMC. Int...

All Wilford Hall Inpatient will be moved to BAMC in the near future. I think the deadline is September of this year. Multiple units have already moved and are integrated into BAMC. Our unit was the first to go last year. As a med surg nurse you may s...

annabeap has it right. Your experience should count and push you into an ICU position, assuming leadership doesn't need you somewhere else. Do you have your CCRN? That might help seal the deal, but maybe not a requirement. Your AFSC should reflect th...

Unfortunatley, the best way is to drive around and windowshop the neighborhood. Craigslist is the other option, but you have to sift through all of the apartments to get to the homes. Some key words are : alamo heights, terrell heights, terrell hills...

A little late to this thread, but I've lived in Alamo Heights and by Sea World. Hands down, Alamo Heights has been better for my family and my commute. The homes are older and more expensive, but you are more central to the city. I rode my road bike ...

It probably depends on the level of NICU care. If you're doing routine ECMO, High Frequency Ventilation, drips, etc...then that should totally count. Lower acuity NICUs can be like a newborn nursery. Most likely, if the school accepts NICU, then they...

You can also apply for the direct commission to crna school route. Sounds like that's what you were referring to. An Army recruiter is probably the first step, but then you would apply to the Northeastern Univ program. I'm sure that there's also an A...

I'm a PICU nurse who got in with the military and I know of a couple of people with NICU experience who were accepted in years past. All the NICU folks were doing neonatal transport, ECMO, and volunteering for adult ICU deployments. Good things to sh...

If you're using the GI Bill, then you must have some prior service. Maybe you mentioned that and I missed it..sorry. In that case you know very well what you're getting into. I still think the ROTC route is a more reliable way to get a commission. Yo...

I got my initial commission through ROTC (got "re-commisioned" when I became a nurse and went into the nurse corps). From talking to the folks I work with who went through COT I think my experience taught me so much more about not only leadership, bu...

Cibolo is a nice area, but it's kind of far out. I would recommend Alamo Heights. Kind of expensive, but the houses have lots of character. There are lots of local (non-chain) restaurants within a short drive. There are many mature trees (unlike mos...

You should hear from your recruiter (most likely). The time frames vary considerably from a few weeks to a few months. Sounds like you're on pins and needles :) From my experience, the Chief Nurse Interview was only a piece of the process. There sho...

Some bases actually have stables for keeping your horse. You have to do some research to ind out which ones. Lackland has one for sure. If its full for some reason, then there are about a hundred stables in San Antonio that would love to have your bu...

The incentives change every year, depending on fiscal year approval from Congress. 2008 bonus amounts were 25k for a 4 yr commitment and up to 38k in loan repayment (HPLRP). If you take both, then there is a 6 year commitment. Both amounts are taxed ...

Don't forget the AF core values. I hate to be cheesy, but "Integrity First" has its place here. I have a similar background and have been completely honest about it with no regrets. BTW, I also have a TS clearance and didn't have any hiccups in the a...

bigsky, has your recruiter given you an estimated timeline from start of application to actual commissioning? i only ask because it is often much longer than initially estimated. if you have a sharp recruiter, then you should be in good shape. it too...

As far as I know, the only required polygraph in the AF is for a top secret clearance investigation. Most nurses only require a secret clearance...so no polygraph.

Just check with your sponsor. That situation sounds like it would be more flexible. If you're spending x# of weeks at Lackland before you've officially PCS'd, then your supervisor may not be as anxious to give you househunting leave since you'll have...

Your new supervisor will authorize "Permissive TDY" for your househunting when you show up. When I reported to Wilford Hall a year ago, I got 8 working days...which was plenty of time for San Antonio. Do you know which unit you'll be working on? If s...

If you are going to COT, then you will likely receive the bonus within a month of graduating. In my case it was about 3 months after I got to my duty station...everyone seemed lost when it came to my inprocessing because I had been on active duty bef...

pam's comments are right on. one thing to consider is the timing of getting into the OR. if that's something you're sure you want to do, it may be faster to get some OR experience before going in the AF. there's no guarantee that you'll be able to sw...

the gi bill counts the same for officers as enlisted. at least it did in my case. i had a partial ROTC scholarship for my 1st degree. when i got off of active duty i used a portion of my gi bill for a 2nd degree bsn program. you can use the gi bill t...