Pink-Rated

i went through ROTC so when all of us cadets wrote down our duty choices, i put germany as #1, hawaii #2, ft. lewis, washington #3, and etc. can't remember the rest, but we had up to 14 choices (for nurses only). i never spoke to an assignment manager. i found out by my rotc commander that i got germany as my first duty assignment and as of now, i keep in touch with my nurse counselor. From what I've heard, overseas assignments, like germany and hawaii, are pretty hard to get b/c everyone wants them. Fort Lewis is nice, but it rains a lot and is pretty cold, but it's actually the most requested duty station, I don't know why tho. LOL. but their hopsital, Madigan, is pretty nice. Never been to Hawaii, but i've heard it's beautiful but very expensive to live. Their hospital there, Tripler, is HUGE, and pink, so you can't miss it. LOL. I've been and worked in Ft. Bragg for 3 weeks for cadet nursing summer training program, and the hospital is nice, but the area around it is pretty bad and dangerous. nothing really much to do around, but i had a great time with the other nursing cadets. it's a pretty HOOAH base too. And for GA, its super hot there. Good luck deciding! i'm sure you'll pick the one that is right for you!!

Hey Renee4christ! I got your message but it wouldn't let me message you back so I had to post the reply up here. sorry about that!! anyways, thanks for the info. I'm not an experienced nurse but working at a nursing home since september while waiting for OBLC in March and I def. don't consider myself an experienced nurse at all. haha! So far, all i know is that I'm still going to OBLC 29 March and to Landstuhl, Germany, afterwards. I'm praying that it's still going to be as planned!!! i'd be so upset if they change things again, esp. the Germany part. LOL. I even spoke to my nurse counselor a few weeks ago and she didn't tell me of any changes so lets hope not! but thanks again!! much appreciate =)

Hey SusanneCollins13!! Just wanted to wish you luck on OBLC! Have a great time in TX and then off to Germany. Tell me all about it! God bless you!

CONGRATS RN!!! =) I am sooo super happy for you!! Go out and celebrate!! whoo!! You can finally breathe! :)

OOh! i too think you passed!! def. let me know!! glad you'll be going to obc and germany as planned. you're gonna have to fill me in on everything! lol.

Hey! i remembered this was your big day! How was it?? Did you feel confident?? I'm hoping you did well!! The waiting period is always tough.

OMG!! I'm so glad you got your orders and you'll be going exactly as planned!!! You'll get to see your grandmother!! I think three hours a day is already good enough since you've been studying for several months. you don't wanna burn yourself out. and you've been doing well on those practice questions and they're really good, esp. the kaplan and the saunders. those are pretty much what i used. And don't be nervous!! give yourself a break and relax before the big test. you're gonna do great!! :wink2:

YAY!! Finally an nclex date!! and a pretty cool one too. you def. can't forget that important day and those 9's will never turn upside down!! dont think thaT!! stay away from negative thoughts...stay positive!! But i know you're gonna do awesome on that test cuz i'm praying super hard for you!!! you've got it! be confident. rely on what you know and the things you've learned. and i thought it was so funny we both picked the same choices for our duty station. how about that??!! i'm so glad we both got Germany!! Go us!! whoo!

From what i remember, i don't think it took too long. It took like 2-3 days i believe. If you've already applied for the nclex on Pearson Vue, you can keep checking it and see if they'll let you pick a date. I also got an email too telling me i received my att.

Yes, they've stopped the july class since there were so many heat exhaustions according to my friend who is currently in obc. i even heard one person had a heart attack b/c of the high temp! can you believe it??!! anyways, I picked Germany b/c i wanted to travel and live in europe. i've been to france a few years back and had a blast and i would love to continue traveling around europe while i'm stationed in germany. plus, i know landstuhl is where all the injured soldiers from iraq and afghanistan go and i want to take care of them since i'm interested in ER and ICU. my top choices were 1. germany, 2. hawaii, and 3. ft. lewis. I've been to madigan while i was there for some cadet training during rotc and although we were only allowed to go to one part of the hospital, it was very nice. and washington is a beautiful state. it has mt. rainier and its so beautiful. it just rains a lot in washington. I've also been to Womack army medical center in ft. bragg for 3 weeks for the nursing summer training program as a cadet last year. the hospital is nice too. i worked in the med/surg floor and did one day in the OR and another day in the ER. def. learned a lot. it is a huge base and is getting bigger. the area, fayetteville, is not exactly the nicest place. kinda dangerous but i did have a good time there tho. it is also very hot! and humid! I would like to do some of the specialty courses, but a LTC in ft. bragg she told me last yr that those who get hawaii or germany cannot do any of the courses while we are there. but who knows, it can always change.

SusanneCollins13, i will be praying for you!! and I hope your obc date will not be moved!! but we can always meet up in landstuhl...maybe work in the same unit?? who knows? LOL. Did you know they changed the Nursing Residency Program from 12 months to 6 months now?? hmm...just wondering...what unit would you like to work in? I'm really interested in ER and ICU but wouldn't mind working med/surg. Although I love kids and babies...no thanks! too much for me to deal with. LOL. but in the meantime, i'm trying to get a job...i hope someone will hire a new grad nurse. the job market is tough!! yikess. i was asked to be a gold bar recruiter until march but i turned it down cuz i wanna work as a nurse. i think i got this one job, but fingers crossed! One of the LT's who graduated in my school was supposed to attend obc on oct. too but they moved her date to feb. instead. However, they are letting her go to Madigan (her duty station) first in oct. and then go to obc when feb. rolls in. I tried asking for that, but my nurse counselor said no b/c they don't have enough preceptors. boooo, but what can you do? Renee4Christ, good luck!! i hope you get in! What program are you going through for the ANC? i went through rotc. But yes, a lot of ppl are getting their obc dates delayed b/c there are too many ppl and limited amounts of space. i was supposed to attend obc on july 14th but i couldn't go b/c i was taking the NCLEX on july 15th. you have to take the nclex and pass it before you can go. but oh well. things happen for a reason. at least i can still stay with my family for some time before i move overseas.

hey SusanneCollins13, just found out that i won't be going to oblc and landstuhl this year. I'll be going to oblc march 29 and then to landstuhl after. too bad! i'll have to see you in landstuhl when i get there around june i guess.

The story with your dad and your dream of becoming a nurse was so touching. And I'm so glad you fulfilled your dream. He would be so proud of you! and now you can help so many others who are sick, just like those nurses who took care of your dad. I come from a culture and family line of nurses. I'm filipino and if you know any filipinos, you'll know that they are either nurses or has a family member that is a nurse. My mom is a nurse and recently last year, my sister and cousin became nurses. And several of my mom's brother's and sister's are nurses. LOL. but even tho i'm surrounded by nurses and it was kinda expected of me to become one, I chose to be a nurse. I love everything that nurses do. It is such a great profession, don't you think? Thanks for explaining AECP. I think that is such a great program for enlisted soldiers. Good for you for doing it. I think one of my classmates might have been doing that, but when she tried to explain it to me, I got so confused! lol. Good luck studying for the NCLEX!! I'll be praying that you'll do well!!

That is wonderful that you'll be able to go back home (Germany) and live there. Is your family near landstuhl? Since you speak German, you'll have to help me with it! i'm terrible! can't seem to remember any phrases or words. haha. My friends got me "how to speak german" books and such and i'm having a tough time! haha. But i didn't know Landstuhl was a tough duty station to get. Well, i'm glad we're both going. I was thrilled when i found out that i got landstuhl! never been there except frankfurt airport. lol. I haven't really heard that much about AECP since i did AROTC. how does it work?

oops. sorry! but yes, thats great you're feeling confident. always a good sign! and i know you'll do awesome on it, esp. if you've been getting high scores!! I took kaplan too and it helped a lot!! Six years in the army, WOW! i'm new to the army so i'll be getting used to the army life. haha. we should definitely meet up when we report to OBLC and def. celebrate your 6 yrs in the army!!

susannecollins13, congrats in passing your nclex!! i just passed mine a few weeks ago too. so i'll go going to oblc in ft. sam in october too and to landstuhl afterthat. maybe we might run into each other. nice to know someone else going through the same route too.

Hi all, I need help in picking a topic for my Nursing Research Synthesis Paper. It has to be a clinical topic and i have to find 2 research articles similar to the topic. It also has to be using evidence-based practice. I am having difficulties in finding a topic that is both interesting and easy for me to understand. I've seen a lot that is far too complicated for me to comprehend. The topics that my friends have used are: does cranberry juice help prevent UTI, does smoking help decrease the psychosis in Schizophrenia patients, and the use of bar coding in medication prescriptions to prevent med errors. so if anyone has any good ideas, i would greatly appreciate it.

hey Mike. Good luck with LDAC and NSTP. I did mine last summer and well...hope it doesn't rain in LDAC. But I loved the people in my squad and you'll get to really know them well. Where are you going for NSTP? I went to Fort Bragg, NC and had a blast there. It wasn't the best place around but the other cadets were pretty cool and we had an awesome time. And WAMC was great. All the nurses there were sweet and you learn so much! Try and take every opportunity to do something that you want b/c you're so limited in nursing school. But don't lose hope on Landstuhl! I think the Army really tries to give you your top choice! Good luck!!

Hello. I'm new to this but I just wanted to get some get some more information. I am a nursing student (RN-BSN) and Army ROTC cadet on my last semester of nursing school and Army ROTC. In May, I will be graduating as a nurse and commissioning as a 2nd LT in the Army. Anyways, I just found out that I got my first choice for my First Duty Station and it's Landstuhl, Germany. Of course, when I found out, I completely freaked out and it's probably the best early Christmas gift ever! I don't know anyone who has been to Germany as an Army nurse and was wondering how the area was and if you liked living there. So far, I've read only good things. Are there things to do around city? Is there a beach or something? How's the weather? Is it a big city? congested? Also, how was working in Landstuhl Regional Medical Center? I know there will be a lot of injured soldiers from Iraq and Afghanistan so maybe a lot of critical care cases. Was it stressful? big? Did you feel lost? Did people help you? Are the native people there friendly? do they speak English? Do I have to learn how to speak German or is English good enough? Is housing easily available and is it affordable? How about the cost of living there? I know the Euro is more than the American dollar. Will I have enough time to travel through Europe while working as an Army nurse? How about a car? Do I need to buy a car? a little off topic, but are Mercedes or BMW's cheaper there? Is there anything else that I should know? Anything that I need to steer clear of? I know these are a lot of questions but I've never been too far from home and on my own, plus living and starting out a whole new life in a foreign country (I'm single, so no family or friends in a big, foreign place! lol.). Just really want to know any information that you have or any of your own personal experience living there. I kind of need to prepare myself for this whole new life and adventure before it happens. Thanks!