BabyRN05

I got into the Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner Program!!! I got my packet in the mail today, and I'm in Illinois!

I was able to create a Blazernet account, and I logged on to the application site where there was a generic letter and the option to accept or decline. I applied to the Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner Program and to the FNP program and I can't see which program I got accepted to, and the Blazernet site just says Nursing.

I am applying to the University of South Alabama for the PMHNP DNP program, and I used the example located at the bottom of this page: Purdue OWL: Writing the Personal Statement

It doesn't matter how good of a nurse you are to get promoted (you can't horrible and get promoted), but 01 through 03 are automatic, so it just goes by the date you passed your NCLEX. I'm married and have 2 kids, and the whole on base vs. off base housing is just going to depend on what base you are stationed, although the AF does have the nicest housing (in my opinion). Do you know where you are getting stationed, if you don't what are your preferences?

Ray RN87 The formula for when I joined the AF in 2009 was your experience as a BSN prepared RN divided by 2, so I had 4.5 years experience as an RN, so I came in as an 1st Lt-O2 (somebody correct if I'm wrong on this, but you become a 1st Lt after 24 months, and a Capt after 4 years). I made Capt-O3 after 2 years of being in, which was really nice. I like the Air Force, but I'll be honest and say that is not like what I thought it would be. I have never been deployed, but from what I have heard the deployments are currently running at 6 months, which my best friend is a Navy Nurse and she is currently deployed to the Roll 3 hospital in Kandahar for 8 months, so I don't want to say the AF has it good or anything, because things can change at anytime (nice run on sentence).

If you saw this in writing it might be, but I worked with a girl who had 9 years prior ADN experience as an ER nurse, and she got no credit, so maybe it's a new thing. I would ask the recruiter or the chief nurse about ADN experience for further clarification.

The Air Force will only accept applicants who have graduated with their BSN, and only your BSN time counts towards work experience (if you have been working as an RN you can come in with advance rank - the AF has a formula for calculating that). Nauttica, sorry for the super late response, but experienced NICU nurses are needed - there just isn't a lot of places you can be stationed as a NICU nurse.

Hi KMK, I've been a nurse in the Air Force for almost 2 years now, and I'll try my very best to answer your questions to the fullest, because when I was starting my Air Force career this board really helped me. 1. what are the sign on incentives (money to pay back loans, sign on bonus, dif. bonus for dif jobs) = Depending on what is approved in the budget for the year you sign you could get a student loan repayment, and/or accession bonus (a bonus for commissioning)... after you have fulfilled your original commitment there is a list of jobs that you can get a yearly bonus for (as long as the bonus is approved for that fiscal budget) 2. do i have a choice or preference in duty station? = For your first assignment they will want to put you at a base where there is a hospital, so you have 5 CONUS (stateside) bases that you will write down on your "dream-sheet", and your recruiter should have you write down your requested overseas bases (my recruiter told me that new recruits don't go overseas, but he was wrong, so I never put down any overseas bases on my dreamsheet). 3. what bases are in need of nurses (which is the best bases for a nurse) = all bases are in "need" of nurses, but I would say the greatest need is in San Antonio where Lackland AFB is at, I know that Wilford Hall Med. Ctr. is in the process of transferring over to BAMC (Brooks Army Med. Ctr.), but I have know idea where they are in the process - it will be a joint medical center with Army and Air Force. 4. what rank will i come in as = You will come in as a 2nd Lt, because your rank starts from the time you graduate with your BSN, since you already took your NCLEX (someone correct if I'm wrong). 5. how often will i or can i get promoted = 2nd Lt - 1Lt 2yrs, 1Lt - Cpt 2yrs (4yrs total to Cpt), Cpt - Maj 8-14yrs (about 10-14yrs total to Maj; currently it is a little longer for nurses), Maj-LTC 5-7 yrs ( about 17 yrs total), LTC-Col -3-5yrs (about 20-22yrs in the Air Force)... The Nurse Corps has a slower promotion rate than regular officers (line side officers). 6. how long are the terms = It is expected you will be in one place 3-4 years, but I have seen people move much faster than the 3-4 year time frame, the longest I have seen a nurse stay at one place was 5 years. 7. how often will we relocate = Probably every 3 to 4 years 8. how often do nurses get deployed = Just depends on what kind of nurse you are, but I think I'm on a 2 year cycle right now, and I missed my last "deployment bucket" because I just had a baby, but nurses deploy a lot, so expect to go... ICU, Surgical, and Mental Health Nurses deploy the most. 9. ho soon can i go back to school (want my crna or NP) = After you have two years time on station (TOS). 10. much much tuition assistance is there for school = If you don't use AFIT (the Air Force's competitive graduate school program), which is where the Air Force pays your salary, housing allowance, and tuition while you're in school... regular tuition assistance is $250 a credit hour 11. do i get a choice in my specialty = You can always request it, if you have your certification it will help a lot. 12. how long is training/school = Commissioned Officer Training (COT) is 6 weeks 13. does my experience matter or my certs (chemo acls) = Everything counts, and everything helps in getting the job you want, and it also helps getting into the Air Force, because right now Air Force applications are extremely competitive! 14. how long is the process ( "enlisting" training to being stationed) = You don't "enlist"... you "commission".... I would give yourself 6-12 months to get all the paperwork in, and to process through MEPS, COT is 6 weeks, you will move directly to your base from COT, that is if you don't have to go NTP (Nurse Transition Program) - which hopefully you won't have to go to, because you're not a "brand-new" nurse. Hopefully, I have answered your questions... and anybody please correct me if you have better information.

I got my 3rd choice... My choices were 1. Eglin 2. Andrews 3. Langley 4. Keesler

I completed COT in August at 29 years of age... which I would say is about the median age for RN's at COT... well, it probably just depends on the class.

Spencer did you get orders to Mountain Home AFB?

I have been selected to do maternity, so L&D/Postpartum, I float to NICU at my current hospital a lot (Level III NICU), but I don't take care of the super sick babies, but I love working down there, my home floor is Postpartum and Newborn Nursery.

GOAFNURSE what have been your favorite bases, and why?

Well, I've done that all fairly recently. I did my physical on Feb. 13th, my Chief Nursing interview on February 19th, but it took a long time to get selected (I found out on April 22nd). I also worked with the recruiter in Salt Lake, and had my chief nursing interview at Hill AFB (they considered doing it in Mtn. Home, but I guess the chief nurse was really busy). Well good luck! You'll probably get Mtn. Home if you want it, because both the recruiter and the chief nurse at Hill joked with me about putting Mtn. Home on my list (it sounds like it's an easy base to get stationed at).

I'm going to COT in August, so I'll be at Langley sometime after the 25th of September.