mobro

If by "sent overseas" you mean deploy, then Lackland and Keesler have the highest deployment rate. They're both large hospitals as well.

if you're going to have a sponsor you should know who it is during COT- they should contact you before, hopefully, but maybe not. i'm currently at keesler and went through ntp in april of this year and never had a sponsor. no one else did that i went through ntp with either. just sayin'...you might not get one but you'll make it out alright anyway!

i'm from atlanta too!! the humidity is worse here because of the water, i couldn't believe it! at least you'll be used to it though. there are some decent apartments near by and you could probably find a house if you knew where to look. i didn't know where to look and didn't get house hunting days so i don't really know the details. but i have seen some ok ones driving around. you can't beat base house for how big/nice they are. the downside is they take your whole BAH which is a bummer but if you have a family it'd be nice.

i'm baaaaack! what happened with you?? ever get all straightened out?

i think getting to europe as your first assignment is pretty hard. especially if you're a new nurse- but don't quote me on that. biloxi/keesler is pretty nice. the on base housing is all brand new and is beautiful! i live off base but i know a few people on so i've seen inside them. it's insanely hot and humid here right now so if you're not used to that it might be an interesting transition. haha. overall, not too bad!

i did ntp and am permanent party at keesler afb.

i also graduated nursing school in may of 2009 and went active duty march of this year. i'd be more than happy to answer any questions you have! i know i had a million before i made my decision!

NTP is for folks with less than a year of experience. I had 6 months ICU experience and I still did NTP. I just graduated from it at the end of July. Basically you follow preceptors for 10 weeks (not always the same preceptor). You orient to the floor and "learn how to be a nurse." We also had seminar days where we had guest speakers or went to a simulation lab and practiced different skills. Technically it's an 11 week program but the first week you're in-processing to the base.

i needed that!! thank you so much for every piece of advice you've sent our way. i'm trying not to be terrified but i really have very little idea of what i'm getting myself into. i can honestly say, though, i have never been so proud of myself in my life- and i'm hoping that will keep me in check and prevent the crying and "why did i do this?!" that i know will occur. five more days!!

midinphx- i hope you hear soon too!! your attitude has been so inspiring- i wish you were leaving with me next week so your positive vibes would rub off on me!

thanks! i won't turn it down since i don't know if i'll be going back to school- just curious what the options were. i know i have to stop by the housing office or something at keesler before signing any contract for housing but will they point me in the direction of good places to live or am i on my own as far as talking to people about nice housing?

I have two questions- 1: If I initially turn down the GI bill is there any way to get it back later? I don't know now if I'll ever go back to school, but I don't want to turn it down and kick myself later. But on the same note I don't want to pay into it but never use it. 2: I'll be stationed at Keesler after COT (which I leave for in a week AH!) and was starting to scope out a place to live. Almost all of the apartments I found online had horrible reviews about noise, roaches, and bad management. Is anyone there now or been stationed there to know any nice place to live?? I'll be by myself so I want to feel safe. I also hope to bring my two dogs down eventually. Four years without them is not an option! :)

that's what i was thinking, midinphx. i just didn't know if the trip back to the base would be worth it especially if i could get it done at maxwell. perhaps i'll make a trip tomorrow so i can just go ahead and not worry about it anymore.

they're wide through the hips, to be more specific- from the pockets down. the waist fits like a glove.

on a different subject, i bought almost all my uniforms already and the blues pants/skirt have been tailored length wise but are definitely too wide(and one pair of the pants is slightly shorter than the other pair which is driving me mad). is that fixable and would taking these to maxwell with me to be tailored more be a problem/hassle or would it be less stressful to drive back to the base near me and have them properly fitted before leaving? i know if i go back to the base i think they could be fixed for free and i'd probably have to pay more at maxwell... or option C, which i don't support, leave them as is until i get to my base? the last option i don't love because i don't want to look frumpy the whole time at cot and since i'll be in the ntp course i don't know if i'd have time for running around getting alterations. what do you think?