positivenet

Hello. I am interested in joining the Navy reserve unit in Aurora, Colorado. I have recently passed the AANP FNP certification exam and waiting for my Colorado APRN license. I am currently a major in the Army reserves, but my current unit does not have a slot for FNP. I found that there "NOSC Denver" neary house. My question is about transferring my current army rank to the navy. I am not sure if I can carry my current army rank (O4) to the navy. Thanks

That's how I felt about 1 year ago. I am on my 4th term with FNU. It is doable but very time consuming. I have a full time job and 3 young kids. I go on part time at FNU (2 classes per term). The professors are very supportive. I like it so far.

Yes, CFNP Class 116

Congratulations Marienurse18. See you at the orientation. Where do you live? I am from Colorado.

I applied for total of 4 FNP programs. UC, USI, CU-Denver, and FNU. Through the process, I have learned that each school has different criteria when selecting potential students. For instance, USI puts a high priority on leadership on nursing organizations. CU-Denver puts on high priority on GPA (You have to have almost 4.0 to get admitted). I was told that there were more than 160 applicants for only 12 slots at CU-Denver. It was bloody competitive. The admission director at CU-Denver said my GPA was not high enough even if my goal statement was good enough. She asked me to take non-credit graduate classes to get accepted. I think FNU is looking for someone with "paying back to the community mind". I wish I knew what they were looking for prior to applying for those schools, so I could have reflected in my essay. I was admitted to UC and FNU. As an Asian American, my ethnicity was not a plus at CU-Denver. Many of the applicants were Asian Americans at CU-Denver. I think most of the applicants are White Americans at FNU. I decided to choose FNU because it is ranked # 14 on the nation. CU-Denver is #16 according to U.S. News and World Report. I also think my prior active duty Army time (10 years), current Army Reserve duty as a nurse, and current VA nurse were plus. My BSN GPA was below 3.5 (I think my GPA would be the lowest among the applicants). When writing my essay for FNU, I focused how I will contribute my FNP skills to the Soldiers, retirees, family members, and veterans.

Hi Marienurse18, they said I will need to reply by July 16th.

I recieved an e-mail from FNU. I was told that I am accepted to their FNP program. I was #2 on their waiting list. And I was also told that the book "Wide Neighborhoods" was mistakenly sent to me. I am very excited, nervous, happy, and overhelmed. I hope you all get accepted like me. Hope to see you all at the FB on August 19th.

I received "Wide Neighborhoods" book 2 days ago. When I received the package, I thought I was accepted to the program because the package was heavy. There were no other documents, just book. Are all the applicants supposed to receive the book? Getting nervous....

I was also told that I am on the waiting list for FNP Class 116. I have been accepted to University of Cincinnati FNP program for Fall, 2013, so I am waiting to see how this will turn out. I hear different opinons which school has a better reputation. My BSN GPA is not high (3.24), but overall my GPA was about 3.5. I have 2 years of Med-Surg, 3 years of critical care, 2 years of wound, ostomy, and continence nursing experience. Most of my nursing experience has been as an Army Nurse, and I am currently a CWOCN and CFCN. I had excellent recommendation letters and strong essays. Few months ago, I was told that I had to submit a proof of "Health Assessment" class that I took when I was in nursing school, which was not on the application packet requirement. It took few months for them to approve. I thought it was odd. Then they said I had to move to another class (Class 116) even though I applied for class 115. I hope I get notified when I may get accepted to their FNP program from the waiting list.

Today, I received an acceptance letter to UC FNP program. So excited and nervous at the same time. I will be working full-time as a wound care nurse and as an Army reservist. I have 3 young kids also. I am hoping to be able to balance school, family, and work. Can't wait to start!!!

My VA orientation was total of 2 weeks (M-F 7:30-4). One week of hospital orientationand one week of general nursing orientation. Then I had 2 weeks of unit orientation. As an RN, you get 26 days of paid annual leave, 13 days of paid sick leave, and 10 paid federal holidays. If you are a military reservist, you get paid 3 weeks of military leave (15 days of pay). If you work more than 4 hours of off-duty hours, your entire time that day is considered off-duty shift, and it is 10% more). The weekend differential is 25%. So if you work weekend evening or night, you get 35% more. The pay system is from Nurse I through Nurse V. If you are a new graduate, you will be nurse I. There is step scale from Step 1 through step 15. Angela

I got hired by the VA last December (3 months ago). It took about 3-4 months from the submission of the application to the first day of start at the VA. It mostly depends on how fast the secuity clearnce can be done. I have heard that for some people it could take up to 9 months but mostly 2-4 months. The VA doesn't seem to hire RNs very often. My VA medical center uses many contract agency nurse as needed. In my unit, about 30% of the nurses are all contract nurses. And when there is an opening, they tend to hire one of the best contract nurses over new applicants. I have an ICU back ground, but I was not considered to get hired at the ICU because the ICU manager hired one of the their contract agency nurses. If you have further questions, please feel free.