DerekDordan

Hey, I think I can help you with a couple of your questions. I've considered the same career and I can share what I've found. 2. From what I've read it depends on where you're stationed. Many military nurses are stationed stateside. It sounds like most of the more acute care stuff and being deployed comes with experience. As a midwife I would imagine you would be in the US, but your job and your location are likely up to the needs of the Air Force at the time you enter. As far as military customs and courtesies and basic military training, it's a lot more relaxed than for an enlisted service member. I think the basic training is around half that of enlistees. Aside from that, I can't speak from personal experience! 4. You do not. However, Air Force ROTC would likely better your chances of becoming an AF nurse following school. Should they award you with a scholarship, it would also help with paying for school. Because your school has Army ROTC and not Air Force, this doesn't sound like an option. 5. I'm fairly sure the requirement for applying as a nurse is simply to be a certified RN who is able to practice in your state. However, I'm also sure that resume building never hurt anyone. Do whatever you can in and outside of school to add to your resume. Work experience (CNA, hospital tech, etc.), volunteer experience, special certifications such as ACLS or PALS, get involved in your school's nursing program (mine has a student nurses association), and get the best grades you can throughout nursing school. 6. Talk to an Air Force MEDICAL OFFICER. Do not talk to an enlisted recruiter like you might see in a mall. They do not know any of the information you are seeking on medical professions in the military. This is an option when looking up nearby recruiters on the Air Force website. Simply tick the "Healthcare Student or Professional" box, type in your zip code, and hit the search button. Hope that helps, and sorry I couldn't answer more than that. Best of luck to you!!!

Hey all, I'm a senior BSN student looking forward to my graduation this August. I plan to take the NCLEX after graduation, but from there I haven't quite decided what I want to do. One job that I have always felt called to do is Combat Rescue Officer (CRO) in the Air Force. It's got leadership and emergency medicine in a helicopter, and it's a job I get excited just thinking about. My hope is that after my time in the Air Force, a hospital will look favorably on my leadership experience as an officer and on my emergency medicine experience and hire me. I do have a couple of fears pursuing this job however, and so I have some questions I'm hoping you guys can help me answer. First of all, am I right in thinking that I would still be a reasonably attractive hire with the aforementioned experience but no nursing experience outside of clinicals? Following that question, CRO is not a guaranteed job even if I do become an officer. I could land in a second-, third-, or even fourth-choice job like pilot or navigator. If I had officer leadership experience and no emergency medicine experience or nursing experience, would I still be hireable (jumping through whatever hoops necessary like a refresher course)? Also, if I am unable to maintain my RN licensure during my time in the Air Force, how effective are re-entry/refresher courses in getting jobs for returning nurses? In a perfect world I would come out of the air force and take a job on any hospital unit I could get a job in, work there for however long is necessary, and then apply for an internal transfer to the ED and gain however much experience I need there for short-range flight nursing. The timeline may not be realistic but that is the general plan, and I think CRO would help with the flight nurse part. Like I said, this is a job that I feel called into, but I'm nervous I could be throwing my prospects of post-military nursing away by pursuing it. I look forward to what everyone has to say. i have a meeting with an officer recruiter on Wednesday and hopefully I can find out whether or not I would be able to do continuing education to maintain licensure while in the military. Derek