Will I get DQ'ed?

[sophistomommaRN]

Hi all, I am a 24 year old who just finished nursing school last fall. I recently made the decision to look into fulfilling a dream that I have had since I was a girl--become a nurse for the military. I am hoping to look into the Air Force and Navy as these are areas my family have always gone and interest me. My information is currently being forwarded from the local recruiter here in Indiana to the Healthcare Professions recruiter in Ohio. I have also sent the recruiter an email but have gotten no response yet. It is to the point that I have dreams of nursing, and I wake up with excitement.

I have a few questions that I have searched the threads for and haven't exactly found answers for. The recruiter said there's a high need for nurses in the corps. However, I've seen so many posts about high waits. How fast/slow are commissions being processed now? I have always been in pretty good shape (not so much right now as I am still getting back after having a baby 2 months ago). However, I've never been able to do push ups even with lots of practice. I've started practicing again with little progress. Will this completely disqualify me? What would be done if after being commissioned if I could not meet the standards? I understand that it isn't like basic training but get confused on this part. Also, is it easy to get waivers for astigmatism? I'm -3.75 in one eye with astigmatism but am 20/20 corrected.

Thanks everyone!

[Cursed Irishman]

Vision just has to be able to be corrected to 20/20.

Not passing your pushups, initially, is not an out and out disqualification; push-ups arent even assessed during the physical. When you take a physicial fitness test is when they will measure it; by the time you get around to taking one it can be as long as a year and a half, plenty of time to improve.

[sophistomommaRN]

That's awesome! I plan to do all that I can to prepare in advance still, but its nice to know that it won't be a deal breaker since there will be time to work there too. More excited, thanks!

[Lunah, MSN, RN]

All branches are very competitive at the moment. It seems a bit easier to get selected if you have experience already.

[sophistomommaRN]

Thanks, I was wondering about this also. The local recruiter tried to convince me otherwise; however, he isn't in healthcare professions so I know that makes it secondhand knowledge. He did tell me that it is now to the point that they are going to hospitals to recruit nurses and MDs. ??? It seems more likely that things would be competitive right now. Either way, I plan to start it up, while hopefully finding an RN position in the meantime, and see where things take me.

[Viper1104]

Each branch of the military has its own set of height / weight and physical fitness requirements. For the Navy, they cn be found grouped by age and gender at

http://www.navyprt.com

Look for your age group and you would want to be in the "Good Low" category at least. Use this as a minimum for setting your personal fitness goals.

With the recent economical situation, all branches have restricted accession. This will get better but only as the economy improves. This is true for all fields and not limited to nursing or health care.

Once you are selected for accession, you will undergo Officer Development School (ODS) in Newport RI fro approximately 5-6 weeks. There they will do a baseline fitness test as well as teach you about the basics of life as an officer in the Navy.

Keep applying yourself and you will succeed in your goals. I will look forward to another fine Navy nurse. See you in the fleet

[sophistomommaRN]

Thank you Viper1104,

I have since gotten contact with the Navy recruitment last week and am currently working on my security packet. He did, as you have, state that there would be ODS in Rhode Island. I have much to gather (partly due to being born with a septal defect that has closed and current heart murmur), but I am excited to see where things take me!