What does it take to be an Army nurse? The answer isn't just white shoes and a stethoscope. It's not just sharp clinical skills coupled with the attributes of understanding and compassion. It is much, much more.

The profession demands the ability to think on your feet in an emergency. The ability to intuitively evaluate a situation, determine the best course of action, and take charge, which is precisely what Army ROTC is uniquely designed to teach.

Kirkhof College of Nursing

Nurse Summer Training Program

The Nurse Summer Training Program is a voluntary three- to four-week clinical experience for nurse cadets between their third and fourth years of school. During this program, nurse cadets will be assigned to a preceptor—a serving Army nurse—at one of the Army Medical Centers or Army Community Hospitals in the continental United States, Hawaii, or Europe. Program cadets are assigned to a ward and gain hands-on experience in all aspects of clinical nursing.

Advancement and compensation

As a newly commissioned Army nurse you will earn a base pay and allowance of a second lieutenant in addition to these additional benefits: 

• Housing assistance
• Food allowance
• Healthcare
• Tax advantages

As you progress in the Army, your rank and level of responsibility will also increase. It is not uncommon to see a staff nurse become a head nurse in just three or four years. To help you advance professionally, the Army Nurse Corps offers courses in a wide range of nursing specialties. This takes place around the end of the second year of service. Specialties include:

• Ob/Gyn nursing prepares you for uncomplicated and complicated antepartum, intrapartum, postpartum, and gynecological patients. The Ob-Gyn course lasts 16 weeks and is offered at Tripler Army Medical Center in Hawaii.

• Critical care nursing trains nurses in anatomy, physiology, pharmacology, physics, CPR, inhalation therapy, diagnostics, psychological and sociological problems, and ethical and legal considerations in the care of critically ill patients. This is a 16-week course conducted at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C., Madigan Army Medical Center in Washington State, or at Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio.

• Perioperative nursing prepares a nurse for all phases of operating room nursing, including advanced skills related to surgery and the principles and techniques of supervising and managing an operating room. The perioperative nursing course lasts 16 weeks and is taught at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, Madigan Army Medical Center, and Brooke Army Medical Center.
• Psych/mental health nursing prepares the Army nurse to provide specialized care to emotionally distressed individuals both as inpatients and outpatients. The psych/mental health nursing course is 16 weeks and is offered at Walter Reed Army Medical Center.
• Community health nursing provides skills and knowledge in preventive medicine at an entry-level. This is a nine-week course at the Army Medical Department Center and School at Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio.
• Emergency nursing prepares the nurse to function in any clinical setting that meets the environmental nursing standard for emergency nursing. The focus is on the fundamentals of emergency nursing such as respiratory and cardiovascular disease, hematology/oncology, trauma management, hepatic disorders, and infectious diseases. The emergency nursing course is 16 weeks and is offered at Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio.

Getting started

Nursing students or pre-nursing students can get started in a number of different ways.

• Freshman and sophomore pre-nursing students can simply register for one of the one-credit military science electives with no commitment to the military.

• If you have at least two years remaining before graduation, you may become eligible for ROTC by attending the ROTC Basic Camp the summer before your junior nursing year.

• Exceptionally qualified candidates may be eligible to have the requirement to attend the Leader's Training Course waived by completing the Accelerated Cadet Commissioning Training program, which is taught on WMU's campus and can be conducted in the summer or early fall.

Contact the Recruitment Operations Officer to determine which path is right for you.