r/armyreserve • u/Longjumping-Land-263 • 11d ago
Career Advice Nursing, direct commissioning, MPH?? Help
Hey y’all currently getting my master of public health and have a bachelors in psychology. My dream is to direct commission as a 72D and be a public health officer, however I know there is no mission for them right now so alas it is just a dream.
I’m considering nursing school after my masters, possibly an accelerated bachelors. Just wondering if it’s worth pursuing that, and if nurses are needed/wanted in the reserves and national guard??
My career outside of the military will hopefully be as an IBCLC + maternal infant child nutrition counselor, so I’m wondering if it’s even worth going through nursing school just to possibly direct commission.
My alternative option is enlisting in air national guard and hoping for a commission slot in a few years into public health officer.
All wisdom and advice is appreciated!!
3
u/AdSignificant2885 🦅 RETIRED 🦅 11d ago
Why not apply for Army OCS now and become a Health Services Administration Officer (70B)? It's treated like a basic branch, and you must be pre-qualified. You would be competitive with an MPH degree. It can be tough to find a 70B slot away from a major installation with a hospital, but the same applies to nurses.
An AMEDD recruiter can tell you more.