An agreement signed between Auburn University's College of Nursing (AUCON) and the Naval ROTC (NROTC) program marks a significant milestone for nursing students interested in pursuing a career in the U.S. Navy Nurse Corps. Starting in Fall 2025, AUCON will offer a path for students to become commissioned officers in the Navy Nurse Corps.
The Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps (NROTC) Program was established by an act of Congress in 1925 to educate and train young men and women for service as commissioned officers in the Navy or Marine Corps. The Holloway Plan, passed in 1946, established the NROTC Regular Program, supplementing the output of the U. S. Naval Academy. In 1972, the Secretary of the Navy authorized 16 women to enroll in the program and in 1992 the first 120 Nurse Corps commissions were authorized.
The Naval ROTC Unit at Auburn University was founded in 1946 and is one of the oldest NROTC Units in the nation. According to LT Victoria Krystynak, starting Fall 2025, this will be the first time since 2017 that Auburn University will have a Nurse Corps Program. “The last nurse to commission was in 2017,” she added.
According to the agreement, nursing students must meet specific academic and NROTC criteria, including completing required Naval Science courses. The students will have summer obligations. They will be required to attend Nurse Afloat cruises during summer. The trainings consist of being onboard a Naval Warship, where they will gain a complete picture of the organizational capabilities of the ship, and of the Medical Department. The summer cruise going into their Senior year will be at a Naval Hospital where they will receive clinical training and knowledge about the organizational structure and function of a Naval Hospital. Each training cruise will consist of approximately four weeks of training, with an effort made to schedule cruises on a flexible basis so as not to impede any summer internships required by AUCON.
Additionally, students will take Naval Science courses and participate in NROTC activities, including membership in drill teams or rifle teams or other professional development and enrichment activities conducted by the NROTC Unit.
Students must pass the NCLEX-RN exam, with the NROTC unit covering costs for the first attempt. Upon successful completion of the program, students will graduate with a BSN degree and be commissioned as officers in the Navy Nurse Corps. Graduates will be required to fulfill a 4-year service obligation as Navy Nurses. Once commissioned, they could be based at any of several hospitals across the country and abroad run by the U.S. Navy including facilities in Virginia, California, Florida, North Carolina, Guam, Okinawa, and Illinois.
The signing ceremony, attended by Dean Gregg Newschwander, Captain Michael Witherspoon, Commander Quincy Hochard, Associate Dean Caralise Hunt, Director of Student Advising Pam Hennessey, and Assistant Clinical Professor and Retired Lieutenant Commander of U.S. Navy Nurse Corps Amy Pridemore, formalized this collaboration.
“This partnership aims to provide valuable career opportunities for nursing students at Auburn University,” said Dean Newschwander.
