clinical psychology HPSP
 

Hello
Did anyone applied for an Army Clinical Psych HPSP scholarship?
Could you share your experiences ?
Thanks,:)

PM me. I am a 4th year, prior service and I have been on HPSP for a year. I go back active when internship starts after this summer. There is too much to explain about it here.

How competitive is it? I applied and was selected as an alternate.
I thought scholarships were at least 2 to 3 years!
Do you have to commit for only one year then since you have been on hpsp for a year?

Internship year counts as one year of the program. In other words, it overlaps during that year, but the internship year no longer counts as a "payback" year. Back in the old days, it used to. This is because they have had a retention problem and a problem getting people licensed. So now you have to stay on at your internship site until you pass the EPPP THEN your payback time starts. It's a hassle if you are not planning on quickly obtaining your license, because you might be in the Army for a few years before you can start counting down.

It is not that competetive for clinpsych because the Army is not currently meeting their recruiting goals. To be "competitive," you need to pass all your classes, pass all your comps, be physically fit (it is the Army), and be very close to done (or done) with your dissertation before you start internship. You should also be pretty patriotic in your "motivational statement."

Got It
 

I finally got in the HPSP program. They finally pulled my name off that list :):) still can't believe it!
When you were on HPSP did you have to train in a hospital somewhere for your 45 days active duty? Did they call you and reminded you or did you have to apply yourself?
How much is the stipend for HPSP psych, do you have any idea?
I am going Army by the way!
What about the fitness test?
Thanks,
So many questions, sorry :o

Congrats!!

I finally got in the HPSP program. They finally pulled my name off that list :):) still can't believe it!
Can anyone tell me if you had to train in a hospital somewhere for your 45 days active duty? Did they call you and reminded you or did you have to apply yourself ?
How much is the stipend for HPSP psych, do you have any idea?
What about the fitness test?
Thanks,
So many questions, sorry :o
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Congrats!!
__________________
"When you get a BS you think you know everything. When you get your MS you realize you know nothing. When you get your PhD you still realize you know nothing but it is ok because now you know no one else does either"

Thanks, I love this quote!

1. No, you don't have to do the 45 days at an Army hospital (although you can if it is convenient). They called me and reminded to apply for it and I did a "school ADT" (which I doing right now). You get paid 45 days active duty for doing whatever it is you would be doing anyway. Pretty cool actually.

2. The stipend is currently 1608/Month. It will go up to about 1900 for your year.

3. PT test is given twice a year--April and October by the regulation (although not while you are in school). It consists of push ups, sit ups and 2 mile run. You get 2 minutes to do as many push ups as you can, and there is a mininum number based on age and gender that you have to do. Same for sit ups--2 minutes to do as many as you can. Then, you run two miles, and again you have to run it in short enough time based on your age/gender. You have to pass your PT test to get promoted or receive any "favorable actions." These include special trainings you want to attend, etc. Otherwise you are "flagged" which means you cannot receive any favorable actions. Type in Army APFT and you will find the charts that tell you what you need to pass it. My policy--always be in shape. Its way easier than trying to get there a week before the test.

Congratulations. Have they sworn you in yet?

no i haven't sworn yet, the paperwork needs to be signed first by the secretary of defense who is out of town :confused:. It's been more than 3 weeks now since i got the news! Hope they won't change their mind :eek: !
Thanks for your inputs. That is really great if they are willing to let us do our trainings anywhere we want. Are there any special trainings/ meetings out of state you had to go to while in school? Did you have to buy your uniform?
Thanks,

You will have to buy your uniforms--officers don't get a clothing allowance. I already had mine, (I was enlisted until right before I got commissioned) just had to convert my Class A's and Dress Blues to officer style. Also had to buy new rank. Don't worry, they won't change their minds. HPSP has not sent me on anything special except they paid for me to go to an open house/interview at Madigan Army Medical Center (I ended up matching at Eisenhower, where I did a phone interview. Go figure.)

thanks! How different is counselling in the military than in the civilian world? Do you get special training to learn about combat stress and PTSD? Since certain issues encountered in the military world are not adressed in school i wonder if their is some extra quality training to prepare us to be military psychologists. Have you been asked to tape one of your sessions by your supervisor? Boy i hate those videotaped sessions!
Marylene,

Internship at an Army MEDCEN=Special training for how to be an Army psychologist. It's not just the population, it's the whole "Army thing." Also, I see you are "pre-psychology" so you might want to start getting away from the use of the word "counseling." Most of us find that a little minimizing. :)

In my second year practicum they vidoetaped sessions. My supervisor thought they were stupid so we rarely looked at them unless a student asked to show it to the group.

OK :laugh: I won't use the word couseling!
Did you go to OCS already? Is OCS AMEDD different than OCS in general (the one for ROTC students) ?

http://www.cs.amedd.army.mil/obc/1HPSP.htm

It is at Camp Bullis in San Antonio, TX. If you see LTC Birdwell, tell him Markp says Hi, not that it will buy you any brownie points...

There is your answer.

Therapy is empirically supported. The military is pretty firm about using treatment that is supported by the scientific literature. I don't think it's that much different except there are considerations regarding confidentiality and dual roles as a military officer/therapist. You will get some intense training at your internship from what I understand.

Mark

Some of it is (the FTX's). Most is at Ft. Sam Houston.

That's funny--when I talk to counseling psychologists, they warn me never to use the word "therapy" because that is demeaning, and to use the term "counseling" instead...

I tried talking to a behaviorist....and in mid sentence he flicked the lights on and off, so I stopped talking. He just said, "conditioning".


;)

Do you guys have any idea if the army also helps to pay for former student loans (Bachelor degree ones) once you become HPSP?

As far as I know it does not do anything to affect your eligibility for the loan repayment program. This is a great question for your recruiter, they need to be able to answer it and cite the appropriate regulations covering this for you.

Mark

I asked my recruiter about it and she said "no." However, I have been in the Army long enough to know not to believe it. From a quick reading of the regs, I *THINK* what I should be able to do is after the current committment is up, when I re-sign I will be able to add it to the contract, because clinpsych is a shortage AOC. In those cases, you can pretty much get them to do whatever you want in order to keep you.

That's what i thought. The HPSP package is generous enough, i can't ask for more!

Adso
 

I have a quick question. What is the time commitment for the HPSP? Say you go three years including internship, how much time do you owe? Is it one for one, two for one? I'm currently on an ED-delay from ROTC to get my degree and already owe 4 years active duty once i'm done. I'm trying to figure out if HPSP is worth it or not because the program I will be attending has pretty good funding already.

I believe it's one for one. YMMV.

Mark

It is one for one, but internship and the year you need to complete your license don't count. (See previous discussions ad naseum on that one). It ends up being about 5 if you did a 3 year HPSP.

You can get your license (in LA) the same time you complete your internship year, so that actually shaves a year off since one of the two years can be predoctoral. This is what I understand at least.

Mark

Hey, I am a new 08 HPSP (Psych) as well. Just wanted to say HI.
 

Just wanted to connect with my future classmates and peers.

Army, Navy or Air Force?

Good ole Army.

Welcome. When do you go on internship?

I go 09/10.
My understanding is that the internship ends in September. Does anyone know what you do after that? Since the internship bleeds into the fall semester, I cant graduate til December.

You stay there (at the same site) until you get your license.

Ok, so when you leave for internship, is that kiss school goodby, even though there is a gap between the time the internship is finished and when you graduate? Do I understand you correctly in that when the one year internship is over, will stay on site, lets say W. Reed from Sep. through Dec. Then come back to graduate, then go back to W. Reed till Licensing? Also, do people tend to choose to get licensed in states that dont have a post-doc requirement (post doc meaning extra supervised hours).

1.You do not need to be on campus for any reason while you are intern (unless you have to come back and defend your dissertation).

2.Yes
3.Yes
4.Yes

I am a new 08 HPSP as well. Hello! i am going on internship during the same time you will. Have you thought about when you might schedule for OBLC?

Hello,

Did it take you a couple of months to get your commission after you got accepted for HPSP or other similar programs?
My recruiter called to let me now that i was accepted, it has been over a month now. He also mentioned that it usually takes about 2 months for the paperwork to come. Was that your experience as well?

Thanks,

It takes some time for the commissioning to happen... A 2 month time frame would not be unusual. I believe that I found out in April and commissioned mid May. Seemed like forever and we were expediting stuff. Part of it depends when your name was added to the scroll.

Mark

I am not sure how that will go. I am assuming that I will go next summer and then start internship in October. My recruiter isnt very well versed in how all this works. Good to virtually meet you.

It didnt take long for my commisioning at all. As soon as I cleared DOD they commissioned me. I am still waiting on orders and the rest of the paperwork though.

Thanks for your answer Mark. I am beggining to worry again :scared: !
I just thought that they would commission applicants as soon as they are accepted.

Good to meet you also ! I think I will do OBLC after graduation. I have to take classes in the summer. I have the whole September free, but i will save it for ADT. Did you think about ADT already?

Whats ADT? Is that a 45 day tour? I am trying to understand all the acronyms.

That's right! It is the 45 days training once a year. I can do it at my school's site too, but i would prefer to do it in one of the big Army hospitals.
Did you recruiter tell you anything about this training and how to apply?

HPSP Internship
 

Hey everyone, I'm finishing up my BS and just got accepted to a doctoral program and am seriously considering the HPSP. This looked like a great resource for some information on the program. For now, I was curious about the Army CLinical psychology Internship Program.

1) this counts towards your active duty obligation correct?
2) I've seen two different lists of locations, just curious about what the current existing available locations for this internship are.
3) Once the internship is completed, where do you go to complete the rest of your active duty service?
4) do they give you a "dream sheet" with your top 3 or what not?
5) do you even have a choice?

I apologize for the loaded post, just desperate to have some questions answered. Although I do plan to go in and talk to a recruiter, from my past experience, they are not always the most reliable nor honest sources. I'm prior enlisted in the Marine Corps and needless to say, my recruiter was a very experienced car salesman. Boot camp would be fun he says...Hoorah!

Hope that helps!

Mark

PS - Navy ODS was easier than Air Force Boot Camp. The program for the Army isn't particularly tough either (I have a friend who was an instructor there.) I had "fun" at ODS (boot camp), Hell we had liberty our first weekend there and every weekend there after.

Thank you for answering my questions, no doubt I'll have more in the near future. Liberty during boot camp? That's crazy! I was in Marine Corps bootcamp and it was more like prison. In fact the compound in San Diego is somewhat built like one. Honestly, if Army officer school training is anything like the Marine Corps, I'll be fine. Anything less would be a blessing i suppose, so I guess I can thank the Corps for that outlook.

Navy ODS from rumor on the street is the toughest of the bunch and they have private rooms with 2 officers per room. Liberty was every weekend (no alcohol till week 2, No downtown liberty till week 3.) Rough eh?

Well, USAF COT was even easier than that! Those bastards had in room internet access and air conditioned rooms with MAID SERVICE!!! I kid you not! From what I heard, your time at Ft. Sam Houston in San Antonio will fall somewhere between my Navy experience and the USAF experience. Being that you are a former marine, try not to laugh too hard when they have you drill... Lawyers, Doctors, Nurses and Dentists make for a sorry *** formation!

Mark

PS - http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=256936

Getting up early would be hard enough for me, let alone the rest of the requirements!! I was in training full-time for athletics through college, so I could probably get through the PT stuff if I had to, but my hat is off to anyone who does it well.

MarkP is correct here in that CPIP does not count toward your obligation. (Neither does Postdoc until you have your license.) It does, however count toward TIS/TIG (time in service/time in grade), which effects pay and retirement.

How does the years of schooling as a reservist impact your TIS/TIG? I know active duty is pretty straight forward besides something about time deployed can count as two years. If my schooling takes 4 years, does that count as 4 years TIS? If not, is the CPIP when it starts? Also, from your experiences, how does the 45 days a year work out? Are most schools accommodating? Does it have to be all at once or can it be broken up throughout the year? Thanks again guys for all the info, first hand experience is always the best resource.