Ask any questions to a Navy Dentist!

SDN Members don't see this ad. (About Ads)

I was wondering if you recommend working as an army dentist for women?
I 've heard that it is a very dry and rough environment, and not really suitable for women, especially if they are married. Is that true?
What are ups and downs of this position for a female? Do they get any especial privileges for being female (weaker sex?), what is they have kids, is there any considerations if the female dentist wants to marry and have kids?

Have base pay or Housing/Food Allowances ever been reduced? If not, is it at all possible for them to get reduced in the future? Just curious if they lock you in for eight years and then cut your pay? Is that possible, or has that ever occurred before?

what is the application deadline for the hpsp each year? what is the earliest you can apply each year. maybe someone could just direct me where to find this info if nobody knows....

When did you start to negotiate for orders and where did you end up going?
It's regarding your first tour out of dental school.

Thanks!

Hey.. my question is what all do you exactly have to "pass" on the physical.. Like is it just a medical evaluation or an actual workout type of thing. Thanks so much for all this great info by the way!

Originally Posted by NAVY DDS 2010

BAH (Housing)? Yes. It is not common, but when they do yearly adjustments for housing it occassionally can be reduced if the market price for housing decreases in a particular area you are stationed. it usually isn't much, but it does occur from time to time. Don't count on this happenign to you necessarily since this is an uncommon thing to occur.

I want to add that, even if you get to a duty station and the BAH does go down, you are locked into the BAH rate you had before the decrease. An added bonus is that if the rate actually goes up, you get that increase!

Originally Posted by Ocean5

I was wondering if you recommend working as an army dentist for women?
I 've heard that it is a very dry and rough environment, and not really suitable for women, especially if they are married. Is that true?
What are ups and downs of this position for a female? Do they get any especial privileges for being female (weaker sex?), what is they have kids, is there any considerations if the female dentist wants to marry and have kids?

I am not sure whether you are asking about Army or Navy nor do i understand all your questions completely, but i will try to answer as best as I can as a female Navy Dental Corps Officer with two years experience. I do not believe that female dentists are treated any differently than males, not openly at least. Salty female dentists have told me that they've had to put up with some discrimination in the past and I believe these sailors have paved the way for contemporary ones. As a matter of fact, the last Admiral of the Dental Corps is a woman, one of the first female dentists on a warship who made it possible for people like me to be on a carrier. I feel that any navy-gender related experiences I've had thus far are comparable to any that I've had throughout my life, no worse no better. There has been no special privileges that I know of(Not quite sure what you mean though). They will send you to Iraq, on a Ship, with the Marines, etc just like any man.

As for getting married and having children, Uncle Sam obviously has no say in that aspect of your life. But choosing to have a family may affect your career and life in many ways. It is true about the military owning you. I met one Navy dentist married to a Marine who had to wed within 1 month of finding out that her husband was to be deployed. They married a whole six months earlier than planned. The risk of either partner being sent away was always there. It is difficult to plan your life when nothing is set in stone. That is just part of being in any branch of the military though. As for pregnancy, it is not exactly easy(haha) conceiving if you are not home for months at a time. If you are on a ship, and depending on your ship you may be up to five months pregnant before you are allowed to be moved to a shore command. After the birth and maternity leave(perhaps the only "privilege" that men do not receive) you are expected to complete the rest of your tour. So when baby is around two months old you are deployable once again. It all depends on where you are billeted. They often ask for volunteers but sometimes you just go where you are told. Men are equally affected in terms of marriage and kids; and may have it worse because if they are deployed no one is going to make any special efforts to make sure that dad will be there when baby is born.

I hope that helps.

Originally Posted by tuuthdr

I do not believe that female dentists are treated any differently than males, not openly at least.

I just could not pass that up, LT! Got two words for ya: PRT standards...

Originally Posted by tuuthdr

I am not sure whether you are asking about Army or Navy nor do i understand all your questions completely, but i will try to answer as best as I can as a female Navy Dental Corps Officer with two years experience.

All seriousness aside, I thought it was a pretty extensive, informative, and well-written reply...
unlike our resident "instructions commando" above

We, well I, appreciate the prompt answers that you offer to SDN. Thanks alot bud!

What is the likelihood of you being deployed not as a dentist?

Originally Posted by alphabetsoup

What is the likelihood of you being deployed not as a dentist?

do you mean if you are a dental officer, would you be deployed as a line officer? the answer is no. you would not be asked to fulfill any officer role for which you do not possess the credentials or qualifications. will you deploy as a dentist? oh yeah. every young LT (or Captain) has an operational tour in their immediate future.

I have a friend and he is a dentist in the army and he is going to Iraq not as a dentist (they are training him to do another job) and so I was wondering if the Navy was that way too.

for a military that is struggling to keep dental officers past their payback period, that strikes me as an odd move. it also strikes me as something dreamed up by a detailer or admin officer to make a sweet bullet on a fitrep.

regardless, there are only 900 or so active duty Navy dentists, so retraining us to do something other than dentistry makes little sense to big Navy. they can always find some restricted or unrestricted line officer to send off for some crazy billet or goofy training. the Navy has no way to replicate 4 years of dental school training. i wouldnt be too concerned.

Its complicated. I want to do this program and want to be in the Navy when I get done. I got into Dental school January, start in July, found out I was pregnant a couple of weeks ago. I haven't been able to find any information on whether pregnancy disqualifies you from applying to any of these programs. Do you know where I could find this information or the actual things that disqualify you as an applicant.
But on a similar note, The letter of acceptance was for "this year and this year only, no exceptions." Is it possible to have a baby in the first semester and get through in 4yrs? If not where do you go to talk to someone about a possible deferral or the schools rules and hand book? We haven't received much from the University yet so I thought I would try to be pro-active, with out screwing myself out of my dreams and goals!

Originally Posted by wendy81

Its complicated. I want to do this program and want to be in the Navy when I get done. I got into Dental school January, start in July, found out I was pregnant a couple of weeks ago. I haven't been able to find any information on whether pregnancy disqualifies you from applying to any of these programs. Do you know where I could find this information or the actual things that disqualify you as an applicant.
But on a similar note, The letter of acceptance was for "this year and this year only, no exceptions." Is it possible to have a baby in the first semester and get through in 4yrs? If not where do you go to talk to someone about a possible deferral or the schools rules and hand book? We haven't received much from the University yet so I thought I would try to be pro-active, with out screwing myself out of my dreams and goals!

Where were you accepted?

Do you get any health benefits while on the HPSP?

Originally Posted by alphabetsoup

Do you get any health benefits while on the HPSP?

If your school requires health insurance, you will be reimbursed for the premiums. While doing AT (your 45 days of active service) you will have full medical and dental benefits.

A couple of things I am curious about...

1) I have heard (don't worry I don't take everything I hear as doctrine) that most dentists are promoted to O-4 (LCDR) after their first year of active duty service. Is this true?

2) Where did 'Navy DDS 2010' go?

Originally Posted by jim85213

A couple of things I am curious about...

1) I have heard (don't worry I don't take everything I hear as doctrine) that most dentists are promoted to O-4 (LCDR) after their first year of active duty service. Is this true?

2) Where did 'Navy DDS 2010' go?

From the active duty dentists that I have spoken with, and speaking strictly for a general HPSP graduate going on active duty with no speacialty training, you are promoted to 0-3 upon graduation and then usually come up for promotion for 0-4 around year 5 - 6 on active duty.

Originally Posted by jim85213

A couple of things I am curious about...

1) I have heard (don't worry I don't take everything I hear as doctrine) that most dentists are promoted to O-4 (LCDR) after their first year of active duty service. Is this true?

2) Where did 'Navy DDS 2010' go?

the only way that you would be promoted to O-4 after one year as a dental corps officer is if you have prior service as an officer. and not just a couple years either, one of my fellow residents is up for O-4 is a prior as supply corps, after being enlisted seebeas. he has about 13 years in total. usually, though, eric is right. about 5-6 years to make O-4, unless you specialize.

this may change as so many LTs get out when their commitment is up and Congress has mandated O-4 billets that have to be filled. deep selects may be more common, or lineal number spreads may get wider. maybe we'll all stay in if we start out as O-4! no, not really.

Yeah 5 to 6 years makes more sense and I assumed what I had heard was incorrect. I figured if it was true, that the Navy did it to keep pay somewhat competitive with the private sector.

an additional way to make O-4 is by direct accession. if you are a specialist or have years of clinical experience, you can be brought into the corps as an O-4. i had a perio prof in school take a commission as a Major in the Army and jaunt off to Alaska for a bit.

and NAVY DDS 2010 is around here, somewhere...

Originally Posted by dheav005

and NAVY DDS 2010 is around here, somewhere...

I don't think he is. In fact, I think he might have deleted all of his posts because I tried to find something he said a while back and I couldn't find it.

Originally Posted by jim85213

I don't think he is. In fact, I think he might have deleted all of his posts because I tried to find something he said a while back and I couldn't find it.

I think you are right. He's been a great resource. It's a little creepy.

Originally Posted by bass for less

I think you are right. He's been a great resource. It's a little creepy.

It's really weird. He did the exact same thing a while back and then came back a few months later. When people asked about it, he told them it wasn't their business. Kind of strange...

Well I just got accepted into the HSCP or HPSP(my choice - but I'll probably go with HSCP) in the Navy today. I'm pretty excited about that. I will probably get sworn in sometime next week! Whew!

Congrats and BZs! welcome to the corps, (almost) Ensign.

smills, when did you submit your package to your recruiter?

Originally Posted by burnthestatus

smills, when did you submit your package to your recruiter?

My finished packet with the NAVY was submitted about 2 weeks ago. The recruiter works with you to finish your packet to submit it to the boards.

If there is anyone who is seriously looking to join the Navy, please feel free to PM me, I'd be happy to answer any questions on the process I went through to get accepted on the HSCP and also looking for someone to drop my name in to their recruiter so that I would be able to jump up from e-6 to e-7 with a 'recruit' that comes from the HSCP. Thanks.

I just got accepted into the Navy HPSP and understand I have 45 days AT every year. ODS and School can count as 2 of the 45-day AT, but what about the other 2? I don't think my school will have 45 consecutive days off where I can attend a clerkship. Also, What do you do at clerkships?

Originally Posted by NavyDDS85

I just got accepted into the Navy HPSP and understand I have 45 days AT every year. ODS and School can count as 2 of the 45-day AT, but what about the other 2? I don't think my school will have 45 consecutive days off where I can attend a clerkship. Also, What do you do at clerkships?

If there isn't a window where you can do AT, you get school orders. It isn't limited to just one time. For instance, I will have school orders all four years while I'm in school and then go to ODS after I graduate.

Originally Posted by NavyDDS85

I just got accepted into the Navy HPSP and understand I have 45 days AT every year. ODS and School can count as 2 of the 45-day AT, but what about the other 2? I don't think my school will have 45 consecutive days off where I can attend a clerkship. Also, What do you do at clerkships?

Clerkships can pretty much be anything you want, i.e. AEGD, GPR, Dental Clinic, etc. What you "do" at your clerkship really depends on how far along you are in your dental education, where you do your clerkship and the command.

I heard ODS has changed a bit over the years? Is it still referred to as "Knife and Fork School? I am starting ODS in June. Can anyone fill me in with what to expect. Keep in mind I just got commissioned in April and have no experience at all. Do we get to qualify with the 9 mm?

Originally Posted by NavyDDS85

I heard ODS has changed a bit over the years? Is it still referred to as "Knife and Fork School? I am starting ODS in June. Can anyone fill me in with what to expect. Keep in mind I just got commissioned in April and have no experience at all. Do we get to qualify with the 9 mm?

I attended 2 years ago. Just previous to my attending the Navy decided to change the scope of ODS. While it wasn't infantry basic, they did increase the intensity from past stories I had heard about it being a "knife and fork school". My take is that they are trying to instill a concept of military bearing as an officer. The first two weeks we played alot of "games" and then things mellowed out a bit. Also there were a couple of Marine Corps DI's there that kept people on thier toes with things such as turing all furniture over and throwing things into the halls, grass drills, lots of yelling, and some good old trips to the sand pit. Really it all depends on who your cadre is, it's all luck of the draw. Overall it's not that bad.

Yes, you do get to qualify with the 9mm.

Thanks a lor Eric. You have been more than helpful.

I went to OIS (while I was there, the name of the school changed to ODS) in June of 2007, after graduating dental school. i had much the same experience as eric, what with the early yelling, sandpits, pushups, 8-count body builders (weeeee!).

King Hall makes for stellar racking, especially since i had a bay view from the 3rd deck. and the mess at Ney Hall is always worth the price of admission. honestly though, newport is beautiful in the early summer and the 5 weeks go by pretty quick. going into town in uniform practically guarantees you a free round or two of drinks.

you should expect marching in formation, sitting through hours of classes, and generally getting acclimated to life as a military staff corps officer. i really found it helpful to go from ODS right to my first duty station, with everything fresh in my mind. if you can arrange it, go after graduation; not because the LT bars mean so much at ODS, but it makes the transition to active duty much smoother.

Originally Posted by dheav005

I went to OIS (while I was there, the name of the school changed to ODS) in June of 2007, after graduating dental school. i had much the same experience as eric, what with the early yelling, sandpits, pushups, 8-count body builders (weeeee!).

King Hall makes for stellar racking, especially since i had a bay view from the 3rd deck. and the mess at Ney Hall is always worth the price of admission. honestly though, newport is beautiful in the early summer and the 5 weeks go by pretty quick. going into town in uniform practically guarantees you a free round or two of drinks.

you should expect marching in formation, sitting through hours of classes, and generally getting acclimated to life as a military staff corps officer. i really found it helpful to go from ODS right to my first duty station, with everything fresh in my mind. if you can arrange it, go after graduation; not because the LT bars mean so much at ODS, but it makes the transition to active duty much smoother.

Ok so i will be going to ODS after graduation because my school goes year round. I am sure this is somewhere in my HPSP packet but do you show up to ODS in uniform?, and if so since you graduated from D school do you now where LT ranks or do you go with ENS ranks? Or do you have to complete ODS first before you are actually a LT. I guess it isn't really important, but I am just curious

no worries, btizzels. you arrive at ODS in civilian clothes and wear a sweet combination of coveralls and sweatsuit/PT gear for the first few days until the uniform shop has the khaki pants hemmed. you should contact your recruiting station to be prepared to swear you in as an LT as soon after graduation as possible. that date will affect your lineal number, which may affect future promotion. or not. it depends on how long you stay in....

you will be an LT when you arrive at ODS, though this doesnt mean anything in terms of respect from the recruit drill instructors. it does make it easier to have fresh knowledge when you report to your duty station and an up to date seabag of uniforms. this summer's ODS classes should get the new Navy PT gear and even though, the shirt is yellow, it will be an upgrade from the previous gear available.

Originally Posted by btizzels

Ok so i will be going to ODS after graduation because my school goes year round. I am sure this is somewhere in my HPSP packet but do you show up to ODS in uniform?, and if so since you graduated from D school do you now where LT ranks or do you go with ENS ranks? Or do you have to complete ODS first before you are actually a LT. I guess it isn't really important, but I am just curious

When you show up at ODS after D-school you will just show up in civilian clothes. The first day you will get issued your PT uniform and you will wear those until you get your khakis. During the first week you go over to the uniform store and get measured for your uniforms and buy your khaki uniforms that you will wear on a daily basis while at ODS. Your whites and blues usually get altered and you pick those up later.

Sine you will have already graduated you will be wearing your LT rank while those attending ODS before/during dental school will be wearing ENS.

Originally Posted by dheav005

no worries, btizzels. you arrive at ODS in civilian clothes and wear a sweet combination of coveralls and sweatsuit/PT gear for the first few days until the uniform shop has the khaki pants hemmed. you should contact your recruiting station to be prepared to swear you in as an LT as soon after graduation as possible. that date will affect your lineal number, which may affect future promotion. or not. it depends on how long you stay in....

you will be an LT when you arrive at ODS, though this doesnt mean anything in terms of respect from the recruit drill instructors. it does make it easier to have fresh knowledge when you report to your duty station and an up to date seabag of uniforms. this summer's ODS classes should get the new Navy PT gear and even though, the shirt is yellow, it will be an upgrade from the previous gear available.

Thanks for the advice on swearing in as a LT ASAP, so I swore in as an Ensign in San Diego but am going to school in Florida who would i contact about swearing in for LT(someone in FL i assume?). Also I think someone mentioned something about getting Licensed ASAP as well?

Originally Posted by eric275

Sine you will have already graduated you will be wearing your LT rank while those attending ODS before/during dental school will be wearing ENS.

Do people actually wear their ENS rank before they go to ODS? Because from what I understand your first 45 day AT is supposed to be ODS

Originally Posted by btizzels

Do people actually wear their ENS rank before they go to ODS? Because from what I understand your first 45 day AT is supposed to be ODS

The day you swear in and take your oath of office for the HPSP you are an ENS whether you have attended ODS or not, and technically could wear the rank if you already had uniforms. Not having uniforms if you attended a clerkship for instance you would just wear civilian clothes.

My statement was in reference to what rank you will be wearing on your uniforms while at ODS since most people don't have uniforms as one would from prior service.

Originally Posted by btizzels

Do people actually wear their ENS rank before they go to ODS? Because from what I understand your first 45 day AT is supposed to be ODS

the Navy would prefer to get ODS out of the way early, so that you can report to your first duty station soon after graduation. honestly though, i wasnt pressed to go to ODS while i was in school. from the time you sign your scholarship papers to the time you graduate and swear in as LT, you are an ENS, regardless if you have been to ODS or not.

Hi,
I am a mother of a pre-dental student who will be applying for the Navy scholarship. I am wondering if anyone knows (either first hand or from a friend) what kind of conditions my kid will be working in if they are deployed to a Navy or Marine base in Iraq, Iran, Kuwait or Djibouti.
I am mainly concern about safety, and living conditions in these areas. Will they be working in a hospital or an open area where there may be combat going on.
What's a typical day like? And how much danger would they be exposed to.
How long would a typical deployment be?

Being a mom, I am naturally concerned. Thanks for any info.

Originally Posted by jhungary7231

Hi,
I am a mother of a pre-dental student who will be applying for the Navy scholarship. I am wondering if anyone knows (either first hand or from a friend) what kind of conditions my kid will be working in if they are deployed to a Navy or Marine base in Iraq, Iran, Kuwait or Djibouti.
I am mainly concern about safety, and living conditions in these areas. Will they be working in a hospital or an open area where there may be combat going on.
What's a typical day like? And how much danger would they be exposed to.
How long would a typical deployment be?

Being a mom, I am naturally concerned. Thanks for any info.

To put things into perspective, I don't think a dentist in the military has died since Vietnam. The military has invested way too much money into your son to have him 'killed off' even accidentally. They stick to dental procedures because that's their need and he will be a dental specialist for them that noone else would be able to do in that part of the world.

Hi...

I am currently a NAVY HPSP student and I have developed an interest in perio. If I were to spend my career in the Navy, would there be ample opportunities to specialize or is it as competitive and difficult as it is outside of the military?

Since the needs of the Navy come first, what is the current situation with periodontists in the Navy? Is there enough? Too many?

Any idea on when the best time to apply would be, giving me the best chance at a perio program: Toward the end of dental school? After an AEGD/GPR? After my initial payback period? If I were to apply toward the end of dental school and rejected, would I then be prohibited from applying in the future?

Any ideas, advice or personal experiences with specializing in general, and perio specifically, would be appreciated.

Thank you.

Originally Posted by Deep Impact

Hey guys,

As the title says, if you have any questions for an active duty Navy dentist, please ask away. I'm not sure if I'm the best source for HPSP/HSCP related questions, but if you want to find out what it's like for a typical Navy dentist, I may have that answer for you. Many on the forum are potential HPSP/HSCP scholars or those already accepted who may want to find out more about what it really is like to be a Navy dentist. I may not have all the answers, but I will try my best to steer you in the right direction (It help that I work with about 30 Navy dentists). Other active duty guys, please help out and chime in. Thanks!

As for my background:
HPSP 3 yr scholar
Graduated dental school 2003
Navy GPR trained
OCONUS tour
OMFS resident

I am currently a Sergeant on my second enlistment in the Marine Corps. I have 3 more years to my contract to the Marines. During that time I am trying to complete a Bachelor's Degree. Once I have done so, I want to go into Navy Dentistry.
I have been doing some research into the field and the requirements. My basic problem is I have a Red/Green Color blindness. From the research I have done, I believe I should still be able to get into the denistry field. I would just be unable to be an Unrestricted line officer. I would fall under the Staff Corps. Please correct me if I am wrong, I need to know if this will be an issue.
Also, what can I do now to set myself up for success? I plan on completing at least 13 years with the Navy so I can get my retirement and perhaps start a personal practice after. I am currently 25 years old with 4 1/2 years active duty time, 7 1/2 years by Expiration of Current Contract.
Any advice is extremely appreciated.

Originally Posted by charliepk521

I am currently a Sergeant on my second enlistment in the Marine Corps. I have 3 more years to my contract to the Marines. During that time I am trying to complete a Bachelor's Degree. Once I have done so, I want to go into Navy Dentistry.
I have been doing some research into the field and the requirements. My basic problem is I have a Red/Green Color blindness. From the research I have done, I believe I should still be able to get into the denistry field. I would just be unable to be an Unrestricted line officer. I would fall under the Staff Corps. Please correct me if I am wrong, I need to know if this will be an issue.
Also, what can I do now to set myself up for success? I plan on completing at least 13 years with the Navy so I can get my retirement and perhaps start a personal practice after. I am currently 25 years old with 4 1/2 years active duty time, 7 1/2 years by Expiration of Current Contract.
Any advice is extremely appreciated.

Um you would have to talk to a recruiter about the red/green colorblind thing. I don't think it would be a huge issue, but then again it is the military. As for getting into dental school..... basically you will need to kick ass with your Bachelor's degree and fulfill all the pre reqs for the schools you apply to and score well on the DAT. When i did my interview for the HPSP scholarship one of the guys I interviewed with did something similar to what you are doing (he was AF tho) so it has been done before. Oh btw I think (99.9% sure) ALL Navy Dentists are Staff Officers.... I know I am a Staff Officer in the Navy