Thanks for the response, I'm a little late in getting to it. I understand the extremely long commitment, the "needs of the Navy come first" (but if I could by a physician[or such] in the military, I would plan on making it a career), and the numbers part of it, I really (at least I think I) do get it. But that incentive of paying my undergrad tuition is really attractive. Notre Dame tuition is $60,000 (or just about), my brother pays about $63,000 at Harvard and I'm assuming the rest of the high quality universities in the U.S. are right around that same price.
I know that the service academies are like ROTC and put in a lot of work besides the academics (From what I've heard, your summer vacation is two month at the most), but surely USUHS gives special consideration to the military seeing as that is their very nature(?).
Another thing I've heard is that med schools usually like students who major in things other then "Pre-Med", the blokes who take the poly sci and the theatre courses, but at the service academies they say not to worry about that because their core curriculum is already so broad and extensive, so go ahead and major in "Life Chemistry" because it won't make a difference. Does anyone have an opinion on this? Do the poly sci and theatre majors help themselves out by taking "softer" classes and boosting their GPA's?
Once again, I really appreciate your responses, thank you!
So just to throw my hat in here, do what you would like! We have some Norte Dame NROTC grads at USU right now. It is in fact possible. Something to consider though, you have to be very proactive, some years Big Navy is a jerk and does stuff likes say all med student spots for midshipmen will come from the academy, and then you have to fight to get allowed to go in. Even in those years, ROTC grads make it to med school, but it requires you to be talking with a dedicated officer at your ROTC detachment.
Notre dame is not a cheap school, an ROTC scholarship will help, don't assume you'll get one though. Not everyone who does ROTC gets a scholarship, in fact, only about half do, if memory serves. Do it because you like the lifestyle and the possibilities. You have a couple years in undergrad without the scholarship before it becomes absolutely official that you have a commitment, use that time to decide if you like the culture, through summer experiences and the officers and enlisted you work with. I love the crap out of every navy experience I've had, but not everyone does, and your mileage may vary.
Also of note, if you are sure the navy is where you want it be and medicine is preferable and your ultimate goal, there are people who apply well into their careers from every branch, there are people with 14 years of service who are now at USU. It's up to you, and eventually you can get there, sometimes there are detours though, and it's something you should keep in mind as a possibility. Just think of it in the terms of building your application and adding experiences to your life, which are beneficial on a lot of applications. USUHS average matriculant age is 27 after all...
On the majoring in other things bit, just keep in mind who you are. Premed/biology can give you a lot of the core pre-clerkship curriculum of med school in a more digestible format (4 years versus 18 months makes a big difference, especially when you throw in new clinically related material), so if you feel like you need time to get that info down, bio major can be a big boon to you personally. That said, I've seen everything from poli sci to Spanish literature to lawyers in med school, and they get through it, so it's still possible! But I would say the GPA boost can be helpful, but you have to learn the material at some point, and a lot of people who are studying hormone pathways for the first time in med school traded an easy GPA in undergrad for a heck of a time in med school, and I'm not sure that trade off is worth it, you need to get that info at some point, and if you do all that learning in med school, you may end up hurting residency chances, or other aspects of your curriculum, especially if you have to remediate a block. That said, ROTC courses usually carry a grade and add 5-6 units onto your curriculum each year, that can do a lot to boost your gpa, you have to be dedicated though in your science curriculum no matter what though.
My recommendation is this, if you know you want to do med school right now, make sure you take every opportunity to make sure it's what you want, AMSA, hospital volunteering, doctor shadowing, etc. Not only does this help you solidify your desire, but it looks great on applications. I'd also say, take time and explore other things, so you can say you've tried other things and you decided med was still right for you. And with your major, do something that you like, if you like it, it will make it infinitely easier, and more fun, and you can take those lessons to medicine, goodness knows we need a few more cultural anthropologists on occasion! If you like biology and learning about human systems, by all means, do that, be passionate about it, branch out and take a minor, or almost a minor
learn to learn new things! I'm dead serious. These things help show your interests, your depth as a student and person, and if you do what you like, your GPA should follow.
USUHS does give a lot of weight to any military experience, ROTC is right up there. USUHS is a long commitment no matter what, I think it relatively healthy to carry a little doubt with you anyway, it helps make sure you're grounded and know the weight of decisions you're embarking on. And there's a lot of good in being a military doc. With USUHS, show leadership, have reasonable MCATs and grades, and you'll do good; then get applications in EARLY in the cycle.
Good luck with your journey!