2014-2015 Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences Application Thread

Discover Your Odds of Getting into Medical School
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And for people who attended the interview and turned in your SF-86 forms, did you guys fill out the final "Authorization for the Release of Medical Information" form?
 
Glycereine said:
I'm active duty so I called the security office and they told me to bring a certification of my clearance instead of the security forms
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Got it. Anyone who's NOT prior-military who had the interview care to chip in? If you answered no to Question 21 (the mental health one), did you still sign the final form regarding medical information?
 
Hello! I had a few questions regarding choosing a branch at USUHS.
1) Is the public health service the least applied too or the most competitive?
2) Are you more likely to get a specialty of choice in certain branches? ortho or cardiology
 
BlueMax said:
Hello! I had a few questions regarding choosing a branch at USUHS.
1) Is the public health service the least applied too or the most competitive?
2) Are you more likely to get a specialty of choice in certain branches? ortho or cardiology
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1) Yes. It is the least applied to, but also has a tiny fraction of the available spots, so it is also very competitive.
edit: Least applied to may be a misnomer, but it is not as frequently selected as the top choice by qualified applicants from what I understand. There is a small pool of people who put only health services on their preference sheet but in general those are not the people USUHS is looking for.

2) Yes but it is all relative to the current strength of that service in a given specialty at the time it comes for you to specialize. I know that seems vague, but say the Navy needs 10 orthopedic surgeons and the Air Force needs 20. Sounds like the Air Force would be better if you want to be an orthopedic surgeon at first. Then you find out that 19 of the 20 Air Force Orth surgeons are O-3's and O-4's with less than 15 years in (probably not getting out) and that 7/10 of the Navy ones are O5 and above and could be retiring soon. That would make the Navy more opportune for trying to select that specialty.

There are obvious advantages to a given specialty if it is service specific. For instance if you want to work on undersea medicine or something radiation related, you probably have a better chance in the Navy, but in general it's going to be hard to find the answer you're looking for based on service. Instead I would try to decide what service you want first, and then specialties within that. At this point in the game it's unrealistic to be trying to choose a specialty with any certainty of getting it. Believe me I'm in the same boat with the question but I've realized I need to take it one step at a time and get accepted first, probably complete a GMO tour, and THEN maybe get the specialty I want the most. That said I want to be a Navy doctor more than I want to be a ___ (ortho, pediatrics, etc) doctor so I'll be happy with every specialty as long as I get to help those in uniform and their families.
 
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I just received an II this morning..I'm really interested but I'm not 100% sure how it all works, and I want to know before I accept. What I know is when you start school you receive a salary and all the expenses are paid. At the end of the four years, you are required to serve for seven years.

That being said, does the seven years begin during residency? What kind of training is required during the summer? Could you be sent overseas during your residency?

Sorry if this is dumb, I just want to be sure I know everything!
 
Jilted said:
I just received an II this morning..I'm really interested but I'm not 100% sure how it all works, and I want to know before I accept. What I know is when you start school you receive a salary and all the expenses are paid. At the end of the four years, you are required to serve for seven years.

That being said, does the seven years begin during residency? What kind of training is required during the summer? Could you be sent overseas during your residency?

Sorry if this is dumb, I just want to be sure I know everything!
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Not dumb questions at all and learning about it before accepting the interview or acceptance is very smart.

You are correct that you owe 7 years after the 4.

During those four years you are paid as an Ensign/2nd Lt (same pay grade, O-1):
http://www.dfas.mil/dam/jcr:f7c23091-f6a9-40ca-aee7-be4d59114788/MilPayTable2014.pdf
http://www.defensetravel.dod.mil/site/bahCalc.cfm (use zipcode 20814)
Keep in mind that although you are allotted x dollars for BAH, you can use them for anything, so you can get an apartment for less and save money, or spend some more of your pay and get a nicer apartment. The BAH rates are factored for a given housing unit size for each rank. For O-1, the rate is based on a 2 bedroom apartment. That doesn't mean you won't find a 3 for that price, or even that a 1 bedroom could cost that much, it's just the average that's used to determine the allowance. If you're more interested in how the rates are calculated for each pay grade you can check here:
http://www.defensetravel.dod.mil/Docs/perdiem/BAH-Primer.pdf

Residency accumulates more commitment on a 1:1 basis, so a 3 year residency would mean 3 more years commitment. HOWEVER these are paid back concurrently with USUHS commitment, so as long as you still owe time on your 7, residency is a pause in the payback and then a resume. When it would be more of a factor is if you already had your 7 years paid off before residency, and then accumulated another 3 year payback. (or clarity 3 is an example, they range from 2-5 I believe).

Internships do not accrue payback and do not count for payback

Summer training is based on what you want exposure to, or think you might want to do.

You could be sent overseas during your residency but it is far less likely than being in the states. If you don't WANT to go overseas you probably won't since most of us would love to.


This is a generally good resource if you want some more information.
http://www.usuhs.edu/medschool/pdf/WhatYouNeedtoKnow.pdf


If you have questions about the military in general or Navy specifically I can answer those in more detail in a PM if you like, or publicly. Keep in mind I am an applicant not a student, and not a doctor yet, but I have worked with several USUHS grads including my shadowed doctors, and graduated from USNS which has a similar payback system and military life (similar not the same).

Hope this helped some.
 
Glycereine said:
Not dumb questions at all and learning about it before accepting the interview or acceptance is very smart.

You are correct that you owe 7 years after the 4.

During those four years you are paid as an Ensign/2nd Lt (same pay grade, O-1):
http://www.dfas.mil/dam/jcr:f7c23091-f6a9-40ca-aee7-be4d59114788/MilPayTable2014.pdf
http://www.defensetravel.dod.mil/site/bahCalc.cfm (use zipcode 20814)
Keep in mind that although you are allotted x dollars for BAH, you can use them for anything, so you can get an apartment for less and save money, or spend some more of your pay and get a nicer apartment. The BAH rates are factored for a given housing unit size for each rank. For O-1, the rate is based on a 2 bedroom apartment. That doesn't mean you won't find a 3 for that price, or even that a 1 bedroom could cost that much, it's just the average that's used to determine the allowance. If you're more interested in how the rates are calculated for each pay grade you can check here:
http://www.defensetravel.dod.mil/Docs/perdiem/BAH-Primer.pdf

Residency accumulates more commitment on a 1:1 basis, so a 3 year residency would mean 3 more years commitment. HOWEVER these are paid back concurrently with USUHS commitment, so as long as you still owe time on your 7, residency is a pause in the payback and then a resume. When it would be more of a factor is if you already had your 7 years paid off before residency, and then accumulated another 3 year payback. (or clarity 3 is an example, they range from 2-5 I believe).

Internships do not accrue payback and do not count for payback

Summer training is based on what you want exposure to, or think you might want to do.

You could be sent overseas during your residency but it is far less likely than being in the states. If you don't WANT to go overseas you probably won't since most of us would love to.


This is a generally good resource if you want some more information.
http://www.usuhs.edu/medschool/pdf/WhatYouNeedtoKnow.pdf


If you have questions about the military in general or Navy specifically I can answer those in more detail in a PM if you like, or publicly. Keep in mind I am an applicant not a student, and not a doctor yet, but I have worked with several USUHS grads including my shadowed doctors, and graduated from USNS which has a similar payback system and military life (similar not the same).

Hope this helped some.
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That was SO helpful! Thanks a lot
 
Jilted said:
That was SO helpful! Thanks a lot
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no problem at all!

Let me know if there's anything I can help with


edit: One thing I didn't add is that if you don't think you want to stay in the military USUHS may not be the best option. It's a great education but it really is aimed at people intending to stay in. If you stay for 20 and get military retirement, you will have your specialties, lots of experience, and pay and benefits for the rest of your life. If you graduate and just try to get through your commitment and move on, you may wish you had just taken the loans. This is based on math and some comments in other threads, but it makes sense to me.
 
Does USUHS accept pre-interview updates? I have a pending publication that I would like to include but haven't received any interview.
 
Zaynecarrick said:
Does USUHS accept pre-interview updates? I have a pending publication that I would like to include but haven't received any interview.
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Potentially.

I would recommend calling admissions or emailing. I've gotten a response within a day or two every time I've emailed.

I will tell you I tried to update my address though since I moved and haven't heard back
 
what is the likelihood of being deployed by army or navy and how close to danger is the medical team usually located?
 
So how do rejections go...do they send out rejections after your file has been reviewed ( it says on their website it takes approx 3 weeks) or do they not give you an answer until their class is full/started their wait-list? I guess I am more just wondering if the admission committee gets back to you after those three weeks.
 
BlueMax said:
what is the likelihood of being deployed by army or navy and how close to danger is the medical team usually located?
Click to expand...

That's pretty much impossible for anyone to answer at this point. You're still looking at 4 years of med school and 3+ years of residency/fellowship, and there isn't anyone here who can tell you what's going to be going on in the world at that point - will we still be in Iraq/Afghanistan? What about Syria? Ukraine? North Korea? Some other place not even on the radar right now?

In terms of where you will be, you will typically be in a base hospital, not on the front lines.

If you're going to go the military route, you need to understand that deployment is a possibility, and you need to be prepared for it, but there's just no way to predict what the world will look like or how many doctors the military will be deploying by the time you are ready for that. Also, be prepared that if you go Navy, you may have a GMO tour after your intern year, during which you may not be deployed to a combat zone, but you could be assigned to a ship.
 
Anyone doing/did the Host Program? I understand that the program is strictly optional, but is it really helpful?

Also, if we choose to participate in the Host Program, will we be "evaluated" by our student host? Will the student host be required to submit an evaluation to the the admissions office?
 
willis11591 said:
They won't evaluate you. I highly recommend the program as well as the dinner the night before. Both were great and allowed you to get more one on one time with a student and figure out if the military is right for you. I can't speak for others, but my host and his/her friends that I met were great as well.
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Thanks for the info! But will ADCOMS know whether or not we did these programs? And will not participating in them signal a sign that we are not as "enthusiastic"?
 
Zaynecarrick said:
Does USUHS accept pre-interview updates? I have a pending publication that I would like to include but haven't received any interview.
Click to expand...

Yes, I have found that they are very receptive. Especially for something like that. I have sent in updates pre-interview this year and last year. Just send it to your admissions counselor. I received an II both years, just couldn't get off of the waitlist last year. Hoping it's different this year!
 
Sean Lee said:
Thanks for the info! But will ADCOMS know whether or not we did these programs? And will not participating in them signal a sign that we are not as "enthusiastic"?
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No and no. Completely optional, highly recommended.
It made me feel a lot more relaxed and prepared on the actual interview day.
 
Sean Lee said:
Thanks.

So would all Pass be adequate for a good military residency? Or do you want to aim for a mix of passes and honors?

And roughly what percentage correlates to each? Would 90% be honors, 70% be pass, and lower be fail?
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This question hasn't really been answered.

Honors/pass/fail can vary depending on what module/clerkship you are in, and occasionally based upon the performance of your peers. Your numbers are in the ballpark of where things tend to wind up, but there's some variability.

As a general rule, USUHS students do very well in the military residency match, in part because we have a great deal of time time in front of the military residency directors during our clerkship. We have first-choice match rates that are truly excellent (my understanding is typically >90% for first choice specialty, historically). I don't know exactly what percentage of my class overall gets honors, but it SEEMS to be about the top 10-15% of the class in most cases, give or take depending on the subject and situation. So if you do the math, that says you don't need to pull honors to match, although you'd probably better pull honors a decent bit of the time if you want to be a neurosurgeon or the like.

Also, regarding the harm's way question:
It is not in the military's interest to expose skilled and expensive physicians to imminent danger. That said, in today's asymmetrical warfare environment which exists without clearly drawn battle lines, any military physician needs to accept the fact that he or she might be called upon to perform duties in dangerous environments and perhaps become a target. Recognize that simply by putting on a uniform you sacrifice a degree of personal safety, even though the dangers are typically minimal. Also note that certain specialties tend to lend themselves to more front-line duties (FM, EM, to a lesser extent IM), while more specialized disciplines tend to be less useful in more forward settings.

Regarding hosting:
I have hosted and was never asked to evaluate my hostee.
 
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So I just got my II today, first one and I'm super pumped about it. However I'm a bit worried about the physical. I'm not too worried about any of the running, pushups, or situps. I'm concerned because I've had 3 ACL reconstructive surgery's and saw that that is a concern during the physical. It's been 3 years since my last surgery and I run two miles three times a week on it and have a fairly active job. Have any of you had this same situation? Do you know how that's going to be looked at? I think I'd loose my mind if I was denied because of my stupid knee. I'd also hate to spend the money to go interview if I wasn't going to pass the physical for that. Any responses would be great. Thanks
 
Thesaurus said:
So I just got my II today, first one and I'm super pumped about it. However I'm a bit worried about the physical. I'm not too worried about any of the running, pushups, or situps. I'm concerned because I've had 3 ACL reconstructive surgery's and saw that that is a concern during the physical. It's been 3 years since my last surgery and I run two miles three times a week on it and have a fairly active job. Have any of you had this same situation? Do you know how that's going to be looked at? I think I'd loose my mind if I was denied because of my stupid knee. I'd also hate to spend the money to go interview if I wasn't going to pass the physical for that. Any responses would be great. Thanks
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@Thesaurus
I can't speak to exactly the same situation as you but I am currently a commissioned officer and qualified for unrestricted service. I have had 6 surgeries on my left foot including calcaneus reconstruction, sub-taylor joint fusion, hardware insertion and removal, etc over the past 10 years and it has not affected my ability to be an officer. I just returned from an IA and I can't imagine anything as a military doctor that would be any more rigorous physically than what I have been doing for the past 9 years. That said obviously there is a medical screening process for a reason, but a sports-like injury that you can still cope with and run the needed amounts for fitness tests doesn't seem like it would be disqualifying to me.
 
I have a question for any current Navy students at USUHS, what is your designator? On my contingent resignation paperwork the terminology requested for me to enter the medical service corps, which doesn't seem right, but everything I can find points to that. I just want to make sure. I thought it would actually be as a medical student instead.
 
When exactly do we take the physical fitness tests? During the interview? After?
 
llamasarefuzzy said:
When exactly do we take the physical fitness tests? During the interview? After?
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There are two physicals.

1) Before your interview, you need to schedule (preferably complete) an eye and physical exam. Basically, you go to a designated optometrist and physician and complete a physical that includes an eye exam, hearing test, basic measurements such as blood pressure/height/weight, and a full body examination. The entire process shouldn't take more than 90 minutes. You have to schedule this physical by contacting Ms. Ramseur at USUHS, who will enter your social security number into the DoDMERB system. About a week later, DoDMERB will send you your assigned optometrist and physician. You make an appointment with these individuals (who have done this type of physical many times before) and complete your physical and eye exams.

2) Right before you matriculate at USUHS, I believe that you'll have to attend a mandatory officer "boot camp" thing that serves as your introduction to the military. During this "boot camp", you'll have to complete and pass your PT, which involves three things: running, push-ups, and sit-ups.

Hope this helps.
 
Has anybody here sent emails directly to Dean Saguil? I understand that there are admissions counselors who are very helpful, but is it appropriate to email Dean Saguil directly for certain inquiries? I've heard that he is very good and receptive towards students.
 
Awesome. Already did the physical exam, was worried about the sit-ups.. Glad they aren't going to sliding e that on us on interview day ( run test in heels would end poorly lol)
 
what are the numbers for the physical test you need/ ones people aim for?
 
BlueMax said:
what are the numbers for the physical test you need/ ones people aim for?
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I think to pass (male, Army branch), you need to run 2 miles under 15-16 minutes, do 40 pushups in 2 minutes, and do some sit-ups. I forgot the exact details and the website that specifically outline the requirements. But from what I've heard, you really have to be severely out of shape to not pass the physical. I wouldn't worry about it at all.
 
goldfish91 said:
I have emailed my admissions counselor, and I got a very generic response ("Dear USUHS applicant...") basically saying they can't tell us anything about where we stand in the process. I am not criticizing her for this, by any means, as I know she is doing her job as she is required. Earlier in the thread though, someone mentioned that Dean Saguil is receptive to emails. I am very conservative as far as sending such emails goes (probably to my disadvantage), so I will wait until a better consensus comes back. But it seems neutral/safe at worst, and helpful for you in the "expressed interest" category, at best.

I don't have any inside information - just going off of my gut.
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This is helpful, thanks.
 
Will USUHS start calling applicants for acceptances starting 10/15? That's how it was last cycle.
 
Glycereine said:
@Thesaurus
I can't speak to exactly the same situation as you but I am currently a commissioned officer and qualified for unrestricted service. I have had 6 surgeries on my left foot including calcaneus reconstruction, sub-taylor joint fusion, hardware insertion and removal, etc over the past 10 years and it has not affected my ability to be an officer. I just returned from an IA and I can't imagine anything as a military doctor that would be any more rigorous physically than what I have been doing for the past 9 years. That said obviously there is a medical screening process for a reason, but a sports-like injury that you can still cope with and run the needed amounts for fitness tests doesn't seem like it would be disqualifying to me.
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Thanks for the response, that's great news.
 
^^ It also depends on your age. I'm a 22 year old man, so it is different than for a 21 year old man, they are different categories. To pass, I need to run 2 miles in 17:30
 
I have a specific question about the eye exam. I have kind of bad astigmatism, but I can wear contacts and glasses (they are specially ordered from my eye doc though & a little more pricey). Bottom line, if I am borderline or slightly above the 3 diopters would I be disqualified even though my eyesight corrected to 20/20 or better by lens? Also, I know for sure my sphere (near/farsighted/1st #) rx is fine, but I cannot remember the cylinder (astigmatism/2nd) number, or axis.
 
Starbucko said:
I have a specific question about the eye exam. I have kind of bad astigmatism, but I can wear contacts and glasses (they are specially ordered from my eye doc though & a little more pricey). Bottom line, if I am borderline or slightly above the 3 diopters would I be disqualified even though my eyesight corrected to 20/20 or better by lens? Also, I know for sure my sphere (near/farsighted/1st #) rx is fine, but I cannot remember the cylinder (astigmatism/2nd) number, or axis.
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I cannot guarantee this, BUT the optometrist when I did the DODMERB said they only care if you're correctable to 20/20.
 
Glycereine said:
I cannot guarantee this, BUT the optometrist when I did the DODMERB said they only care if you're correctable to 20/20.
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Thanks! Yea, I just didn't want to schedule the DODMERB and go through everything if there was absolutely no chance at all. I know they are still strict, and there's still a chance they'll disqualify me for it. But, I always heard it was fine as long as it was correctable. Yet, I also never met anyone who tried to join with bad astigmatism either.
 
Starbucko said:
Thanks! Yea, I just didn't want to schedule the DODMERB and go through everything if there was absolutely no chance at all. I know they are still strict, and there's still a chance they'll disqualify me for it. But, I always heard it was fine as long as it was correctable. Yet, I also never met anyone who tried to join with bad astigmatism either.
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I have an astigmatism, albeit not awful, correctable to 20/20 and I've never had anyone mention it. I work with other active duty folks with pretty intense corrections though
 
Glycereine said:
I cannot guarantee this, BUT the optometrist when I did the DODMERB said they only care if you're correctable to 20/20.
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Yeah, my optometrist told me that I am correctable to 20/20, and "that's all they care about".

However, you are NOT required to be correctable to 20/20. I believe that as long as you are correctable to 20/70 in one eye and 20/40 in the other, you'll be fine.
 
I find it a bit puzzling that people seem to believe that your eyes MUST be correctable to 20/20 or it's a disqualification.

Here are the official cutoffs:


  • (1) 20/40 in one eye and 20/70 in the other eye.

    (2) 20/30 in one eye and 20/100 in the other eye.

    (3) 20/20 in one eye and 20/400 in the other eye. However, for entrance into a military academy, distant visual acuity that does not correct to 20/20 in each eye is disqualifying. For entrance into ROTC programs and OCS/OTS, distant visual acuity that does not correct to 20/20 in one eye and 20/100 in the other eye is disqualifying.
 
And speaking of physicals, how often do we have to repeat them throughout our military career? I know we have to repeat the SF-86/clearance paperwork once every 5 (or is it 7?) years, and that we have to do PT twice every year. But what about the medical exam? Do we have to repeat that once every year? I hope not.

@Glycereine
 
Sean Lee said:
And speaking of physicals, how often do we have to repeat them throughout our military career? I know we have to repeat the SF-86/clearance paperwork once every 5 (or is it 7?) years, and that we have to do PT twice every year. But what about the medical exam? Do we have to repeat that once every year? I hope not.

@Glycereine
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You have a physical of some kind depending on service and current job (IE flight surgeons have a flight physical) once per year. I don't know of any that are on any more or less frequency than that.

It varies in intensity depending on what it's for and frequency. For example your normal flight physical is short (called short form) but every few years you need a longer one (long form).
 
My husband got an II today! The interview is for Nov 20th...which I think from reading past threads, the slots are normally full by that time, but he's still going to try.

Stats: 34 MCAT/4.0 GPA/Lots of shadowing/In the reserves/ Application was submitted early, but his first MCAT was low. They did not send his package for review until his last MCAT scores dropped which was on 9 Sep.
 
Premedspouse said:
My husband got an II today! The interview is for Nov 20th...which I think from reading past threads, the slots are normally full by that time, but he's still going to try.

Stats: 34 MCAT/4.0 GPA/Lots of shadowing/In the reserves/ Application was submitted early, but his first MCAT was low. They did not send his package for review until his last MCAT scores dropped which was on 9 Sep.
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Congratulations to him! That's great!!!

I don't know that the slots are full all the way then, but even if so a TON of people get in off the waitlist for USUHS.
 
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