2020-2021 Uniformed Services University of Health Sciences

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Sredman said:
@Matthew9Thirtyfive How important is a research background to USUHS? I’ve spoken to a doc at USU and he said there are plenty of opportunity at NIH etc.
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There is plenty of research here. It is not that important for getting accepted. A lot of people had research and plenty had zero. But you basically just have to join an interest group and there will be tons of opportunities. At USU, WR, and NIH.
 
Matthew9Thirtyfive said:
There is plenty of research here. It is not that important for getting accepted. A lot of people had research and plenty had zero. But you basically just have to join an interest group and there will be tons of opportunities. At USU, WR, and NIH.
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Could I pm you a more specific question 🙂
 
Matthew9Thirtyfive said:
The APFT is gone for good. Starting Oct 1, the ACFT will be the only fitness test for the Army.
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Dang looks like I'm gonna have to call it quits as an endurance athlete and work on developing further as a sprinter :\. Everything on the ACFT basically prioritizes strength and explosiveness.
 
Is the medical process for USU the same as for the HPSP scholarship? I'm struggling to get through medical now and track down all the documents they need so I was curious how that worked at USU.
 
badger008 said:
Is the medical process for USU the same as for the HPSP scholarship? I'm struggling to get through medical now and track down all the documents they need so I was curious how that worked at USU.
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It’s a little different. You go through DoDMerb. You fill out some paperwork online and then go to an assigned physician and an eye doc for your physical parts. You only need medical documents if they request them for something you list on your paperwork.
 
jonniboi said:
Dang looks like I'm gonna have to call it quits as an endurance athlete and work on developing further as a sprinter :\. Everything on the ACFT basically prioritizes strength and explosiveness.
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Yeah. Makes sense though. Most tasks will require that kind of fitness. I’ve been saying the Navy needs to transition to a functional fitness type of test, but the only change we’ve made is getting rid of sit-ups and adding planks. Not complaining about that though cause planks are so much better for you.
 
Matthew9Thirtyfive said:
It’s a little different. You go through DoDMerb. You fill out some paperwork online and then go to an assigned physician and an eye doc for your physical parts. You only need medical documents if they request them for something you list on your paperwork.
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Ok great! Thank you!
 
Matthew9Thirtyfive said:
Yeah, you don't have to take a physical fitness test until you're already in the military. It's not part of the application process.
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When do you need to get your secret clearance? Does it need to be in by OCS? Just worried as I know a lot of clearances are delayed heavy and then of course Covid delays as well.
 
Sredman said:
When do you need to get your secret clearance? Does it need to be in by OCS? Just worried as I know a lot of clearances are delayed heavy and then of course Covid delays as well.
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You can't get accepted without your security stuff being good to go. As long as you're given a green light from security and you get your acceptance, you should be fine.
 
T800'sThumb said:
Oh btw, I'm also 36. Old man power!
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Matthew9Thirtyfive said:
You can't get accepted without your security stuff being good to go. As long as you're given a green light from security and you get your acceptance, you should be fine.
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all my relatives work as engineers in DOD and NSA . Full FBI check and lie detectors., UDS. And some pretty personal questions during lie detector but seems pretty cool
 
doctorosteo said:
all my relatives work as engineers in DOD and NSA . Full FBI check and lie detectors., UDS. And some pretty personal questions during lie detector but seems pretty cool
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Lol Secret is like a credit check. My dad had TS/SCI with no poly. Depends on what you do.
 
doctorosteo said:
all my relatives work as engineers in DOD and NSA . Full FBI check and lie detectors., UDS. And some pretty personal questions during lie detector but seems pretty cool
[/QUOTE
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lol . I hope they ask me If I dislike my pesky little brother. I am hoping lie detector can resolve how I really feel
 
doctorosteo said:
lol . I hope they ask me If I dislike my pesky little brother. I am hoping lie detector can resolve how I really feel
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You won’t get a lie detector nor an interview for a secret.
Edit: AFAIK for USUHS, maybe some jobs have a secret that require interviews and I’m not familiar.
 
Sorry, I'm getting really confused about the combat readiness requirements for Army as I've seen a few different things. What are the fitness requirements for a female student at USUHS/Army?

Also, I'm having a hard time finding the physical requirements for admission on USUHS's website. Does anyone have a link? Is wearing glasses a disqualifier?
 
aceofspades056 said:
Sorry, I'm getting really confused about the combat readiness requirements for Army as I've seen a few different things. What are the fitness requirements for a female student at USUHS/Army?

Also, I'm having a hard time finding the physical requirements for admission on USUHS's website. Does anyone have a link? Is wearing glasses a disqualifier?
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The new fitness test for the Army that you will be taking at USUHS (it becomes the only Army fitness test starting October 1) does not discriminate between age and gender. It has three levels. Your level is determined by your MOS. Medical students and medical officers are the easiest level (I think it's called Gold).

No, wearing glasses is not a disqualifier. The medical and physical requirements are based on the DoDI 6300.03 and are numerous. However, a lot of things that it says are disqualifying can be waived. It just depends on what it is.

Here is a link if you'd like to read through it. Keep in mind that individual branch standards might be slightly different. But to be qualified for USUHS through DoDMerb, you have to meet the DoDI standards. https://www.esd.whs.mil/Portals/54/Documents/DD/issuances/dodi/613003p.pdf?ver=2018-05-04-113917-883
 
Thank you so much for the link. I swear I went down some weird rabbit holes and could not find it. I'm an amateur mid-distance runner and have an decent amount of core strength, but am severely lacking in terms of upper-body muscle strength. Do you think the military training aspect of USUHS prepares students well for the fitness test (presumably you are referring to this one)?
 
aceofspades056 said:
Thank you so much for the link. I swear I went down some weird rabbit holes and could not find it. I'm an amateur mid-distance runner and have an decent amount of core strength, but am severely lacking in terms of upper-body muscle strength. Do you think the military training aspect of USUHS prepares students well for the fitness test (presumably you are referring to this one)?
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There is not really any mandatory PT here. However, there are several groups that do PT together to help make sure people are good to go. If you’re worried about passing, there are plenty of people who can help you get where you need to be.

I’m not sure how the Army works at DCC, but at the Navy ODS we are required to pass our fitness test at ODS or we get a failure on our record. So you might want to start some upper body strength work now.

But also keep in mind that the standard to pass for med students is very doable. You can do it!
 
Anyone nervous that there maybe funding cuts to military healthcare? I know they say this once every couple of years about scuttling or severely defunding USUHS...
 
jonniboi said:
Anyone nervous that there maybe funding cuts to military healthcare? I know they say this once every couple of years about scuttling or severely defunding USUHS...
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They’ve said they were going to close USUHS like every couple of years since the school opened in the 70s. It’s not going to happen. It’s just someone trying to add some **** to his fitrep.
 
Matthew9Thirtyfive said:
They’ve said they were going to close USUHS like every couple of years since the school opened in the 70s. It’s not going to happen. It’s just someone trying to add some **** to his fitrep.
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I was actually thinking about this in connection with the current political climate. Made me a little nervous.
 
jakeyb93 said:
I was actually thinking about this in connection with the current political climate. Made me a little nervous.
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The military is constantly fluctuating and changing. There will always be threats and cuts to military medicine. If you get nervous every time someone says they are going to make cuts, you’ll have a very nervous career. Most of the time it either doesn’t happen, or it’s not played out any way like the news reports it.
 
Matthew9Thirtyfive said:
The military is constantly fluctuating and changing. There will always be threats and cuts to military medicine. If you get nervous every time someone says they are going to make cuts, you’ll have a very nervous career. Most of the time it either doesn’t happen, or it’s not played out any way like the news reports it.
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I still think @jonniboi and @jakeyb93 have a valid concern. The military like other sectors has budget constraints, and those constraints along with priorities change/shift from time to time. USUHS has been around for decades, but that doesn't mean its funding is fixed. DoD is facing a $5.7B cost-savings review, and $2.2B of that is aimed at military health care. Granted that review is an iteration (not set in stone), but USUHS is being looked at specifically by the Pentagon's CAPE office (Cost Assessment and Program Evaluation) as a place for potential cost cuts. I am sure military medicine will always be around in some shape or form, but I think applicants also have a valid concern. USUHS probably won't go anywhere anytime soon, but the potential exists that it might have to make some changes based on budget constraints.

www.politico.com

Esper eyes $2.2 billion cut to military health care

Yet defense officials say troops and their families could be hurt.
www.politico.com www.politico.com
 
WindmillChaser92 said:
I still think @jonniboi and @jakeyb93 have a valid concern. The military like other sectors has budget constraints, and those constraints along with priorities change/shift from time to time. USUHS has been around for decades, but that doesn't mean its funding is fixed. DoD is facing a $5.7B cost-savings review, and $2.2B of that is aimed at military health care. Granted that review is an iteration (not set in stone), but USUHS is being looked at specifically by the Pentagon's CAPE office (Cost Assessment and Program Evaluation) as a place for potential cost cuts. I am sure military medicine will always be around in some shape or form, but I think applicants also have a valid concern. USUHS probably won't go anywhere anytime soon, but the potential exists that it might have to make some changes based on budget constraints.

www.politico.com

Esper eyes $2.2 billion cut to military health care

Yet defense officials say troops and their families could be hurt.
www.politico.com www.politico.com
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I’ve been in for 8 years, and I’ve seen them threaten cuts left and right. Sometimes they happen, most of the time they don’t or not completely. Usually when they actually do make huge cuts, they realize they made a huge mistake and then scramble to fix it.

When it comes to mil med, what seems to happen regularly is some guy with either line experience or no actual military experience will suggest dramatic cuts to mil med and/or USUHS. It’s an easy target and on paper seems reasonable.

Then once anyone who can actually do anything about it looks at it, it gets halted and stopped because it’s almost always ridiculous. The idea that the military was going to cut like 12,000 mil med positions was all over the place last year. As soon as it got to Congress it stopped because it was absurd. The plan to cut spots that don’t directly contribute to operational things is still around, but not in the form it was reported.

Oh and we had more peds and OB spots this year than last year despite everyone reporting that peds and ob were going to disappear completely.

When it comes to cuts in the military, I think it’s reasonable to be concerned. The military makes dumb decisions sometimes. It’s reasonable to think that when you’re practicing they might do something dumb that affects you.

When it comes to USUHS, I don’t think there’s any reason to worry or be concerned. There is so much data that supports the school being around and the school and faculty contribute so much to operational and battlefield medicine, it’s not going anywhere. Also the LCME requires certain things, so even if cuts were made, you have to get an education that meets LCME standards.

But like I said, they make those threats all the time. They never happen.
 
willb_82dAirborne said:
To update: I received my "application complete" and pre-req email simultaneously on 8/10, secondaries were in 7/12. I think this was because my primary was only verified by AMCAS on 8/4, due to some annoying Joint Service Transcript that I wasn't even aware of.

The next step for me is to start seeking out my letter of approval since I'm currently active duty.
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Yes! The Joint Service Transcript delayed my verification too! Heads up for any other prior service applicants: even if you don’t have any actual academic grades from your military career, AMCAS still requires your JST. I only found out because I called to see why my application was under review.

Good luck everyone!
 
Anyone know if there are specific reasons why some people got the invitation to add prerequisites right away, and some didn't get that part of the application till a month later? I just got mine (was complete second week of July) and am curious if it means anything. Excited to be complete!
 
GarbanzoMD said:
Anyone know if there are specific reasons why some people got the invitation to add prerequisites right away, and some didn't get that part of the application till a month later? I just got mine (was complete second week of July) and am curious if it means anything. Excited to be complete!
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Some counselors are slower than others. It's not an indicator of your chances.
 
Matthew9Thirtyfive said:
Some counselors are slower than others. It's not an indicator of your chances.
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Ok this is good to know, I was also complete on my secondary well in advance, but did not receive invitation to add pre-reqs yet. I was freaking out if this meant anything about my competitiveness.

On a side note, should I reach out to my counselor?
 
jonniboi said:
Ok this is good to know, I was also complete on my secondary well in advance, but did not receive invitation to add pre-reqs yet. I was freaking out if this meant anything about my competitiveness.

On a side note, should I reach out to my counselor?
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It wouldn’t hurt to reach out and make sure they got everything from you.
 
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