Army STRAP vs Navy FAP

[Cap'n]

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I am a 4th year medical student, and currently am an applicant to both Navy FAP (active duty) and Army STRAP (reserve). I have matched to a civilian general surgery residency. I want a lifelong career in the military, and would eventually like to have leadership roles. I recognize the pros/cons to each, including:
- Army Reserve has only 90 day boots-on-the-ground deployments for surgeons, whereas Navy deploys for 7 months at a time
- Army Reserve requires you to negotiate your military duty around your civilian schedule or vice versa, whereas if you're active duty you are in the military and don't have to deal with that.
- Navy medicine is a smaller department and therefore (according to those I've spoken to) doesn't have the same funding and networking advantages the Army has

I would like to hear from experienced individuals about Army vs Navy medicine in general, as well as my opportunities as a general surgeon. I want to deploy, and I want the military to be the main focus of my career. Which branch do you think I should choose? Thanks!

 

[DeadCactus]

You need to figure out if you want to be in a reserve component or active duty and then worry about branch. These are separate decisions. Combining them just clouds your judgement. How did you end up applying to Navy FAP and Army STRAP versus all the other combinations of incentive and branch?

I think the vast majority of physicians are better served in a reserve component for the benefits of a stable home life and avoiding skill atrophy.

 

[Cap'n]

You need to figure out if you want to be in a reserve component or active duty and then worry about branch. These are separate decisions. Combining them just clouds your judgement. How did you end up applying to Navy FAP and Army STRAP versus all the other combinations of incentive and branch?

I think the vast majority of physicians are better served in a reserve component for the benefits of a stable home life and avoiding skill atrophy.

I very much want to make the military a lifelong career, and don't have a strong desire to work in the civilian world. The Army has very appealing base locations for my wife and me, as opposed to Navy, where locations are farther from family or more expensive. We have family strewn about the country, and plenty of people near a lot of the midwestern bases. We therefore were leaning toward Army. However, the Army had no options for active duty for a 4th year medical student who had matched to residency. Trying to obtain an FAP position would mean waiting until PGY-II year to commission, which is something I was unwilling to do. Because the priority is a career in active duty, I applied to Navy FAP. Because we really like the Army, I applied to Army STRAP, knowing that it was possible to request to switch to active duty and because they need surgeons, it would likely be granted. Worst case, my wife and I reasoned that I could work at the VA as a civilian and volunteer for as much Army Reserve duty as possible (deployments, seek unique opportunities during weekend drill, etc) until the request was granted.

I am looking for opinions from those who have worked in Army or Navy medicine about the differences, similarities, and benefits/drawbacks to each branch. My plan is for active duty in both, it's just not possible to enter the Army as active duty right now.

 

[armytrainingsir]

Army is bigger.
Always has been, always will be.
Bigger means more opportunities, but at the cost of more competition.

Navy has jets, better uniforms, and better commercials.

Army Air Corps, or whatever they call it these days, is out since you want a military career.

 

[notdeadyet]

If you are as set in a military career as you say, and have no real interest in a civilian career, I don’t understand your logic.

Why not take Army FAP even if it means one year later? Missing out on one year’s benefits is small change if you prefer Army, base locations, etc.

 

[rhodesfb17]

If you are as set in a military career as you say, and have no real interest in a civilian career, I don’t understand your logic.

Why not take Army FAP even if it means one year later? Missing out on one year’s benefits is small change if you prefer Army, base locations, etc.

Does Army even offer FAP anymore? My recruiter said it’s “case by case” now and did not seem encouraging at all.

 

[DeadCactus]

I know you posted asking for people's experience and it's probably annoying that most of the responses have focused on other topics. But, I highly encourage you to slow down and take a step back. Joining the Army Guard or Navy because you don't want to wait a year for FAP is ridiculous.

 

[Cap'n]

Suffice it to say that I have a good reason for wanting to join sooner rather than later. Referring back to the original question, perhaps pretending I had never said anything about the timeline at all, what are your experiences with Army vs Navy medicine? Thank you!

 

[notdeadyet]

Does Army even offer FAP anymore? My recruiter said it’s “case by case” now and did not seem encouraging at all.

FAP will always be case-by-case for all branches of service. It’s a way that the military can recruit for skill sets that they need. So if you’re hankering for something fairly specialized it could be unavailable this year but available next. Or vice verse.

Also, one important thing to remember with recruiters (and this is not branch-specific): they will ALWAYS steer you in the direction of the program that results in your signature today and not in the direction that has you walk away for a year and maybe come back.

 

[notdeadyet]

Suffice it to say that I have a good reason for wanting to join sooner rather than later. Referring back to the original question, perhaps pretending I had never said anything about the timeline at all, what are your experiences with Army vs Navy medicine? Thank you!

I think you’ll find you’ll be a little underwhelmed with your responses to something like this.

Do an Advanced Search on SDN, limited to Military Medicine forum, with the title “Reserve” or “Guard.” Sort through the responses and you’ll get a good impression for people’s experience in the Reserve Corps (Army or Navy). Read through the stickies for a lot of experiences (pro and con) of military service as a physician.

After that, if you have specific questions, you’ll probably find you get the information you’re looking for. Asking what someone’s experiences are with Army or Navy medicine is just so broad as to require too much bandwidth from most of us.

 

[Army NWPRT]

Does Army even offer FAP anymore? My recruiter said it’s “case by case” now and did not seem encouraging at all.

Yes, the Army still offers FAP and it is on a case by case but chances are you will get it. Try it and find out, what is the worse thing that can happen from it? What if you get accepted, will you take it?

 

[Gastrapathy]

If you absolutely have to join, I’d choose the Navy again. I spent a year with the Army and the cultures are very different. Lots more asking permission in the Army and asking forgiveness in the Navy. But, if you really want to contribute as a surgeon, go work at a VA and join the reserves after you finish training.