Army vs.....

[Aegis]

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So this is probobly going to be a touchy subject. I'm applying to med school right now, and i'm in the process of deciding what branch to go into. For a while a was considering the Army, mainly because I was thinking that the Army was bigger so they would have more places to be stationed (more options). Latley though I have been considering the AF and Navy over the army and here is why. I talked to a Doc at work who had been in the AF for 24 years. He told me that because the Army has a larger infantry the deployments are more..um, rustic (i.e. sleeping in a tent somewhere). He mentioned something about how the politics in the Army were harder to deal with then that of the AF or Navy. I then talked to a guy who was a medic in the AF and then in the Army. He told me that his pay was always on time in the AF and everything was fairly smooth. Now that he is in the Army he bitches all the time, I guess his pay is never on time and he has to cut through all kinds of redtape. My end feeling is that the Navy would be the best only because of the port location of where I would be stationed, and I don't mind the idea of being on a boat. Feel free to post your opinions about which branch you would prefer and why.

 

[edmadison]

If you don't mind doing a few extra years do to GMO, Navy may likely be the best. There is little doubt that the Army folks will be more likely to get deployed into poor/less-safe areas.

Ed

 

[MoosePilot]

Air Force is nice on the operational side. I have stayed in plenty of tents over in the big sandy, but they're Air Force tents, with all that implies. Air conditioning, beds, locker closets.

My pay has never been late (unless there were some problems with Congress not approving the budget, but that's been awhile ago).

You might also look at locations. Some bases are better located than others.

 

[Termwean]

I was in the Navy for seven years.....and the Army for three............I loved the Navy...only joined Army b/c they payed 100% tuition in state school, ass ended up in Afghanistan for 6 months too. I think the Navy and Air Force treat there people better. The AF definately treats the enlisted better. I saw the world withthe Navy.

 

[Homunculus]

If you don't mind doing a few extra years do to GMO, Navy may likely be the best. There is little doubt that the Army folks will be more likely to get deployed into poor/less-safe areas.

Ed

ed's right as usual

keep in mind that the size of the AF and Navy GME will limit your options for residency slots come application time. I had an AF HPSP classmate who wanted to do radiology, but was told that she had a better chance of getting a civilian deferment because there are so few AF radiology slots. Then it turns out her request for civilian deferment was denied-- so now she's doing a rotating internship in preparation for some GMO time.

The Navy uses GMO's extensively, and if you don't mind starting your residency for a year, then leaving for 1-3 years before coming back to finish your education then you should definitely consider them. But again, they have the smallest GME of the three services so your residency options will be limited unless you are approved for a civilian deferment. The Navy is also reducing the size of their physician force by cutting residency slots in primary care fields. Here at the NCC (walter reed/national naval) peds program they are reducing by about half the number of incoming PGY1's for next year. it would make sense to speed up some retirements at the back end rather than cut the GME system of people coming in, but that's how things stand currently. to cover for the Navy losses, it's even being tossed around that we could add some AF residents, making one of the first tri-service residency programs.

Another thing to consider-- don't think that as a GMO you will be limited to boats and ports. yes, it's the Navy, but the majority of GMO's i've spoken to and who will be getting deployed are being sent to Marine units' battalion aid stations-- not exactly the safest place to be. i heard more than a few comments about this after an Admiral's "pep talk" to the new interns at national naval medical center. i guess no one knew that the Marines don;t have a medical corps and raid the Navy for their physician needs, lol.

I chose Army and am thankful for it. But the Navy and AF need good docs too so go with whatever you think suits you best 🙂

 

[Aegis]

WOW. Thanks for the feedback guys, and so quick too. Got another question for ya though. Its OK to apply to different branches for HPSP right? I would imagine I could always drop the one I decided against. Does anyone know when you will start getting commission pay. I knew a girl last year that finishing her last year of undergrad, but was already recieving her officers pay. She said it was some deal because she was doing her summer training before her first year vs. between her first and second year of med school. Is this only the Army? You would think they would'nt start paying you until you started Med school.

 

[Mirror Form]

ed's right as usual

keep in mind that the size of the AF and Navy GME will limit your options for residency slots come application time. I had an AF HPSP classmate who wanted to do radiology, but was told that she had a better chance of getting a civilian deferment because there are so few AF radiology slots. Then it turns out her request for civilian deferment was denied-- so now she's doing a rotating internship in preparation for some GMO time.

The Navy uses GMO's extensively, and if you don't mind starting your residency for a year, then leaving for 1-3 years before coming back to finish your education then you should definitely consider them. But again, they have the smallest GME of the three services so your residency options will be limited unless you are approved for a civilian deferment. The Navy is also reducing the size of their physician force by cutting residency slots in primary care fields. Here at the NCC (walter reed/national naval) peds program they are reducing by about half the number of incoming PGY1's for next year. it would make sense to speed up some retirements at the back end rather than cut the GME system of people coming in, but that's how things stand currently. to cover for the Navy losses, it's even being tossed around that we could add some AF residents, making one of the first tri-service residency programs.

Another thing to consider-- don't think that as a GMO you will be limited to boats and ports. yes, it's the Navy, but the majority of GMO's i've spoken to and who will be getting deployed are being sent to Marine units' battalion aid stations-- not exactly the safest place to be. i heard more than a few comments about this after an Admiral's "pep talk" to the new interns at national naval medical center. i guess no one knew that the Marines don;t have a medical corps and raid the Navy for their physician needs, lol.

I chose Army and am thankful for it. But the Navy and AF need good docs too so go with whatever you think suits you best 🙂

Another thing to remember is that GMO tours can effectively extend your obligations as well. So many people in the Navy end up having longer service commitments then people in the army, even though they got the same scholarship.