Ask an Army Dentist

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Hello,

It is completely up to you where you get your license. The Army only requires you to get a license, the state is not important. If those states offer incentives, they may be worth exploring.
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I know that the deployment lengths have changed over time. As of now, how long are deployments for dentists coming out of school? If I were to get out of dental school and not specialize, where would I most likely spend the four years on active duty and how often would I move? Would deployment duration and location differ if I were to chose a 1-year AEGD? I know these are a lot of questions, but I am trying to make an educated decision about choosing the HPSP scholarship.
 
It is very short-sighted to base the decision of whether to do an AEGD on whether it increases your chance of deployment. It will benefit you much more in your skill set and earning potential by doing one.

Deployments can range between 4.5-9 months.

If you didn't specialize you would go to one base for your initial 4 yrs and likely not move again unless you stayed in past 4 yrs. The locations you have the highest chance of going to are the larger bases that have tons of dentists.
 
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Additionally, a deployment is a great experience that you will likely miss out on because of things winding down.

There are many people trying to deploy, that I would jump on the opportunity, not try to avoid it.
 
I am graduating dental school in May, attending OBLC in June and going to 12-month AEGD in August. When do I start getting active duty pay, and stop getting the stipend?
 
The stipend stops accruing on graduation day. Meaning that if your graduate on May 17th, you will recieve a check for two days of stipend on June first. Active duty pay will start on 13 June but you probably won't see a paycheck until 1 July and it will be for 17 days. Bottom line is to save some stipend between now and graduation, it'll be kinda lean from May to August...
 
Your pay begins when you come on active duty. If you are doing OBLC it will begin then, if you did OBLC before or during school it will begin when you sign into your first assignment.
 
Hey all. Just commissioned for the Army a couple of weeks ago so I'm trying to get my head wrapped around all the details and just had a question about the annual ADT you have to do. The school I will be attending does not have very long breaks and I don't think I will ever have 45 straight days off. I have read numerous things but still don't know how this situation will play out. Do I get to go to a base for however many days I can and then do the rest at school? What will I be doing at school during the ADT time? I assume my regularly DS schedule but is there anything else? Thanks for any guidance.
 
If you don't have the 45 days off, you just need a letter from your school, and then you don't do anything. You will still get paid as a 2LT. If you do go, you will just do fillings, no drilling. You just get an overview of the Army.
 
There is an opportunity to visit a dental facility in the Army system. The rule is that you don't have to spend the entire 45 days there, but a minimum of 21 days at the facility with the remainder at school.
 
Am I eligible to apply for civilian residencies/speciality programs with the 4-year HPSP scholarship after dental school?
 
What are the implications of joining the military for my family? How will joining the military affect my wife? How will it affect my kids? I have heard the Air Force is the one to join for raising a family, but would the Army allow me to have a decent family life?
 
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studdentist140 said:
What are the implications of joining the military for my family? How will joining the military affect my wife? How will it affect my kids? I have heard the Air Force is the one to join for raising a family, but would the Army allow me to have a decent family life?
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I am not a military dentist yet but just my 2 cents...

You should sit down and talk to your wife and kids before joining. While in the military you could be:

1) moved multiple times during active duty
2) deployed for a period of 6-18 months
3) possibly being injured (although not likely) while being deployed to FOB and other not so safe places...

Expect to deploy for any branch of the military. However, from what I have seen it's Army>Navy>AF in terms of length of deployment... There will be some exception of course... I heard AF and Navy have better bases compared to Army... :)
 
Can you apply to Army endo or pedo residencies straight out of school? I heard those might be reserved for dentists with more experience.
 
AVB2104 said:
I am not a military dentist yet but just my 2 cents...

You should sit down and talk to your wife and kids before joining. While in the military you could be:

1) moved multiple times during active duty
2) deployed for a period of 6-18 months
3) possibly being injured (although not likely) while being deployed to FOB and other not so safe places...

Expect to deploy for any branch of the military. However, from what I have seen it's Army>Navy>AF in terms of length of deployment... There will be some exception of course... I heard AF and Navy have better bases compared to Army... :)
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hmmm...ok...I will give my perspective from someone in the military:

1). Yes, you will be moved multiple times during active duty if you stay more than 4 years. If you stay for 4 years, you will probably remain in one place...and have experience and be debt free.

2). You will NOT be deployed for 18 months. The reality is, at this point in time, you will probably not be deployed at all. The longest deployments were 15 months, and that was many years ago. Now, they are about 6 months...for those few that are deployed.

3). I guess you could be injured...but you probably have just as much of a chance in the States of being injured as on a FOB.

Now the benefits:

low stress
good pay
paid training
amazing retirement
opportunity to travel
many opportunities besides being chairside
on
and
on
and
on...

It makes sense to do it for 4 years...after that, it is your choice. There is a reason we are filling all the scholarships, it is an amazing deal..who knows how much longer it will be around.
 
AirborneDentist said:
hmmm...ok...I will give my perspective from someone in the military:

1). Yes, you will be moved multiple times during active duty if you stay more than 4 years. If you stay for 4 years, you will probably remain in one place...and have experience and be debt free.

2). You will NOT be deployed for 18 months. The reality is, at this point in time, you will probably not be deployed at all. The longest deployments were 15 months, and that was many years ago. Now, they are about 6 months...for those few that are deployed.

3). I guess you could be injured...but you probably have just as much of a chance in the States of being injured as on a FOB.

Now the benefits:

low stress
good pay
paid training
amazing retirement
opportunity to travel
many opportunities besides being chairside
on
and
on
and
on...

It makes sense to do it for 4 years...after that, it is your choice. There is a reason we are filling all the scholarships, it is an amazing deal..who knows how much longer it will be around.
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I agree 100%. That's why I'm joining :)
 
studdentist140 said:
What are the implications of joining the military for my family? How will joining the military affect my wife? How will it affect my kids? I have heard the Air Force is the one to join for raising a family, but would the Army allow me to have a decent family life?
Click to expand...

Here's my experience. Right out of dental school I got a base that wasn't at the top of my request list. Having said that, I still love it here. Doing dentistry in the Army is very steady and low stress. Your non-military classmates on the other hand have large loans to pay back and most will end up in some sort of corporate dentistry position where they're working way too many chairs with way too little time. Then at then end of the month, once their loan payment is done, they will be left with less money than you.

As far as my wife was concerned with the Army, she was not excited at all to leave her home state. She had never lived outside of California. Now that she's lived here in North Carolina for a few month she's very happy we were moved. The Army did all the work with the move and we even pocked a few extra dollars in the end. Having said that, we also decided we aren't fans of relocating constantly and will most likely do our payback and then be done. Still though, in the meantime I'll have gained a ton of skills while getting paid and having almost no stress from my job and no debt.

Just know that doing the military requires buy-in from all members of your family, including extended family. You'll want and need that support chain once you move to a place that you know no one. However, the military is one big family and people will help you out in a heartbeat once you move.

As far as which branch, I'll always recommend the Army. The bases really aren't that different anymore and the Army needs the most dentists. With the constant chatter about downsizing I can only assume (note, this is not an official statement, just observation) that the Army will be the least hit by the downsize in dentists. The way the Army has set up their dental corps is quite different than AF and Navy so we have a bit more support from the general officer side of the house. We also aren't over staffed with dentist like some of the other branches are.

Hope that helps.
 
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great travel opportunities. i have traveled to exotic places such as San Antonio, TX; Clarksville, TN; El Paso, TX; and Augusta, GA!
 
Okay, I am completely new to this and I just want to know how this works? They pay for your dental school and then what? Pardon my ignorance.
 
Tariqd said:
Okay, I am completely new to this and I just want to know how this works? They pay for your dental school and then what? Pardon my ignorance.
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Should probably excuse your laziness as well. The information you're looking for is in this thread...
 
Tariqd said:
Okay, I'll go ahead and look through all 35 pages. :rolleyes:
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Its funny that you pretend 35 pages wouldn't take less than 30 minutes to read. Not to mention, the first page is over 7 years old; so it'd be slightly stupid to start there.
 
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New2Philly said:
Quick Question: Does the Army move cars when they move the rest of your home goods? I am moving within CONUS. thanks
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Under EXTREME circumstances supposedly they do. However in practice, no. They will, however, pay you for you to drive it out yourself and give you the time it takes, so it's not awful.
 
New2Philly said:
Quick Question: Does the Army move cars when they move the rest of your home goods? I am moving within CONUS. thanks
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NO, they will not move them unless you are going OCONUS. If you are married, both of you can drive a car, thus they will "indirectly" pay for you to move 2 of them. They will only pay you to drive them, they will not ship them CONUS.
 
studdentist140 said:
What are the implications of joining the military for my family? How will joining the military affect my wife? How will it affect my kids? I have heard the Air Force is the one to join for raising a family, but would the Army allow me to have a decent family life?
Click to expand...
It's worked well for me. Most military dentists have the ability to choose to live on or off of the base, so as far as your spouses work, kids school, etc... it is up to you where you live. You can shop around for the school district you want to live in.
 
I would like to be stationed in Europe after dental school, most likely without pursuing the AEGD. Are there fewer HPSP selectees that request being stationed in Europe over America, giving me a better chance of getting my preferred location? Also, where in Europe are most of the bases or is there a list of bases that take HPSP dentists?
 
Adlogin said:
I would like to be stationed in Europe after dental school, most likely without pursuing the AEGD. Are there fewer HPSP selectees that request being stationed in Europe over America, giving me a better chance of getting my preferred location? Also, where in Europe are most of the bases or is there a list of bases that take HPSP dentists?
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Hello,

No. There are many people that come right out of school and go overseas. It all just depends on the number of slots created by the number of people that are leaving.
 
AirborneDentist , I apologize if you have answered this question a lot but here it goes.

I am in my fourth year of dental school and no longer want to do the Army, which I signed up for in 2011 of course (a long list of reasons why). I am just wondering if you have heard of anyone getting out and repaying the government for all the loans they paid. Obviously I have very little hope about all of this but if I am curious if you have come across this situation at all.

you can obviously just say no and that I am not being realistic at all ha thanks for your time
 
predentduck said:
AirborneDentist , I apologize if you have answered this question a lot but here it goes.

I am in my fourth year of dental school and no longer want to do the Army, which I signed up for in 2011 of course (a long list of reasons why). I am just wondering if you have heard of anyone getting out and repaying the government for all the loans they paid. Obviously I have very little hope about all of this but if I am curious if you have come across this situation at all.

you can obviously just say no and that I am not being realistic at all ha thanks for your time
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Hello,

I personally have not heard of anyone doing that. That being said, it may not be impossible, I just have not heard of it.
 
Hi All,
I was hoping that I could get some quick answers to my burning questions.
1) Im just hoping that Im on track. I want to do everything I can to get this scholarship and become an Army Dentist (or Navy worst case). I am already in talks with my recruiter, have completed the application, and am currently working on my essay (any idea how long it needs to be?). I am scheduled to meet with my recruiter and go to MEPS in the middle of August. I dont wear them, but I have been issued a prescription for my eyesight which is slightly weaker in my left eye (assuming this wont disqualify me/ no other medical issues)
2) Am I still competitive with a 3.7 GPA and a 22AA? Any idea of chances?
3) What are the odds of overseas deployment? I would love to go somewhere not in the US.
Thanks in advance!
 
@DATtestTho

1) The essay is no longer than 1 page.. I don't believe your eye condition will disqualify you.
2) Your numbers are very competitive BUT the process is just as random as dental school..
3) If I am NOT mistaken, deployment with the army is to Afghanistan/iraq only. The odds of getting deployed is quite good (at least once in your active duty career).
 
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DATtestTho said:
Hi All,
I was hoping that I could get some quick answers to my burning questions.
1) Im just hoping that Im on track. I want to do everything I can to get this scholarship and become an Army Dentist (or Navy worst case). I am already in talks with my recruiter, have completed the application, and am currently working on my essay (any idea how long it needs to be?). I am scheduled to meet with my recruiter and go to MEPS in the middle of August. I dont wear them, but I have been issued a prescription for my eyesight which is slightly weaker in my left eye (assuming this wont disqualify me/ no other medical issues)
2) Am I still competitive with a 3.7 GPA and a 22AA? Any idea of chances?
3) What are the odds of overseas deployment? I would love to go somewhere not in the US.
Thanks in advance!
Click to expand...


I would say you are very competitive with those numbers.

As far as overseas...If you are looking for a deployment, it is Afghanistan only. Even that is limited with the drawdown and the number of people volunteering to go.

There is also the possibility of being stationed in Korea, Italy, Germany, Japan, Hawaii and Alaska. Those are all considered overseas assignments.

I hope that helps. Good luck!
 
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Hello, I was wondering if anyone took the ROTC then National Guard route for dental school. I am a rising senior in Army ROTC and I am applying to dental schools right now wondering what the process is for serving my scholarship time in the dental corps in the guard
while in dental school
 
Hello all,

I'm in a bit of a dilemma, and I need your advices (especially from ones who are familiar with recruiting process.)

I have been practicing dentistry for 3 years and I found out yesterday that I got accepted to 3 year perio program at Loma Linda starting July of 2015.

Do you think there is any way for the army to help me out during residency (tuition, room&board, etc) as they do dental students and I work year per year in return?

If that is not the case, what is the benefit for direct accession as a periodontist?

Thank you all
 
superGP said:
Hello all,

I'm in a bit of a dilemma, and I need your advices (especially from ones who are familiar with recruiting process.)

I have been practicing dentistry for 3 years and I found out yesterday that I got accepted to 3 year perio program at Loma Linda starting July of 2015.

Do you think there is any way for the army to help me out during residency (tuition, room&board, etc) as they do dental students and I work year per year in return?

If that is not the case, what is the benefit for direct accession as a periodontist?

Thank you all
Click to expand...


Hello,

Unfortunately, the Army will not cover this. Since we have our own training programs, we do not need to fund officers to go to civilian programs.

You would have to check with a recruiter to see if we are currently taking periodontists. I do not believe we are.

If you have any other questions, please do not hesitate to ask.
 
vanderps said:
Hello, I was wondering if anyone took the ROTC then National Guard route for dental school. I am a rising senior in Army ROTC and I am applying to dental schools right now wondering what the process is for serving my scholarship time in the dental corps in the guard
while in dental school
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I was prior service National Guard before getting accepted to dental school. I had to request to get a discharge so I could transfer from NG to USAR. At the time I had about 3 yrs left on my obligation and I was released without an issue, but I had a friend who was going from NG to AD for JAG and had to beg to be let out - YMMV.

If you want to stay in the Guard during school, then I'm afraid I have no experience. HPSP is not an option in the Guard, but they have had other programs in the past they offerred...not sure about currently.
 
@AirborneDentist

Hello, I was wondering if there is a minimum GPA (2.0, 3.0, etc) that must be maintained in dental school in order to keep the HPSP scholarship with the Army? Or as long as you don't fail out of school completely, you will still have it?
 
For the scholarship, do you have to attend training during dental school?
 
ICUrunning said:
@AirborneDentist

Hello, I was wondering if there is a minimum GPA (2.0, 3.0, etc) that must be maintained in dental school in order to keep the HPSP scholarship with the Army? Or as long as you don't fail out of school completely, you will still have it?
Click to expand...

I honestly do not know the answer to that. Maybe ArmyHPSP can help on that one. I think you just have to graduate, but most schools have a minimum requirement.
 
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