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question for any of the active duty, prior, retired navy dentist.

is it worth it finaically to make navy a career ? i'm 3 yrs in and i'm debating if i should keep going. The idea of maybe retiring at like 50 yrs old is very attractive, but how much "more" can we really make outside? is grass really greener the other side?
 
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dentalmon said:
question for any of the active duty, prior, retired navy dentist.

is it worth it finaically to make navy a career ? i'm 3 yrs in and i'm debating if i should keep going. The idea of maybe retiring at like 50 yrs old is very attractive, but how much "more" can we really make outside? is grass really greener the other side?
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I think you will make more in private practice, but the gap is getting closer. If you are single, I think the Navy is a no-brainer. If you have a family, I think you need to balance what is best for them. Some know their kids will do fine moving every few years, others have kids that struggle with that. I had one of both. We decided stability at home was best. But, I loved my time in the service. I did 3 years (AEGD Great Lakes, AS-39 homeported in Italy). I often think about returning as I don't like the competition/corporate part of dentistry these days.
 
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Hedgy said:
I think you will make more in private practice, but the gap is getting closer. If you are single, I think the Navy is a no-brainer. If you have a family, I think you need to balance what is best for them. Some know their kids will do fine moving every few years, others have kids that struggle with that. I had one of both. We decided stability at home was best. But, I loved my time in the service. I did 3 years (AEGD Great Lakes, AS-39 homeported in Italy). I often think about returning as I don't like the competition/corporate part of dentistry these days.
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Can you elaborate a bit more on those two points? I was under the assumption that you loved being out of the military and that being in private practice will net you much more money. Thanks.
 
koreano said:
Can you elaborate a bit more on those two points? I was under the assumption that you loved being out of the military and that being in private practice will net you much more money. Thanks.
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When I was in the Navy, the bonuses were much less until you served 8 years or so. With ISP at $20k from the start, you are getting better paid. For me VSP and ASP were $7k total. I think I made $77k my last year in the service and that was with overseas COLA. I netted around $240k last year, after debt service my take home was around $150k. I think with MYRB, most are in the $140k range, including BAH etc. I'll be debt free in 5 years, then my take home will actually be $240k in todays dollars (assuming I don't buy any more toys).

On the contrary, I loved the being in the service. I had the opportunity to practice in my home town and all of my family is nearby, so I think it was a good move to come back. Family life is stable and my kids are almost done with high school. I wanted to find a small practice and kind of work out my career that way. I'm FFS and I'm still small. I don't market other than internal, but I feel the pressure from the corporate offices to expand hours and accept insurance, both of which I am resisting. I enjoy the camaraderie that I have that with specialists, but I don't discuss much with other solo dentists and the local dental society has become a bust.
 
have another question.. as i'm trying to decide if i should continue my navy career or not. .. one big factor for me is that my wife is also a doctor.. (with tons of student loans) .. and if we decide to take a oversea tour.. or any tour actually.. how and will navy assist her in anyway with getting a job through base or whereever we go? how does that work? I think we are both opened to go and see the world. but just want to make sure we can afford it esp having her student loans.
 
Honestly, the Navy won't assist you. The Navy will not station you in a place where it is convenient for your civilian spouse to get a job. Do your homework prior to negotiating orders and if there is a job opening for your wife, pray you get that location and then she gets that job after you get your orders. Honestly, overseas locations would be hard for her to get a job. There has to be a civilian spot open in her specialty if one at all. Plus, I think for you to have a career in the Navy could be detrimental to your wife's career. My wife is a pharmacist. It is easy for her to go job to job. Actually, my career has been good for her career due to job opportunities. I am not sure how moving would affect her career. I think both of you would financially take a hit if you stayed in the military. If money is not an issue and Navy life is important to both of you, then stay in and accept that you both will make sacrifices. Otherwise, get out.
 
another question for NAVY dentists

just how hard is it to get into a specialty in service ? what do they mostly look at? For someone like myself, i didnt have very good grades in school , is that mean i'm pretty much $hit out of luck?
 
I was just accepted for FTOS training in Periodontics for FY17! What on earth do I do now?
 
You will receive a letter in the mail requiring you to either accept or decline within a set period of time. Complete that letter, make copies, and return it immediately. Begin your application process for Perio residency staying within any requirements or limitations set forth in your letter.
 
I know this question has been asked a million times, but could someone fully detail what the payback is for a 4-year HPSP scholarship? And does this change depending on whether the 20k bonus is accepted or rejected? I've scoured these threads and have not been able to find a clear answer. I would just ask the recruiter, but even he doesn't seem to know what the payback fully entails....
 
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Also the bonus does not add time for the 4 yr but it would add a yr of active duty if you accept bonus with 3 yr scholarship

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Hi all,

I'm a new dentist heading to my credentialing tour shortly. I have heard that special pay starts either 90 days after graduating or 60 days after active duty begins. Different people have told me 60 vs 90. Can somebody clarify?

Thanks!
 
Does anyone know how many AEGD/GPR spots are typically available in the Navy each year? Is one or the other more competitive?
 
It's 90 days after graduation. And that is only the first available date for receiving it. If your license comes in the next week, you still get the incentive pay, just not starting on the earliest date. You will lose out on a small portion of it. So get your license soon and get it to the right person.

celtics21 said:
Hi all,

I'm a new dentist heading to my credentialing tour shortly. I have heard that special pay starts either 90 days after graduating or 60 days after active duty begins. Different people have told me 60 vs 90. Can somebody clarify?

Thanks!
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I
 
Hi,
Is it possible to apply for residency programs while you are doing your 4 year payback for the HPSP?
 
hi this is a silly question, but if I don't how to swim can I still apply for the navy HPSP?
 
youraverageasia said:
hi this is a silly question, but if I don't how to swim can I still apply for the navy HPSP?
Click to expand...

That was actually a question my recruiter asked me, so I assume there is some weight to it. I'd still go ahead and try to contact a recruiter and if not Navy then apply Air Force or Army as well.
 
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You are supposed to pass the swim test at ODS, if not you get remedial help, I was one of the instructors and anyone who still couldn't pass at the end was given a year to pass.
 
I'm curious about Direct Accession as a Comp dentist. It's my understanding that you need a 2 year general dentistry residency:

1. Does this exclude all 1+1 programs?
2. The military has a total of 6 programs for Comp/AEGD-2 (3 Army, 2 AF, 1 Navy). CODA has a total of 9 "true" 24 month AEGD'S (including the 6 DoD programs), and 4 "true" 24 month GPR'S. This leaves a total of seven 24 month civilian programs (3 AEGD, 4 GPR). To come in as a Direct Accession Comprehensive Dentist, would completion of one of these 7 programs ONLY be the requirement?

Thanks.
 
I just took a boat ride from Spain to Morocco. I was amazed at how choppy the water was, and balancing on the boat was pretty difficult at times. I had a drink that got tossed due to some rough waves.

After that experience, I was left with one thought. How do Navy dentists perform procedures on a ship going through rough seas, or just any choppy water at all?
 
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Fets said:
After that experience, I was left with one thought. How do Navy dentists perform procedures on a ship going through rough seas, or just any choppy water at all?
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Pray you don't miss or the neighboring tooth will have to come out as well :rofl:
 
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Fets said:
I just took a boat ride from Spain to Morocco. I was amazed at how choppy the water was, and balancing on the boat was pretty difficult at times. I had a drink that got tossed due to some rough waves.

After that experience, I was left with one thought. How do Navy dentists perform procedures on a ship going through rough seas, or just any choppy water at all?
Click to expand...

Probably the fact that our ships displace probably several orders of magnitude more than the boat you rode.
 
vellnueve said:
Probably the fact that our ships displace probably several orders of magnitude more than the boat you rode.
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It was a large ferry, or at least it seemed large to me. Not like a personal yacht or fishing boat. Definitely smaller than an aircraft carrier though.

Is there still some rocking back and forth on Navy ships to deal with during procedures? I've never been on a cruise liner, so I have no idea how much large ships move around.
 
Fets said:
It was a large ferry, or at least it seemed large to me. Not like a personal yacht or fishing boat. Definitely smaller than an aircraft carrier though.

Is there still some rocking back and forth on Navy ships to deal with during procedures? I've never been on a cruise liner, so I have no idea how much large ships move around.
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The largest average ferries making a run like that would be like 30,000 tons. A CVN is 100K+ tons.

Of course they'll move. But if you can land a fighter at 140 knots onto a pitching deck, you can use a finger rest and rubber soles to keep your hands and feet where they need to be when rolling.
 
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vellnueve said:
The largest average ferries making a run like that would be like 30,000 tons. A CVN is 100K+ tons.

Of course they'll move. But if you can land a fighter at 140 knots onto a pitching deck, you can use a finger rest and rubber soles to keep your hands and feet where they need to be when rolling.
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Wow that's massive. That would be cool to get stationed on one. Thanks for the answers.
 
Fets said:
It was a large ferry, or at least it seemed large to me. Not like a personal yacht or fishing boat. Definitely smaller than an aircraft carrier though.

Is there still some rocking back and forth on Navy ships to deal with during procedures? I've never been on a cruise liner, so I have no idea how much large ships move around.
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Enough to warrant straps on your rack (bed) so you don't fall out when you're sleeping.
 
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schmoob said:
Enough to warrant straps on your rack (bed) so you don't fall out when you're sleeping.
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I just threw up from seasickness....and I'm not even on a boat right now.
 
Incis0r said:
I just threw up from seasickness....and I'm not even on a boat right now.
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RacksonRMD.jpg



Good times.
RacksonRMD.jpg
 
Look how tiny they are! I can barely fit on one myself! Haha.

J/k. Hot-racking happens on subs for junior enlisted. Because schedules are different, it's usually E-4 and below. 3 Sailors would rotate through 2 racks. This way, one would always be on watch and the other 2 would have a place to sleep. Generally, E-5 and above would never hot-rack. I never did it, but I was also not a Bubblehead either.
 
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I asked this question in another thread but I just wanted to get clarifications: would being stationed at a dental clinic in somewhere in Japan (either mainland or Okinawa) be considered as an operational/sea duty even if you spend all of your time on land at that clinic, or would it simply be counted as a shore duty since you did not deploy? o_O
 
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Can we get both basic pay and special pay during our time at ODS?
 
Well, it took me many hours to finally finish reading this whole thread and I have to say, thank you guys for your contributions- really got a lot of great info that I wish I had gotten from my recruiter before I signed. I still have a specific question for myself:

I am on the east coast currently, and, in all honesty, my plan is to go straight into a credentialing tour, do my 3 years after that tied to a carrier on the west coast and get out to civilian dentistry after my four years and stay in the west coast. How hard will it be to get assigned to a carrier on the west coast after my credentialing year? I know that detailers want to in general minimize costs in moving people but it sounds like getting assigned to a carrier is easy if thats your preference. Is there any thing I can do- any where to request for my credentialing year- to up my chances?
 
Got offered HPSP. I'm still honestly uninformed as to what the everyday life of a Navy dentist is like after getting out of dental school. Could someone please shed some light so I know what to expect?
 
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