Class of 2024 HPSP

[Armyhealth]

If your applying to med school next cycle and considering a military scholarship come and ask questions or say hi. Good luck to all those applying!

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[JohnnyNonTraditional]

Where is the best consolidated* and official** source for info regarding the HPSP?

If I commissioned and served Active Duty from 2010-2015, would I still be eligible to utilize HPSP? I understand that I would be bumped back down to 2LT during med school and just want to verify from another source that it's possible for officers with a non-medical background to qualify for HPSP.

*Before someone responds with "read these forums", I am. But surely somewhere there is a one-stop source with all the essential elements available at-a-glance.

**There's a lot of good info on here, on Youtube, and available via word-of-mouth from people I've spoken with in person. The official pages that I manage to dig up on Google only have the bare bones material designed to draw people in. I'm interested in the fine details.

Thank you!

 

[907914]

Where is the best consolidated* and official** source for info regarding the HPSP?

If I commissioned and served Active Duty from 2010-2015, would I still be eligible to utilize HPSP? I understand that I would be bumped back down to 2LT during med school and just want to verify from another source that it's possible for officers with a non-medical background to qualify for HPSP.

*Before someone responds with "read these forums", I am. But surely somewhere there is a one-stop source with all the essential elements available at-a-glance.

**There's a lot of good info on here, on Youtube, and available via word-of-mouth from people I've spoken with in person. The official pages that I manage to dig up on Google only have the bare bones material designed to draw people in. I'm interested in the fine details.

Thank you!

Why would you be bumped down to 2LT?

 

[JohnnyNonTraditional]

Addendum: I heard you can apply to multiple HPSPs (the Air Force & the Army for example): is the a huge difference between the different components' offers? Is it worthwhile, if you have the grades & MCAT score, to "shop around"?

 

[907914]

Addendum: I heard you can apply to multiple HPSPs (the Air Force & the Army for example): is the a huge difference between the different components' offers? Is it worthwhile, if you have the grades & MCAT score, to "shop around"?

Army v Air force is going to be identical. Navy, the main difference is you do not go straight in to a military residency afterwards, you go directly to a shop for at least a year to serve as a GMO.

 

[Matthew9Thirtyfive]

Army v Air force is going to be identical. Navy, the main difference is you do not go straight in to a military residency afterwards, you go directly to a shop for at least a year to serve as a GMO.

This is not quite correct. There are differences between Army and AF gme due to the size of their gme programs and the types of GMO tours they utilize and with what frequency.

As for the Navy, it is true that more interns go to a GMO tour than the other two branches. It is not true that every intern does this. It depends on what specialty you are in/applying for and the year. There are specialties where almost everyone or everyone goes straight through (like psych) and specialties where everyone does a gmo tour first (like derm). Additionally, prior service increases your likelihood of going straight through (adds a couple of points to your score).

If you’re going to post, please post complete information.

Why would you be bumped down to 2LT?

Medical officers serve as O-1s in medical school. Officers who are at a higher rank are “demoted” to that rank, but they receive pay at the rank they were before med school. At least in the Navy.

If I commissioned and served Active Duty from 2010-2015, would I still be eligible to utilize HPSP? I understand that I would be bumped back down to 2LT during med school and just want to verify from another source that it's possible for officers with a non-medical background to qualify for HPSP

Yes.

 

[Armyhealth]

Where is the best consolidated* and official** source for info regarding the HPSP?

If I commissioned and served Active Duty from 2010-2015, would I still be eligible to utilize HPSP? I understand that I would be bumped back down to 2LT during med school and just want to verify from another source that it's possible for officers with a non-medical background to qualify for HPSP.

*Before someone responds with "read these forums", I am. But surely somewhere there is a one-stop source with all the essential elements available at-a-glance.

**There's a lot of good info on here, on Youtube, and available via word-of-mouth from people I've spoken with in person. The official pages that I manage to dig up on Google only have the bare bones material designed to draw people in. I'm interested in the fine details.

Thank you!

The best answer I can give you is goarmy.com is the source of all info...it is very vague. The best true source is current healthcare recruiters and current HPSP students.

Yes you can apply for HPSP, happens all the time. I am working with a flight and infantry officer right now applying for HPSP. You are correct on going back down to 2LT during medical school.

You can private message me and we can go over everything in detail if you wish over phone. Whatever I can do to help.

 

[puahate]

Which branch is the best to do this? Which branch gives the most money?

 

[Matthew9Thirtyfive]

Which branch is the best to do this? Which branch gives the most money?

You’re asking an Army recruiter what he thinks the best branch is lol.

As for money, do you mean during med school? The stipends and signing bonuses are the same.

 

[puahate]

You’re asking an Army recruiter what he thinks the best branch is lol.

As for money, do you mean during med school? The stipends and signing bonuses are the same.

I was posing a general question hoping everyone would provide input. I know OPs bias so i thought it would be a good opportunity for OP to explain the perks of the army in regards to this program and have other users confirm or deny claims.

 

[Matthew9Thirtyfive]

I was posing a general question hoping everyone would provide input. I know OPs bias so i thought it would be a good opportunity for OP to explain the perks of the army in regards to this program and have other users confirm or deny claims.

The perks for the program are generally the same for each branch. The differences come after you graduate, and which is the best is really a personal decision based on your priorities. I would never want to be in the Army, and I might be able to tolerate the Air Force. I love the Navy and plan on finishing out my twenty. But my cousin did over 10 years in the Air Force as an orthopod and loved it, and I’ve met a few Army docs who love the Army and would hate the other two.

So it’s personal. What are you looking for wrt to military service? What are your priorities?

 

[907914]

The best answer I can give you is goarmy.com is the source of all info...it is very vague. The best true source is current healthcare recruiters and current HPSP students.

Yes you can apply for HPSP, happens all the time. I am working with a flight and infantry officer right now applying for HPSP. You are correct on going back down to 2LT during medical school.

You can private message me and we can go over everything in detail if you wish over phone. Whatever I can do to help.

Do prior Enlisted receive O1-E status with HPSP?

 

[Matthew9Thirtyfive]

Do prior Enlisted receive O1-E status with HPSP?

If they served at least 4 years and a day of enlisted service, yes.

 

[907914]

If they served at least 4 years and a day of enlisted service, yes.

So you know if that is 4 years of active duty service or if reserves applies as well?

 

[Matthew9Thirtyfive]

So you know if that is 4 years of active duty service or if reserves applies as well?

The 4 years and a day is for active duty. For reserves, you need 1460 or more total points.

 

[907914]

The 4 years and a day is for active duty. For reserves, you need 1460 or more total points.

Righteous, thanks. Guess I need to hop on HRC tonight and find out where I stand.

 

[puahate]

The perks for the program are generally the same for each branch. The differences come after you graduate, and which is the best is really a personal decision based on your priorities. I would never want to be in the Army, and I might be able to tolerate the Air Force. I love the Navy and plan on finishing out my twenty. But my cousin did over 10 years in the Air Force as an orthopod and loved it, and I’ve met a few Army docs who love the Army and would hate the other two.

So it’s personal. What are you looking for wrt to military service? What are your priorities?

I want to be surgeon general

 

[Matthew9Thirtyfive]

I want to be surgeon general

Of which branch?

 

[puahate]

Of which branch?

Of the nation. Lol i thought that there was only one

 

[Matthew9Thirtyfive]

Of the nation. Lol i thought that there was only one

Nope. There are four actually. The Army, Air Force, Navy, and PHS each have one. The one most people think of as “surgeon general” is the surgeon general of the United States, which is the surgeon general of the PHS.

 

[puahate]

Nope. There are four actually. The Army, Air Force, Navy, and PHS each have one. The one most people think of as “surgeon general” is the surgeon general of the United States, which is the surgeon general of the PHS.

I want the phs one then

 

[Matthew9Thirtyfive]

I want the phs one then

Get in line lol.

 

[Suess]

So it’s personal. What are you looking for wrt to military service? What are your priorities?

I would like to be deployed overseas and interact/integrate with the communities where I am stationed. I want to help soldiers and citizens alike. Being able to put my boots on the ground and practice medicine in the field is also important to me.

 

[Matthew9Thirtyfive]

I would like to be deployed overseas and interact/integrate with the communities where I am stationed. I want to help soldiers and citizens alike. Being able to put my boots on the ground and practice medicine in the field is also important to me.

You really have the chance to do that in any of the branches. You will care for Soldiers/Airmen/Sailors and Marines and their dependents (though the thought is with the new changes, that will transition to being mostly service members and fewer dependents; however, that is just the scuttlebutt and not any sort of official statement). You will get the opportunity to deploy in all three branches. The types of deployments varies between the branches though, and personally I think the Navy gives you the most variety on deployment types. However, the Army definitely gives you the most variety on duty stations. The Air Force is sort of in between.

Keep in mind that with military medicine you will be an Officer and a physician. So there will be things you will have to do in your Officer capacity, and that might sometimes take away time from practicing medicine. Additionally, there is no guarantee that the military will have spots for whatever specialty you decide you want. You have to want to serve above wanting any specific specialty.

 

[puahate]

Additionally, there is no guarantee that the military will have spots for whatever specialty you decide you want. .

Are surgical sub-specialties scarce in the military match?

 

[Matthew9Thirtyfive]

Are surgical sub-specialties scarce in the military match?

I can only really speak for the Navy here. Ortho is the most common. The others have limited spots and will probably have fewer spots in the future, but I can't say for sure (and neither can anyone else really). I can say that neurosurgery historically has had the fewest spots. There is typically 1 spot at Walter Reed that students from all three branches compete for. Very competitive, and it's likely to stay that way. I'll let the OP speak to the availability of surgical subs in the Army.

Edit: Obviously, there are plenty of spots for general surgery too.

 

[puahate]

I can only really speak for the Navy here. Ortho is the most common. The others have limited spots and will probably have fewer spots in the future, but I can't say for sure (and neither can anyone else really). I can say that neurosurgery historically has had the fewest spots. There is typically 1 spot at Walter Reed that students from all three branches compete for. Very competitive, and it's likely to stay that way. I'll let the OP speak to the availability of surgical subs in the Army.

Edit: Obviously, there are plenty of spots for general surgery too.

So it's basically IM/FM spots and maybe GS?

 

[907914]

You really have the chance to do that in any of the branches. You will care for Soldiers/Airmen/Sailors and Marines and their dependents (though the thought is with the new changes, that will transition to being mostly service members and fewer dependents; however, that is just the scuttlebutt and not any sort of official statement). You will get the opportunity to deploy in all three branches. The types of deployments varies between the branches though, and personally I think the Navy gives you the most variety on deployment types. However, the Army definitely gives you the most variety on duty stations. The Air Force is sort of in between.

Keep in mind that with military medicine you will be an Officer and a physician. So there will be things you will have to do in your Officer capacity, and that might sometimes take away time from practicing medicine. Additionally, there is no guarantee that the military will have spots for whatever specialty you decide you want. You have to want to serve above wanting any specific specialty.

The hardest thing to get around is when your nurses are a higher rank than you are as the physician...It most typically is like a civilian hospital except you need to be more respectful to your nurses than they have to be to you (gross over simplification, but in my unit we have full bird colnels who are subordinate to the commander who is a captain [O-6 and O-3 respectively]) but we also have physicians who are captains and nurses who are majors and colonels...

 

[Matthew9Thirtyfive]

So it's basically IM/FM spots and maybe GS?

No. There's a lot of psych, EM, gas, etc. Most specialties are represented, it's just how many spots there are. But the good thing about military medicine is you're not ****ed if you don't match. You just practice some primary care for a year or two and try again (and you aren't penalized for that, at least in the Navy--in fact you get bonus points).

If you want to see what the numbers were like in the Navy for this past match, you can look at this: https://www.med.navy.mil/directives...d Application Procedures (Signed 29Jun18).pdf

Starts on page 16.

 

[Matthew9Thirtyfive]

The hardest thing to get around is when your nurses are a higher rank than you are as the physician...It most typically is like a civilian hospital except you need to be more respectful to your nurses than they have to be to you (gross over simplification, but in my unit we have full bird colnels who are subordinate to the commander who is a captain [O-6 and O-3 respectively]) but we also have physicians who are captains and nurses who are majors and colonels...

Don't kid yourself, you need to be nice to the nurses in civilian hospitals too. Who do you think runs things? It's usually nurses and suits. In the military, we have something called "positional authority." That means that even though I may be junior in rank to someone, if my position grants me authority over them, then that authority is real. That doesn't mean you disrespect them, but that means they fall under your authority. It seems weird at first, but you get used to it.

 

[907914]

Don't kid yourself, you need to be nice to the nurses in civilian hospitals too. Who do you think runs things? It's usually nurses and suits. In the military, we have something called "positional authority." That means that even though I may be junior in rank to someone, if my position grants me authority over them, then that authority is real. That doesn't mean you disrespect them, but that means they fall under your authority. It seems weird at first, but you get used to it.

Oh trust me, I know positional authority. I have been a Blood Bank manager as an E-4 for 6 years - it is weird as a junior enlisted having O-5a ask you what things are/what they mean...(turned down E-5 though because it requires an extension).

I guess you are right about the nurses even running the show civilian side.

 

[Matthew9Thirtyfive]

Oh trust me, I know positional authority. I have been a Blood Bank manager as an E-4 for 6 years - it is weird as a junior enlisted having O-5a ask you what things are/what they mean...(turned down E-5 though because it requires an extension).

I guess you are right about the nurses even running the show civilian side.

Turned down? lol. We can't turn down enlisted advancement in the Navy. At least not active duty. We're required to take each advancement exam, and if we make it, we make it. But they don't add on time for it. If you make it with a month left on your contract, you just get out as that new rank lol.

But yeah, it was weird the first couple of times having to tell O-5s what to do, how to do it, where to do it, when to do it lol. It just comes with confidence and experience. When you are confident in your abilities/knowledge, it makes it easier.

 

[Suess]

The types of deployments varies between the branches though, and personally I think the Navy gives you the most variety on deployment types. However, the Army definitely gives you the most variety on duty stations. The Air Force is sort of in between.

Keep in mind that with military medicine you will be an Officer and a physician. So there will be things you will have to do in your Officer capacity, and that might sometimes take away time from practicing medicine. Additionally, there is no guarantee that the military will have spots for whatever specialty you decide you want. You have to want to serve above wanting any specific specialty.

Thank you for your timely reply.

Can you explain what you mean by variety of deployment types and variety of duty stations? Is the deployment type the answer to the "why" the US forces are there? I.e. humanitarian, combat, peace building etc.?

In regards to specialties--I understand that sometimes your desired specialty might not have enough spots. Are you aware of this before you try to match? Or could the situation arise where you try to match peds, for example, and then only after applying are told/find out that there are no, or very few, peds spots?

 

[Matthew9Thirtyfive]

Thank you for your timely reply.

Can you explain what you mean by variety of deployment types and variety of duty stations? Is the deployment type the answer to the "why" the US forces are there? I.e. humanitarian, combat, peace building etc.?

That's part of it. In the Navy, you can deploy with the Marines, you can do an FS tour and deploy with a squadron, you can do a UMO tour and work with a sub squadron or the NSW/NSO community, or you can deploy on a ship. You can also forward deploy to Japan or another OCONUS location. You can also go on the Mercy or Comfort for humanitarian missions like Pacific Partnership.

I'm not sure if the Army or AF has that much variability in their deployments, but I haven't met a single doc in those branches who has done anything other than a stint in the sand box.

But the Army definitely has a much larger number of places you can get stationed. The Navy is a lot more limited for obvious reasons.

In regards to specialties--I understand that sometimes your desired specialty might not have enough spots. Are you aware of this before you try to match? Or could the situation arise where you try to match peds, for example, and then only after applying are told/find out that there are no, or very few, peds spots?

No, you'll know ahead of time. But you'll know the year you apply. So if you fall in love with peds in your third year, but then in your fourth year they decide to only fund 1 peds spot, you could end up in a transitional year, or in the case of the Navy, whatever you put as your backup specialty (which could just be a transitional year if you don't want to do anything else).

 

[Suess]

That's part of it. In the Navy, you can deploy with the Marines, you can do an FS tour and deploy with a squadron, you can do a UMO tour and work with a sub squadron or the NSW/NSO community, or you can deploy on a ship. You can also forward deploy to Japan or another OCONUS location. You can also go on the Mercy or Comfort for humanitarian missions like Pacific Partnership.

I'm not sure if the Army or AF has that much variability in their deployments, but I haven't met a single doc in those branches who has done anything other than a stint in the sand box.

But the Army definitely has a much larger number of places you can get stationed. The Navy is a lot more limited for obvious reasons.

No, you'll know ahead of time. But you'll know the year you apply. So if you fall in love with peds in your third year, but then in your fourth year they decide to only fund 1 peds spot, you could end up in a transitional year, or in the case of the Navy, whatever you put as your backup specialty (which could just be a transitional year if you don't want to do anything else).

Thanks for the clarification.

You only end up doing the transitional year if you don't match to a military residency position. What if you attempted to match into a civilian residency and failed to do so? Are you SOL or can you "fall back" on doing the transitional year with the military (or a military residency if available)?

 

[Matthew9Thirtyfive]

Thanks for the clarification.

You only end up doing the transitional year if you don't match to a military residency position. What if you attempted to match into a civilian residency and failed to do so? Are you SOL or can you "fall back" on doing the transitional year with the military (or a military residency if available)?

The military match is first, in December. You have to put a civilian deferred spot and get approved. Most people will not, but if you do, you will then enter the civilian match in March. If you fail to match there, I imagine the military will toss you into a military TY somewhere because if you don’t do an internship, they can’t use you.

 

[Suess]

The military match is first, in December. You have to put a civilian deferred spot and get approved. Most people will not, but if you do, you will then enter the civilian match in March. If you fail to match there, I imagine the military will toss you into a military TY somewhere because if you don’t do an internship, they can’t use you.

Good to know.

Thank you for all your answers. I've read about the HSPS before on SDN and the official pages, but never found direct answers to my questions. I appreciate it.

 

[JohnnyNonTraditional]

Just went back to check on this post after a couple of weeks - thanks to everyone for all their input!

Anyone on here currently at USUHS or going through HPSP? (I've done extensive research on what's available online but am looking for firsthand accounts at this point).

 

[Matthew9Thirtyfive]

Just went back to check on this post after a couple of weeks - thanks to everyone for all their input!

Anyone on here currently at USUHS or going through HPSP? (I've done extensive research on what's available online but am looking for firsthand accounts at this point).

Waiting to find out if I got approved. I know plenty of people in both. What specifically do you want to know? If I don't know, I'll just ask one of my friends.

 

[DaniellaDavis]

Can you be on multiple scrolls at the same time? If I get selected for HPSP scholarships for multiple branches, can my name be sent on multiple scrolls? Or do I need to make a decision of which branch to stick with, and only be on the scroll for that branch?

 

[Kardio]

Could someone explain the matching process for HPSP recipients?

I understand there is the military match and civvy match, which are separate. However, do I have to do one or the other? And how free am I to select a specialty as I apply for the match?

Is this a reasonable scheme for how the service obligation works:
Med School (4) -> IM (3) -> Military Doc (4)
Med School (4) -> GS (5) -> Military Surgeon (4)
Med School (4) -> Intern (1), Gas (3) -> Military Gas (4)

I have family in the military and always thought it could be an awesome experience. However, I would not intend on having my whole career within the military. How easy is it to transfer back into civilian medicine after my service obligation ends?

 

[CaptainPoopyPants]

Is there a way to see the match rates or available spots? I'm interested in radiology. How competitive is that using hpsp?

 

[Armyhealth]

Can you be on multiple scrolls at the same time? If I get selected for HPSP scholarships for multiple branches, can my name be sent on multiple scrolls? Or do I need to make a decision of which branch to stick with, and only be on the scroll for that branch?

Yes, each scroll runs through that branch's office at the pentagon so you can do multiple.

 

[Armyhealth]

Could someone explain the matching process for HPSP recipients?

I understand there is the military match and civvy match, which are separate. However, do I have to do one or the other? And how free am I to select a specialty as I apply for the match?

Is this a reasonable scheme for how the service obligation works:
Med School (4) -> IM (3) -> Military Doc (4)
Med School (4) -> GS (5) -> Military Surgeon (4)
Med School (4) -> Intern (1), Gas (3) -> Military Gas (4)

I have family in the military and always thought it could be an awesome experience. However, I would not intend on having my whole career within the military. How easy is it to transfer back into civilian medicine after my service obligation ends?

Depends on the on the branch each one works a little different, you do interview rotations at each location you are interested in. For the Army we have enough residency seats for everyone so you apply to location and specialty of choice and match around December. Very few get to do a civilian match (about 2% per year). Navy has all in house as well but not enough spots so about 1/3 of their students do a general medical tour for a year or two first and then match. Air Force does both military and civilian match so you apply for both and if you match into the military one you have to take it but if not you can go into a civilian residency.

As far as contract you owe whatever is longer, either med school or residency so in your scheme there it would be IM -4 YR obligation, GS-5 YR obligation, Gas- 4 year obligation.

 

[Ultimax]

Thank you for the thread! I am currently an officer in the Army Reserve and i recently talked to the recruiter to explore my options. In short, i have 9 years in the service ( 3 years active duty and 6 years in the reserve), and my unit may be mobilized in 2021, and I want to be prepared and not be distracted during medical school as I will matriculate next year. I am debating between HPSP and MDSSP/STRAP. I read somewhere that only certain AOCs are eligible for STRAP?

 

[wwdawg1540]

For those of you currently applying, are you using your recs for med school or are you getting 3 new written letters? Also, how are multiple mcats looked upon if some scores don’t meet minimums?

 

[DaniellaDavis]

For those of you currently applying, are you using your recs for med school or are you getting 3 new written letters? Also, how are multiple mcats looked upon if some scores don’t meet minimums?

My recruiter initially told me I could turn in med school letters, but told me to pick out the ones that did not specifically mention "medical school," just about how I would make a good physician. Later I switched to another recruitment office, and they told me to get all new letters because the ones I had were expired (they can't be more than a year old). So I contacted a few of my previous letter writers and had them change up the letter to talk about how I would be a good physician in the military. The writers then updated the date of the letters and signed it, so basically they were brand new letters.

As for the MCAT, I don't know. I'm not sure if they look at all the scores and pick out the best ones, and I highly doubt it. They would probably look at each MCAT test date as a whole. If you have scores that fall below the minimums, talk to your recruiter about getting a waiver for it. It might help if you've already been accepted to med school, but again, I am not too sure about this.

 

[shortarmgang97]

Currently applying for the 4 year Navy HPSP scholarship; I am currently collecting my last interview to hopefully submit my packet on the 9th of January to make January boards. In the event I do not make that date, are there more boards following? Is it considered a "late" submission for the scholarship?

 

[JPmoleymole]

Yalll going to war

 

[BiochemistryStudent]

How long after the board convenes do you typically hear back? Would it be around 1-2 months?