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For those wondering about expected income for new new dentists, opportunities available in the public sector can be somewhat of a quidepost. The Indian Health Service is one such example. One can do IHS as a Public Health Service Commissioned Officer, Fedral Civil Service Employee, or Tribal Employee. Compensation as a Tribal Employe is somewhat vague but is made clearer for the other two options on the IHS website.
Public Health Service Commissioned Officer:
Year 1: $60,000 + $40,000 4 year signing bonus +$20,000 loan repayment
Year 2: $60,000 + $20,000 loan repayment.
Benefits: Same as Military Commissioned Officers.
Unique feature: After 2 years of service, one becomes eligible to apply for addmittance to their in house two year Advanced General Practice Residency program. Successful completion of this program adds an immediate $40,000 per year to your income. The AGPR is really a standard 1 year GPR plus an additional year of training in public health administration issues and indoctrination in the Public Health Service Standards of Dental Care. The program is competitve, but reading between the lines, the real deciding factor appears to be the applicant's ability to convince the selecting committee of his or her intent to commit to a career in the Public Health Service.
Federal Civil Service:
Year 1: $70,000-$90,000 (negotiable) + $20,000 loan repayment.
Benefits: Same as all other federal employees.
Notes on loan repayment program: $20,000 per year for each year of service until loan is payed off. In addition, the taxes that would be due on this form of income are also payed by the employer...so the holder of your loan gets a full $20,000 plus the IRS gets its portion. The loan payoff applies only to the amount of debt incurred to get a dental degree and not to getting an undergraduate degree in those cases in which the debts of both have been consolidated.
Final note: The above incomes are just starting out figures. There is an example given on the IHS web site of a representative Public Health Service Commissioned Officer with 10 years of service and completion of the in house AGPR getting about $180,000 per year.
Public Health Service Commissioned Officer:
Year 1: $60,000 + $40,000 4 year signing bonus +$20,000 loan repayment
Year 2: $60,000 + $20,000 loan repayment.
Benefits: Same as Military Commissioned Officers.
Unique feature: After 2 years of service, one becomes eligible to apply for addmittance to their in house two year Advanced General Practice Residency program. Successful completion of this program adds an immediate $40,000 per year to your income. The AGPR is really a standard 1 year GPR plus an additional year of training in public health administration issues and indoctrination in the Public Health Service Standards of Dental Care. The program is competitve, but reading between the lines, the real deciding factor appears to be the applicant's ability to convince the selecting committee of his or her intent to commit to a career in the Public Health Service.
Federal Civil Service:
Year 1: $70,000-$90,000 (negotiable) + $20,000 loan repayment.
Benefits: Same as all other federal employees.
Notes on loan repayment program: $20,000 per year for each year of service until loan is payed off. In addition, the taxes that would be due on this form of income are also payed by the employer...so the holder of your loan gets a full $20,000 plus the IRS gets its portion. The loan payoff applies only to the amount of debt incurred to get a dental degree and not to getting an undergraduate degree in those cases in which the debts of both have been consolidated.
Final note: The above incomes are just starting out figures. There is an example given on the IHS web site of a representative Public Health Service Commissioned Officer with 10 years of service and completion of the in house AGPR getting about $180,000 per year.
