HPSP: Navy vs. AF vs. Army

[LMK]

I've read the posts over the last year with lots of great feedback from Mark especially...here's my scenario and questions:

I am considering applying for the HPSP through the AF next summer. I'm intersted in working with TBI and PTSD especially. I am interested in knowing what people have heard about these three services' internships and quality of training at the sites. My cousin is an MD in the Navy, in Bethesda, and he strongly suggested I look at the Navy and Army. Of course, my other cousins who are all AF, say AF. I did talk to the HP AF recruiter here about timing, money and such, I'm mostly interested in people's experiences as an intern in the different branches.

Thanks!

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[deleted176373]

All three branches are really great but for different reasons. It's more about what lifestyle fits you best. The corporate culture in each service is different. I have actually spent time as an Army ROTC student, USAF enlisted, and now as a Navy officer. So I have a bit of experience through training, joint ops, and actually service experience in each branch.

I would recommend that you talk to a psychologist on active duty in each branch and ask them what they like most and least about their particular branch of service and the way they employ psychologists. All three branches have excellent internships, but your internship is only 1 year of your service commitment, so I would consider other factors beyond the "quality" of the internship training as I would consider them all pretty equivalent. There are exceptions, but they are site and not service specific. The best way to talk to a psychologist in each branch would be to contact the specialty leader in each branch of service who is a senior psychologist.

The Army does offer the most training locations (5), the USAF has three training locations, and the Navy (for HPSP students) will only be offering 1 but it's a captive internship (no APPIC application needed) and will be APA accredited by the time you are considering going through it... It will be in the Virginia Beach area (Portsmouth, VA).

Mark

 

[UofMNPsych]

I've read the posts over the last year with lots of great feedback from Mark especially...here's my scenario and questions:

I am considering applying for the HPSP through the AF next summer. I'm intersted in working with TBI and PTSD especially. I am interested in knowing what people have heard about these three services' internships and quality of training at the sites. My cousin is an MD in the Navy, in Bethesda, and he strongly suggested I look at the Navy and Army. Of course, my other cousins who are all AF, say AF. I did talk to the HP AF recruiter here about timing, money and such, I'm mostly interested in people's experiences as an intern in the different branches.

Thanks!

LMK,
I think Markp's advice is sage. I've read his posts over the years and have found them to be really helpful. I received the AF HPSP for 2010-2011, and as Markp mentioned, the most helpful thing in deciding which branch was right for me (and my family) was talking with active duty psychologists in each of the areas. A good way to do this is to ask a Health Professions recruiter to give you the contact information of some current psychologists. I think a good recruiter should have a list of psychologists at hand that would be willing to talk to HPSP applicants. As a part of the HPSP application process you will have an interview with a "consultant" who is a psychologist, and who probably sits on the HPSP Board, that met incidentally this year on Jan 20th to decide on scholarships for psychology applicants. For the Air Force I believe the members of the HPSP board are comprised of the residency (military speak for internship) training directors at the 3 AF training hospitals in D.C., Dayton, and San Antonio. I assume that the same is probably true for the other branches as well. It would be a good idea to get in contact with these individuals as they all have experience as military psychologists and are ultimately responsible for making HPSP decisions and decisions about residency.

Hope that is helpful. And thanks to Markp for all the great posts/replys over the years.

Best,

 

[deleted176373]

Thanks!

Really, I just share what little I know, it's no big deal, but still thanks!

Mark

 

[paramour]

Congrats, UofMN!

As it appears you recently contacted individuals working in the various branches, would you care to share any major differences that you found for psychologists among the branches? I am aware of overall/general differences among the branches (lots of family/friends & personal research) but wondered about how this applies to psychologists specifically.

 

[UofMNPsych]

Congrats, UofMN!

As it appears you recently contacted individuals working in the various branches, would you care to share any major differences that you found for psychologists among the branches? I am aware of overall/general differences among the branches (lots of family/friends & personal research) but wondered about how this applies to psychologists specifically.

Admittedly, most of the personal contacts that I have had with current military psychologists and other helping professionals have been from the Air Force as this is my selected branch of service. The Army recruiter that I met with several years ago when I started this process was not all that helpful in terms of connecting me with active duty psychologists. This probably has something to do with the fact that at the time I may have been a low priority in that I was not eligible for the 1-year HPSP at the time and I probably slipped of his radar. On the other hand, the Air Force recruiters I have worked with have been very helpful in putting me in contact with active duty psychologists that I've been able to meet face to face and have telephone interviews with.

Now, related to the substantive differences between psychologists in each of the branches, I have less to say. My impression is that the day-to-day duties are very similar for psychologists in a non-deployed situation. From what I understand, deployments have historically been shorter for Air Force psychologists, however, in the present conflict I believe locales and assignments are fairly similar. I've spoken with a couple of psychologists who have both deployed twice during the present conflict to Iraq and Afghanistan. Both reported fulfilling different kinds of assignments during each of these deployments, including working with multidisciplinary teams at forward operating bases and in larger hospitals.

I hope someone, perhaps Markp, can fact check my assessment which is based on interviews I've had with current active duty psychologists. To say that deployment times are the only substantive differences between psychologists in each of the branches, might not be entirely true. During the HPSP application process, I kind of put the blinders on and got to know the most about my intended branch of service, which means my ability to accurately assess the other branches is fairly limited.Thankfully this forum has the resources to answer this question better than I can.

 

[deleted176373]

I hope someone, perhaps Markp, can fact check my assessment which is based on interviews I've had with current active duty psychologists. To say that deployment times are the only substantive differences between psychologists in each of the branches, might not be entirely true.

There are other differences, but in general they are subtle.

Mark

 

[Aura5]

This might be the wrong thread to post on...but I'm curious. If a psychologist wants to provide services to military people...do they generally have to be in the military themselves? I mean do enlisted military people ever receive services from civilian psychologists or is it all just within their military system? I guess some retired military might seek a 'civilian' psychologist, but it's just something I've wondered about. That's a population I have sympathy for and have read could benefit from psychological services (somewhat underserved...of course I can't rely just on some news article for accurate portrayal). I definitely have nothing against the military but actually joining is not something I've ever considered. Far too physically weak, I'd bring everyone down!

 

[deleted176373]

This might be the wrong thread to post on...but I'm curious. If a psychologist wants to provide services to military people...do they generally have to be in the military themselves? I mean do enlisted military people ever receive services from civilian psychologists or is it all just within their military system? I guess some retired military might seek a 'civilian' psychologist, but it's just something I've wondered about. That's a population I have sympathy for and have read could benefit from psychological services (somewhat underserved...of course I can't rely just on some news article for accurate portrayal). I definitely have nothing against the military but actually joining is not something I've ever considered. Far too physically weak, I'd bring everyone down!

There are civilian contractors who work in military medical treatment facilities and they provide services to both active duty and retired military clients. Also the VA system provides opportunities to work with veterans as well.

As far as the physical aspect, it's more mental strength and resilience than physical strength. If the physical thing is what is stopping (and you don't have any disabilities) you might consider getting physically stronger and more fit, if for no other reason than just for yourself. After all, this isn't Navy SEAL training... The bar is far lower for the average service member.

Mark

 

[Aura5]

There are civilian contractors who work in military medical treatment facilities and they provide services to both active duty and retired military clients. Also the VA system provides opportunities to work with veterans as well.

As far as the physical aspect, it's more mental strength and resilience than physical strength. If the physical thing is what is stopping (and you don't have any disabilities) you might consider getting physically stronger and more fit, if for no other reason than just for yourself. After all, this isn't Navy SEAL training... The bar is far lower for the average service member.

Mark

Okay, thanks for the heads up/info about the contracted psychologists. I looked into it only briefly as a possibility and just noticed how most militarly psychologists were, logically, in the military themselves, officers and whatnot.

And you know what, I expressed the same kind of sentiment to a Navy veteran before and he said basically the same thing as you That "it's like not like it's the special forces we're talking about," and that people would be surprised what they can do physically when pushed. So he was saying I could do it too; I'd have to obviously strengthen up somewhat but that comes with the training. The only hindrance he thought is I have a pretty strict dietary restriction, not sure if they'd accommodate that.

Anyway, two for two Navy people say I can do it, maybe I can And I also agree that I should build up stamina anyway for my own sake like you said.

(Random tangent there!)

 

[deleted176373]

The only hindrance he thought is I have a pretty strict dietary restriction, not sure if they'd accommodate that.

(Random tangent there!)

If they'll accommodate kosher, vegan, muslim, etc... I don't think you'd have much of a problem. Maybe a nut allergy might be challenging on deployment, but MRE's can be traded for suitable nutrition for just about anyone on any restriction.

Basic training (for the Navy ODS) could handle just about any food restriction I could imagine.

Mark

 

[Aura5]

If they'll accommodate kosher, vegan, muslim, etc... I don't think you'd have much of a problem. Maybe a nut allergy might be challenging on deployment, but MRE's can be traded for suitable nutrition for just about anyone on any restriction.

Basic training (for the Navy ODS) could handle just about any food restriction I could imagine.

Mark

Guess I have no excuse then...

 

[C130pilot]

Hello everyone,

I am new to the forum and I have not seen or read any information regarding my situation. I am currently a pilot with the air national guard. I have 10 years in and I am looking to transition into the clinical psychology field. I am already enrolled in Masters in Clinical Psychology with Capella University and I have 15 hours of classes with a 4.0. I live outside Nashville and there are two VA hospitals located close by. My questions are:

1. How do I take advantage of the HPSP as a current military member?

2. Will I have the option of working at the VA close by for my rotations or internship?

3. Does anyone have a subject matter expert related to my situation, and if so could they point me to that person?

4.. I am currently a senior Capt and how would this come into play with pay and access to the HPSP program?

Thanks to everyone in advance and God Bless.

 

[livetosail]

LMK,

A big difference between the three services is that the Navy does not allow you to use HPSP for Psych. You can go into the Navy under the internship program, but you have to pay for your school yourself. I've been scratching my head about that one for the last five years I've been in the Navy myself; even spoke with the Surgeon General about it at an event a few years back. Basically, as far as the Navy is concerned, they have plenty of Psychologists already, and don't feel they need to extend HPSP money for that area.

 

[deleted176373]

LMK,

A big difference between the three services is that the Navy does not allow you to use HPSP for Psych. You can go into the Navy under the internship program, but you have to pay for your school yourself. I've been scratching my head about that one for the last five years I've been in the Navy myself; even spoke with the Surgeon General about it at an event a few years back. Basically, as far as the Navy is concerned, they have plenty of Psychologists already, and don't feel they need to extend HPSP money for that area.

Live to sail,

That USED to be the policy, but that has changed in the past year.

*** THE NAVY DOES ALLOW YOU TO PURSUE HPSP AND WILL BE AWARDING SCHOLARSHIPS THIS YEAR. ***

I got this information from the specialty leader this year.

 

[UofMNPsych]

Hello everyone,

I am new to the forum and I have not seen or read any information regarding my situation. I am currently a pilot with the air national guard. I have 10 years in and I am looking to transition into the clinical psychology field. I am already enrolled in Masters in Clinical Psychology with Capella University and I have 15 hours of classes with a 4.0. I live outside Nashville and there are two VA hospitals located close by. My questions are:

1. How do I take advantage of the HPSP as a current military member?

I WILL LET SOMEONE WITH MORE EXPERIENCE ANSWER THAT ONE, MARK?

2. Will I have the option of working at the VA close by for my rotations or internship?

WELL, DURING THE COURSE OF YOUR STUDIES YOU SHOULD HAVE THE OPTION OF DOING PRACTICA JUST ABOUT ANYWHERE. WHEN IT COMES TO YOUR INTERNSHIP (BUT WAIT, YOU'RE IN A MASTER'S PROGRAM), YOU WOULD MOST LIKELY BEING AT A MILITARY HOSPITAL, BUT I SUPPOSE IT IS POSSIBLE THAT YOU COULD MATCH AT A CIVILIAN SITE OR AT A VA.

INCIDENTALLY, AS FAR AS I KNOW, YOU HAVE TO BE ENROLLED IN A PH.D/PSY.D PROGRAM IN ORDER TO BE ELLIGIBLE FOR HPSP. IS YOUR PROGRAM AT CAPELLA A MASTERS --> PH.D./PSY.D PROGRAM?

3. Does anyone have a subject matter expert related to my situation, and if so could they point me to that person?

NOT SURE WHAT YOU ARE ASKING HERE. ARE YOU LOOKING FOR FLIGHT/AVIATION PSYCHOLOGISTS?

4.. I am currently a senior Capt and how would this come into play with pay and access to the HPSP program?

AGAIN, SOMEONE WITH MILITARY EXP SHOULD ANSWER THIS.

Thanks to everyone in advance and God Bless.

UofMN Psych

 

[C130pilot]

UofMN Psych,

Thank you for getting back with me. I am currently in the Master's Program at Capella.

Regarding a SME (Subject Matter Expert as it relates to my situation). I was hoping someone in this forum would be in a similar situation.

Regarding air force or army, I would do either one. I just figured it would be easier to stay in the same branch.

Your thoughts?

K

 

[deleted176373]

Hello everyone,

I am new to the forum and I have not seen or read any information regarding my situation. I am currently a pilot with the air national guard. I have 10 years in and I am looking to transition into the clinical psychology field. I am already enrolled in Masters in Clinical Psychology with Capella University and I have 15 hours of classes with a 4.0. I live outside Nashville and there are two VA hospitals located close by. My questions are:

1. How do I take advantage of the HPSP as a current military member?

I don't think you can while retaining your rank. You will have to ask a recruiter. I believe that they will require you to resign your commission to do so.

2. Will I have the option of working at the VA close by for my rotations or internship?

Normally, no. Normally you will be instructed to rate the military internships highest and they will rank you sufficiently high enough to generate a match.

3. Does anyone have a subject matter expert related to my situation, and if so could they point me to that person?

You should talk to your specialty leader for clinical psychology or a health services officer recruiter.

4.. I am currently a senior Capt and how would this come into play with pay and access to the HPSP program?

I don't think they will authorize HPSP for a program that is not APA accredited. You cannot qualify for a military internship without graduating from an APA accredited doctoral program and you cannot be a direct accession without having both an APA accredited Ph.D. and APA accredited internship. So you would have to get your Ph.D. elsewhere.

You might be better off applying to USUHS, but I would expect going from ANG -> USAF to be problematic.

Mark

 

[justme08]

Just curious if anyone has a link for the Navy's HPSP for psych? I've looked and haven't found one yet. I'm curious how it compares to Army's.

 

[deleted176373]

Just curious if anyone has a link for the Navy's HPSP for psych? I've looked and haven't found one yet. I'm curious how it compares to Army's.

I don't believe there is a link available yet. I think you would have to contact CDR Ralph for details at this time. I don't think there is any difference, but I also don't have data to support that, but HPSP has typically been pretty much the same across services IIRC.

Mark

 

[justme08]

Thanks, as always, Mark. I believe the AF only pays for one year, so there is one difference