HPSP predicament

[thatoneguy3]

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hi everybody!

I just got an HPSP offer from the Air Force. I do have an acceptance right now to a school, but I would much rather go to a school I’m waitlisted at. I have sent updates to said school (one fairly recently) and obviously I feel I should let them know, but is there any way that I should go about telling a school this? I’m not even sure I want to accept it anymore

 

[907914]

Original post deleted due to the misinformation spread by a disgruntled prior enlisted.

OP, listen to the posts below, ignore people like me that only know 75% of the information.

 

[Matthew9Thirtyfive]

The HPSP seems very nice on paper. Free tuition PLUS $2500 a month and they only want 4 years? Except you also get one years commitment for each two years of residency. So now it is a 6 year commitment. Want to do a fellowship? Now you are looking at a 7 year commitment. Want to do a particular residency? Too bad, you will go in to the military match process which has MUCH more limited options (Both in the kinds of residencies and the location). Additionally, you are signing up for a 6-8 year commitment that doesn't even start for another 7-9 years. Do you know what can happen in just a three year commitment let alone a 13 - 17 year timeline? Something to think about.

As far as choosing schools, will the airforce not let you switch school commitments?

Please don’t give incorrect info. Time accrued during residency is served concurrently with time owed for the scholarship. So a 3 year residency would still mean a 4 year commitment since the 2 years for the residency (pgy-1 is neutral) is served at the same time as the 4 years for hpsp.

Additionally, there is the option to do your intern year and then complete your 4 year commitment and get out if the specialty you want does not have any spots or you fail to match into it. Additionally, unlike the civilian world you can continue to apply to your preferred specialty as you serve as a GMO, which even though it is low acuity stuff, is still a well-paying job doing medicine.

It’s definitely not for everyone, but your reasons are not based on correct info.

 

[Matthew9Thirtyfive]

As for the OP, you can just send another update. You have an acceptance and guaranteed tuition. Both good things to let your number one choice know. If you aren’t planning on taking the scholarship, don’t mention it.

 

[B4y 4RE4 N4Tiv3]

hi everybody!

I just got an HPSP offer from the Air Force. I do have an acceptance right now to a school, but I would much rather go to a school I’m waitlisted at. I have sent updates to said school (one fairly recently) and obviously I feel I should let them know, but is there any way that I should go about telling a school this? I’m not even sure I want to accept it anymore

To your question I would say you can back out, YOU DONT HAVE TO TAKE THE SCHOLARSHIP. You can wait until you get into the school that waitlisted you, get loans for your first year and re-apply for HPSP towards the end of your first year.

 

[thatoneguy3]

Please don’t give incorrect info. Time accrued during residency is served concurrently with time owed for the scholarship. So a 3 year residency would still mean a 4 year commitment since the 2 years for the residency (pgy-1 is neutral) is served at the same time as the 4 years for hpsp.

Additionally, there is the option to do your intern year and then complete your 4 year commitment and get out if the specialty you want does not have any spots or you fail to match into it. Additionally, unlike the civilian world you can continue to apply to your preferred specialty as you serve as a GMO, which even though it is low acuity stuff, is still a well-paying job doing medicine.

It’s definitely not for everyone, but your reasons are not based on correct info.

Thank you! This is pretty much what all the military docs I worked with told me. Essentially the “4 year commitment clock” won’t start until after I’m done with residency (where I’d get base pay) and then if I wanted to do a fellowship I’d just have to do extra time. As far as location I’ll go wherever I get in (any match is like that haha) but the specialty is what sort of scares me. I’ve wanted to do pediatrics forever, but they always told me they might get rid of it and you sort of have to take whatever they have to offer. Even for fellowships it’s sort of limited by what they need at the time. Then there’s always the whole “lifestyle”-which I want to have a family/meet someone; and I think this would get in the way of all of that

 

[thatoneguy3]

To your question I would say you can back out, YOU DONT HAVE TO TAKE THE SCHOLARSHIP. You can wait until you get into the school that waitlisted you, get loans for your first year and re-apply for HPSP towards the end of your first year.

That’s my main reason of why I would take it is just because I’d have a nice $0 as far as loans, but I’ve read online that there are other ways to get loan forgiveness? I’m not really sure of any except for like pslf, the loan stuff is kind of a mystery for me

 

[Matthew9Thirtyfive]

Thank you! This is pretty much what all the military docs I worked with told me. Essentially the “4 year commitment clock” won’t start until after I’m done with residency (where I’d get base pay) and then if I wanted to do a fellowship I’d just have to do extra time. As far as location I’ll go wherever I get in (any match is like that haha) but the specialty is what sort of scares me. I’ve wanted to do pediatrics forever, but they always told me they might get rid of it and you sort of have to take whatever they have to offer. Even for fellowships it’s sort of limited by what they need at the time. Then there’s always the whole “lifestyle”-which I want to have a family/meet someone; and I think this would get in the way of all of that

So the commitment starts whenever you are not in a training status. That could be after residency or as a GMO. Peds will never fully go away I think, but it could definitely shrink.

That said, if peds becomes very competitive you could do an intern year and then serve your commitment while reapplying for peds. If you don’t get it before your commitment is up, you get out and go to a civilian peds residency.

You just have to be okay with the possibility of delaying training.

 

[B4y 4RE4 N4Tiv3]

That’s my main reason of why I would take it is just because I’d have a nice $0 as far as loans, but I’ve read online that there are other ways to get loan forgiveness? I’m not really sure of any except for like pslf, the loan stuff is kind of a mystery for me

I think you might be a little anxious, if I was in your position:

-waitlist school accepts me
-M1(1st semester) Apply for HPSP during first semester and take out loans
-M1(2nd semester) use HPSP to pay for this semester and use the $20,000 bonus to pay my loans off (depending on the financial package you get, try to leverage your other acceptance for a little more)
-summer (between M1 and M2) go to officer training