HSCP & Independent Scholarship Question

[neuroTIC_so]

Hello!

Active Duty Navy SO is getting ready to drop his HPSP and HSCP packets. He was accepted to his top choice MD program on Tuesday (!!!) and subsequently received an email from the financial aid office offering him a full tuition scholarship that is renewable yearly (app. value of 64k/year). He is verifying from the school that it is indeed an independent, non-needs based and non-HPSP scholarship.

My question is- if this is an independent scholarship, would he be able to accept it and use HSCP concurrently (is this a no brainer?), or is there something barring "outside" scholarships and HSCP? Guidance on HSCP is minimal.

TIA!

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[Gastrapathy]

So I left this post alone because I felt my response was so predictable. But, you haven’t had any other answers so here it goes:
A free ride to medical school is amazing. Don’t mess it up by joining the military.

 

[neuroTIC_so]

So I left this post alone because I felt my response was so predictable. But, you haven’t had any other answers so here it goes:
A free ride to medical school is amazing. Don’t mess it up by joining the military.

Ha, he's already needs of Uncle Sam and has a release for med school. In doing so, he's required to choose either HPSP, HSCP, or attend USUHS. While he was already accepted to USUHS, it's not the right fit for us (not to mention additional obligation on what is already owed).

We found out that he is able to take this scholarship if he is selected for HSCP due to it being merit-based. Now the fun part is waiting...again...

 

[Fmr1120]

He should really do some deep consideration then make a decision with excel spreadsheet math. The first question is the big one: how much does he really want to serve? He should seek out some military docs (maybe on SDN but more helpful in person) and look into the differences in lifestyle. If the answer is yes, it ends up being a math problem.

HSCP doesn't know/care about your scholarships. You are enlisted as an "officer candidate" as E-6. You will get base pay, BAH (housing), and BAS (a couple hundred for subsistence, i.e. food). You will make time in service for later pay scales (the O-3 over x number of years) and time towards retirement.

Other options may make more sense. Specifically:

1. Join as a resident - Financial Assistance Program (FAP) = annual grant of $45,000 and a monthly stipend of over $2000
2. Join after board certification - Accession bonus (most specialties) vs CWSAB (up to $400k for a 4-yr contract for high needs specialties)

Each comes with its own service obligations and varying commitments.

As you will find everywhere: DON'T JOIN FOR THE MONEY. You will almost always make a better living with fewer headaches in the civilian sector. If you are joining the military with open eyes, it makes sense to join in the most beneficial way.

 

[neuroTIC_so]

He should really do some deep consideration then make a decision with excel spreadsheet math. The first question is the big one: how much does he really want to serve? He should seek out some military docs (maybe on SDN but more helpful in person) and look into the differences in lifestyle. If the answer is yes, it ends up being a math problem.

HSCP doesn't know/care about your scholarships. You are enlisted as an "officer candidate" as E-6. You will get base pay, BAH (housing), and BAS (a couple hundred for subsistence, i.e. food). You will make time in service for later pay scales (the O-3 over x number of years) and time towards retirement.

Other options may make more sense. Specifically:

1. Join as a resident - Financial Assistance Program (FAP) = annual grant of $45,000 and a monthly stipend of over $2000
2. Join after board certification - Accession bonus (most specialties) vs CWSAB (up to $400k for a 4-yr contract for high needs specialties)

Each comes with its own service obligations and varying commitments.

As you will find everywhere: DON'T JOIN FOR THE MONEY. You will almost always make a better living with fewer headaches in the civilian sector. If you are joining the military with open eyes, it makes sense to join in the most beneficial way.

Thanks for the message. He's already AD with 13+ years and has an ADSO even after HPSP/HSCP. HSCP is financially the best thing for him, so we are hoping the board returns favorable results!