Is 2-year Air Force Scholarship worth it?

[Lou2007]

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The Air Force offers a 2 year scholarship with a 3 year commitment. You have half the debt but would have to work three years with a lower income between $60,000 to $70,000. I want to serve my country but am a little concerned about joining the military at a time like this with a family and everything. Is the scholarship worth it?

 

[LITTLED]

I looked into the airforce scholarship very seriously. First, If you are going to take the scholarship, the best deal is the 3 or 4 year scholarship plan. (I heard they didn't offer the 4 year this year in the a/f but anyway). With the 4 year plan, you owe 4 years active duty. With the 3 year, you owe 3 years. Guess what? With the 2 year....you ALSO owe 3 years of active duty. I can't tell you how that works. So if you had to do 3 years of active service, you might as well get the 3 year scholarship. Unless you are already in dschool as a second year, in which case, I guess its irrelevant. After the active duty, you also owe a long commitment to "inactive reserves". After having this explained to me numerous times in military jargon, I still don't fully understand it. So, I'll let someone else jump in on that. I decided not to take the scholarship for a few reasons, but it is a great financial offer. If you want more info, there is a forum for military residencies or something like that and they might give you more helpfull advice.
🙂
littled

 

[Col Sanders]

My brother who is in my same dental class just got sworn in for the 2 for 3 with the AF, while I would never even consider it. I wouldnt be concerned with the political climate right now for these reasons. Its the AF not the Army, the closest youll get to action is a nice base overseas in a stable country, alot safer even than being a truckdriver.
I chose not to do it because; I am very concerned about where I live, I am concerned about building my practice right away and I would rate money as something more important to me than my brother, He chose it because; he wants to be comfortable money wise but likes the guaranteed income for his family of 5. He likes the adventure of going somewhere else. He likes to work out and they are given an hour of there workday to workout. He feels more obligation to serve than I do(even though we are both very patriotic). His family needed the stipend during dental school. He is concerned about the debt while I think of it more as a challenge.
You'll know what to do when looking at it all. There is something very noble about serving and there is nothing wrong with choosing not to. Its a personal thing. Think about whats important to you and go with your gut. My brothers gut told him to do it. Mine told me not to.

 

[decaydigger]

I'm a Navy dentist finishing my last year of a 4 year commitment. There are alot of variables that play into this decision.

First is finances. Do you or will you have a lot of student debt when you graduate? If a 3 year military commitment, prevents you from borrowing another 60-80 grand, that could be reason enough. IF you don't owe much, it may not be the best decision financially.

Finances aren't everything though. Do you have other plans coming out of dental school? Many new grads just flounder in associateships that really don't challenge them clinically or are dead end positions not leading to any sort of practice equity, etc. Or do you have something lined up with a dentist who will be a good mentor and/or may look to transition the practice in the future. The money may be good, but most of usually goes to paying back loan debt in your early years of practice. You may have less of this with time in the service.

Clinical experience in the military with young dentists varies widely. Really depends on where you get stationed, who you wind up working for, working with, and how long you are there. I have had friends who've had great experience (myself included) learned a ton that. The service offers AEGDs and GPRs to new grads too. Don't know if there's an additional commitment with this, though. I didn't do either, but learned a ton (in many ways more than those in residency) at the clinics I have been stationed at. I have other friends who don't think so highly of their experience. Some of it's luck, some of it is your own doing. Email me on this if you want more info.

Another consideration is where you'll be living. Life experience sorta stuff. You could be in another country (traveling the world) working for just a few years. Or you could be in the middle of Bumble Butt, USA bored out of your mind. Even though you are considering the Air Force, there is still that possibility you could deploy (Middle East). Unlikely, but still could happen. If you have a family, this may not be the best decision. This can be a life changing experience (so I've heard). I know some who would never want to do it again, others waiting to go for their next deployment. Again, with the Air Force this would be unlikely. It all depends on how well you can negotiate where you want to go. I was supposed to be stationed in Hawaii for my last 3 years, but wound up in San Diego, CA instead. Wouldn't have been bad either place. It worked out tremendously well for me, but I got very very lucky.

These are just some considerations. I don't regret my decision to join the Navy at all. I know others that wish they never did. Don't get me wrong, though, there's a lot of stuff that isn't perfect in military dentistry. I'm glad I did my time, glad I'm getting out. Please contact me if you are seriously considering this.

 

[prlester]

i was going to do airf hpsp as a physician. You said that airforce gets deployed less. would that also be true for physicians. also, why is that. Compared to army that is.

 

[hafido]

Inactive Ready Reserves basically means that your profile is kept on file and in the event of dire need, the government can call you to active duty, meaning you must leave what you are doing (job wise) and serve. I was in the miltiary and that was IRR for a while.

 

[omaralt]

ya, i was thinking about doing the army dental scholarship. my biggest problem with it is that not only do you have to serve for 4 years, but even after you serve, you have another 4 year "committment". so if your country needs you (which is very likely nowadays) you can be called up at any time during those next 4 years. what if i just finished serving for 4 years and decided to open up my own practice. after just one year, the military comes knocking and tells me that i need to go serve. now the past year i've spent building my practice is gone. i really think that money should not be the main driving factor when going for one of these armed service scholarships. being a dentist you can easily pay off you debts in a few years, much less then the amount of time you will be committed to the military.
just my 2 cents

omar

 

[johnkimdmd]

You asked about AF scholarships, so if you are not interested in hearing about the Navy please disregard. All 3 branches offer similar deals though.

If I had to do things over I would have applied for the AF instead of the Navy though. Better overseas assignments (like Germany, Italy, etc.) and debateably more prestige and benefits I've heard.

I'll be starting a Navy AEGD this summer and I'm looking forward to it. I did a two for three deal. I have a crappy HSCP deal that doesn't pay tuition or books. Instead I got about $2200 a month while I was in school plus active duty benefits (many of those). So making money after school obviously wasn't a huge concern. The AEGD or GPR does count for one of the three years active duty. It's true that after you do your three years active duty they place you on inactive reserve for about 3-5+ years. I'm considering going career so it wasn't a huge concern for me. If you stay in for twenty years you retire with an awesome pension plan. My understanding though is that they almost never pull dentists back into service after their active duty is up. Demand would have to exceed incoming supply of new dentists (during a large scale war perhaps). They would have to pay a lot more in salary to dentists coming off of inactive reserve. It could happen though. Recruitment is very low right now in every branch. It's pretty different if you're a physician though. I know a couple of doctors who had to give up their practice and serve during the Gulf War (the first one). It's far more likely you would be called back to duty.

I wouldn't do a military scholarship if I was just concerned about paying back loans and job security. You're going to be a dentist damn it! Job demand is good nationwide, earning potential is among the best, and as a business dentist offices have a failure rate < 1%.

There's a lot of benefits to being in the service. Any recruiter can go over those with you. But ultimately you have to want that experience and lifestyle in order for it to be worth it to you. Comedian Mitch Hedberg once said, "In the military, they say 'At Ease.' But that never seemed so easy to me. Standing straight with legs slightly apart and hands behind my back does not equal ease to me. To me, 'at ease' is not being in the military."

 

[koobpheej]

After finishing your active duty committment to the military you have three choices. The actual commitment you incur when taking a military scholarship is 7-8 years depending on the program. The first 3-4 years are active duty, the remaining 4 can be active duty (full-time military), active reserve (part-time military, fair chance of being recalled depending on the political climate), and inactive reserve (if you get called up when on inactive reserve, some serious stuff is going down). I would imagine the inactive reserves to be the last step before the draft.

 

[coolslugs]

After finishing your active duty committment to the military you have three choices. The actual commitment you incur when taking a military scholarship is 7-8 years depending on the program. The first 3-4 years are active duty, the remaining 4 can be active duty (full-time military), active reserve (part-time military, fair chance of being recalled depending on the political climate), and inactive reserve (if you get called up when on inactive reserve, some serious stuff is going down). I would imagine the inactive reserves to be the last step before the draft.

What would the commitment be if plan to do 4 years of ROTC and 4 years of HPSP for dental school?

 

[Rube]

I'm a Navy dentist finishing my last year of a 4 year commitment. There are alot of variables that play into this decision.

First is finances. Do you or will you have a lot of student debt when you graduate? If a 3 year military commitment, prevents you from borrowing another 60-80 grand, that could be reason enough. IF you don't owe much, it may not be the best decision financially.

Finances aren't everything though. Do you have other plans coming out of dental school? Many new grads just flounder in associateships that really don't challenge them clinically or are dead end positions not leading to any sort of practice equity, etc. Or do you have something lined up with a dentist who will be a good mentor and/or may look to transition the practice in the future. The money may be good, but most of usually goes to paying back loan debt in your early years of practice. You may have less of this with time in the service.

Clinical experience in the military with young dentists varies widely. Really depends on where you get stationed, who you wind up working for, working with, and how long you are there. I have had friends who've had great experience (myself included) learned a ton that. The service offers AEGDs and GPRs to new grads too. Don't know if there's an additional commitment with this, though. I didn't do either, but learned a ton (in many ways more than those in residency) at the clinics I have been stationed at. I have other friends who don't think so highly of their experience. Some of it's luck, some of it is your own doing. Email me on this if you want more info.

Another consideration is where you'll be living. Life experience sorta stuff. You could be in another country (traveling the world) working for just a few years. Or you could be in the middle of Bumble Butt, USA bored out of your mind. Even though you are considering the Air Force, there is still that possibility you could deploy (Middle East). Unlikely, but still could happen. If you have a family, this may not be the best decision. This can be a life changing experience (so I've heard). I know some who would never want to do it again, others waiting to go for their next deployment. Again, with the Air Force this would be unlikely. It all depends on how well you can negotiate where you want to go. I was supposed to be stationed in Hawaii for my last 3 years, but wound up in San Diego, CA instead. Wouldn't have been bad either place. It worked out tremendously well for me, but I got very very lucky.

These are just some considerations. I don't regret my decision to join the Navy at all. I know others that wish they never did. Don't get me wrong, though, there's a lot of stuff that isn't perfect in military dentistry. I'm glad I did my time, glad I'm getting out. Please contact me if you are seriously considering this.

I have several friends who did Army HPSP and the Navy equivalent. The financial benefits are pretty amazing with the Army. I don't know about the Navy.

Nevertheless, they've told me and I've seen from being on base that the military does things a certain way, and it isn't always the smartest or the best way but it is the only way.
Also as far as experiences varying widely, I think you're right, but the thing that stood out to me, in terms of happiness were the personal qualities of the individuals in the service. Those that take orders well, accept things as they are and try to make the most of their time, are rewarded and get the promotions, ect. They are happy. Those that spend their time wishing the military were different than the military is never seem to do as well because they spend most of their time recreating the US Army in their heads. It really depends on the makeup of the individual.

just my 2. Congrats on your service.

 

[Omahahahaha]

Quick question for those of you in the know. I'm a D2 this year and I'm wondering if any branch would cover my remaining 3 years if I go talk to them this fall.

Also, is there any type of training or anything before school is completed? Because school goes year round for us from now on.

 

[Rube]

Quick question for those of you in the know. I'm a D2 this year and I'm wondering if any branch would cover my remaining 3 years if I go talk to them this fall.

Also, is there any type of training or anything before school is completed? Because school goes year round for us from now on.

Contact the Army dental corp. They will only pay for last 2 (unless they'd accept you this fall and pay for second semester) and you will owe them a minimum of 3 years active, plus 5 years IRR since you'd be commissioned an officer.

 

[QM1]

I'm a Navy dentist finishing my last year of a 4 year commitment. There are alot of variables that play into this decision.

First is finances. Do you or will you have a lot of student debt when you graduate? If a 3 year military commitment, prevents you from borrowing another 60-80 grand, that could be reason enough. IF you don't owe much, it may not be the best decision financially.

Finances aren't everything though. Do you have other plans coming out of dental school? Many new grads just flounder in associateships that really don't challenge them clinically or are dead end positions not leading to any sort of practice equity, etc. Or do you have something lined up with a dentist who will be a good mentor and/or may look to transition the practice in the future. The money may be good, but most of usually goes to paying back loan debt in your early years of practice. You may have less of this with time in the service.

Clinical experience in the military with young dentists varies widely. Really depends on where you get stationed, who you wind up working for, working with, and how long you are there. I have had friends who've had great experience (myself included) learned a ton that. The service offers AEGDs and GPRs to new grads too. Don't know if there's an additional commitment with this, though. I didn't do either, but learned a ton (in many ways more than those in residency) at the clinics I have been stationed at. I have other friends who don't think so highly of their experience. Some of it's luck, some of it is your own doing. Email me on this if you want more info.

Another consideration is where you'll be living. Life experience sorta stuff. You could be in another country (traveling the world) working for just a few years. Or you could be in the middle of Bumble Butt, USA bored out of your mind. Even though you are considering the Air Force, there is still that possibility you could deploy (Middle East). Unlikely, but still could happen. If you have a family, this may not be the best decision. This can be a life changing experience (so I've heard). I know some who would never want to do it again, others waiting to go for their next deployment. Again, with the Air Force this would be unlikely. It all depends on how well you can negotiate where you want to go. I was supposed to be stationed in Hawaii for my last 3 years, but wound up in San Diego, CA instead. Wouldn't have been bad either place. It worked out tremendously well for me, but I got very very lucky.

These are just some considerations. I don't regret my decision to join the Navy at all. I know others that wish they never did. Don't get me wrong, though, there's a lot of stuff that isn't perfect in military dentistry. I'm glad I did my time, glad I'm getting out. Please contact me if you are seriously considering this.

I sent you a message

QM1