Military and Post-Bacs

[swimguy92]

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Hey Guys!

I am in the process of applying to medical school for the second cycle in a row (graduated from undergrad in 2014). For this second year, I have decided to go back to school to increase my chances. In August I will be attending the VCU pre-med cert program. I am not worried about this program bringing me down since I went to another pretty-difficult VA school and graduated with a 3.4. Anyways, I am trying to find a way to pay for it and was wondering if anyone had experience with the military paying for post-bac programs (I will most likely do HPSP when the day comes).

I applied to 5 schools the first cycle, had a 3.4 and a 31 MCAT; got one interview that I am still waitlisted for.

Thanks!

 

[Anon Anon]

Maybe you join Reserves and use TA. But then you can't use TA if you already have a bachelors or higher andd it only pays upto $4500 a year or $250 Max per credit hour. Recently they started post bac program but only for active duty enlisted. Here's the link https://www.usuhs.edu/emdp2

 

[slow twitch]

Hey Guys!

I am in the process of applying to medical school for the second cycle in a row (graduated from undergrad in 2014). For this second year, I have decided to go back to school to increase my chances. In August I will be attending the VCU pre-med cert program. I am not worried about this program bringing me down since I went to another pretty-difficult VA school and graduated with a 3.4. Anyways, I am trying to find a way to pay for it and was wondering if anyone had experience with the military paying for post-bac programs (I will most likely do HPSP when the day comes).

I applied to 5 schools the first cycle, had a 3.4 and a 31 MCAT; got one interview that I am still waitlisted for.

Thanks!

Are you in the military now? If not there's no way the military will pay for a post bac. If you are, you would have to be in a degree granting program and either use GI Bill funds or TA (active duty only.)

 

[MightBeACylon439]

Are you in the military now? If not there's no way the military will pay for a post bac. If you are, you would have to be in a degree granting program and either use GI Bill funds or TA (active duty only.)

Tuition assistance is not active duty only. The guard has an option for it but it is state dependent. The GI bill works but then there is the post 911 GI bill and depending on what job you get (MOS, AFSC, etc) there could be what is referred to as a "GI bill kicker."

The caveat to all this is you will have to join the military (enlisted I believe, don't know if this stuff is available to officers), go to basic training and technical training, and serve (I think it's 90 days title 10 orders for the post-911 GI Bill).

 

[undertoad]

This is based on active duty service (the reserve gets the Montgomery GI Bill Selected Reserve (MGIB-SR); I have no idea how it works):

The Post 9/11 GI Bill awards benefits in percentages based on length of service. You need an aggregate period of active duty service of 90 days or greater to qualify for the minimum (40%). After that, the percentage of benefits payable goes up 10% each six months, reaching 100% once you've completed 36 months of service. Initial entry training time (basic and tech school) does not count toward the qualifying period of service. Officers are eligible for Post 9/11, but they have to commit more active duty time if they commissioned via a service academy or ROTC.

However, at 100%, the Post 9/11 will cover 36 months of in-state tuition at public schools. If you attend school at 51% time or greater, you receive a housing allowance (it's based on the number of credits you're taking and whether they're online or in-seat). You receive a textbook stipend, up to $1000 per academic year, based on the number of credits. You don't get the housing allowance while you're on active duty, since the government is already either providing you a place to live, or paying for you to live out in town.

While on active duty, you're eligible for tuition assistance. However, I don't think you'd have much luck completing a post-bac while on active duty. Unless you got really lucky with your duty assignment, which is unlikely during your first term of service. I just got off six years of active duty, and I did not have the time or ability to take classes with associated labs (which required in-seat attendance). Even online classes were iffy, due to myriad connection problems throughout deployment.

This being said, don't join the military just for education benefits. Even if your end goal is military medicine, make sure you want to be a military officer as badly as you want to be a physician.