Military HPSP

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I have been interested in the Military HPSP for a long time but I couldn't apply yet because I didn't gain US citizenship until very recently. Would it be too late to apply now? for any of the military branches.

 

[BlueDevil2012]

I don't think, I'm about halfway done with my packet and have my meps physical on 12/20.. my recruiter seems to think I'm early/on track.

 

[ModifiedBass]

Just make sure you can get all the paperwork in very quickly. The next board would be in January, but I'm almost certain you wouldn't be able to make that (due to needing physical, letters, how long the security questionnaire and other paperwork can take, etc.). I started working on everything in mid-October and am about to finish with MEPS and other physicals this coming week and interviews on the 2oth. So I would say give it about 2 months if you're really on top of everything. Worst comes to worst, you can apply for the 3-yr scholarship if you're too late for the 4-yr.

 

[aqz]

Which branch is everyone applying to? I'm going to try my luck with the Air Force. Halfway done with all my requirements, board meets sometime in early February.

 

[Troyvdg]

Which branch is everyone applying to? I'm going to try my luck with the Air Force. Halfway done with all my requirements, board meets sometime in early February.

You're doing hpsp too? Nice!
Started with airforce, but just submitted my packet for navy. I'm really looking forward to all the branch has to offer.

 

[aqz]

You're doing hpsp too? Nice!
Started with airforce, but just submitted my packet for navy. I'm really looking forward to all the branch has to offer.

Yeah, even with any scholarship offers from the schools I'm looking at, nothing seems to beat HPSP at the moment. You're essentially getting paid during dental school for the tuition, getting paid 70k+ as a dentist during the time you have to serve, and most importantly securing a job where you get to develop your skills for 4 years around the world without having to worry about the business side of things if you don't have a practice to buy into.

Only problem is my recruiter told me there's only 13 4-year scholarships this year for the AF, and he alone is already working with 4 other people besides me with 40 other recruiters around the nation. Here comes another round of acceptance/waitlist/rejections, this stuff never ends!

You're set on Navy then/are you submitting an Air Force app?

 

[Troyvdg]

Yeah, even with any scholarship offers from the schools I'm looking at, nothing seems to beat HPSP at the moment. You're essentially getting paid during dental school for the tuition, getting paid 70k+ as a dentist during the time you have to serve, and most importantly securing a job where you get to develop your skills for 4 years around the world without having to worry about the business side of things if you don't have a practice to buy into.

Only problem is my recruiter told me there's only 13 4-year scholarships this year for the AF, and he alone is already working with 4 other people besides me with 40 other recruiters around the nation. Here comes another round of acceptance/waitlist/rejections, this stuff never ends!

You're set on Navy then/are you submitting an Air Force app?

Haha my thoughts exactly about hpsp. Even with the scholarships I got...doesn't scratch the surface, with hpsp I won't have to limit myself to choosing a school based on cost.

But to answer your question, yeah, that was one of the reasons I switched. AF was a lot of work for something that was too competitive. My packets complete so I'll probably submit it, but I not banking on anything.
Navy gives out 60, still competitive, but I've got a better shot. In addition, I just grew to like the branch a lot more. The most obvious reason being Duty stations, $20k signing bonus is a nice perk too, but I felt I meshed better with the Navy. I liked the CPTs I interviewed with and everything they had to say about their experience.

 

[aqz]

Haha my thoughts exactly about hpsp. Even with the scholarships I got...doesn't scratch the surface, with hpsp I won't have to limit myself to choosing a school based on cost.

But to answer your question, yeah, that was one of the reasons I switched. AF was a lot of work for something that was too competitive. My packets complete so I'll probably submit it, but I not banking on anything.
Navy gives out 60, still competitive, but I've got a better shot. In addition, I just grew to like the branch a lot more. The most obvious reason being Duty stations, $20k signing bonus is a nice perk too, but I felt I meshed better with the Navy. I liked the CPTs I interviewed with and everything they had to say about their experience.

You won't have anything to worry about. My recruiter told me that he got 1 out of 8 applicants in for the 4-year AF last year. She had a 26 AA, not sure what the GPA was, but apparently her Harvard acceptance played a big role. You're allowed to submit as many acceptance letters as you want, and from what he told me, the bigger the name, the better. Finally a reason to care for the name eh? So for you, I don't see a problem at all, betting that you'll get both navy and airforce!

Sent from my SGH-T999 using Tapatalk

 

[NMC2010]

I just finished meeting with my recruiter and signing the final thing today for the Army. He told me not to worry about getting it, as there are still ~70 spots left and usually only 100 - 120 applicants nationally for the 4 year army HPSP. Seems like a great deal that people are really missing out on. In addition to the perks Aqz mentioned above, you can even work on specializing or comprehensive dentistry, and have some of the best dentists and technology in the nation to help you with that. They also teach you how to run your own business when you start the program upon completion of dental school. You have your own clinic set up and sometimes work with other dentists. Hours are good too, usually 7:30 - 4:00 five days a week, and as an officer, you get to choose the locations you want to be stationed at.

My stats aren't even that great compared to some others, but he said with the stats I have, I should be fine so long as I get accepted.

 

[BlueDevil2012]

I'm applying Army as well, and hoping I get it as long as I'm complete by the first board meeting. My recruiter told me they didn't even end up giving them all out last year so hopefully the odds are in my (our) favor. My stats are eh, but he said with already receiving several admission offers I should have a shot.

 

[Stereum]

Anybody know what a competitive application looks like? I have a 3.4 GPA and 21 DAT. My Navy recruiter said I'm extremely competitive, while my Army recruiter said I needed a waiver since I don't have the 3.5 minimum. That being said, talking to both this week it seemed like the stats don't really matter as much as having a LoA and filling out the paperwork on time.

 

[Papasmurf1234]

Starting this year they allowed anyone with a GPA of 3.5> and 19AA> to have their applications looked at before being accepted to dental school. Unfortunately, ******* congress couldn't figure out their ****, and due to the government shutdown, caused a delay in the review of applicants that were supposed to get looked at in October. They completely skipped the November board as well. December 10th ( i believe) is the 2nd review board for the army. I was supposed to get looked at for the october board but apparently they only reviewed a handful of applicants then. My recruiter keeps on telling me i'm a shoe in but i'm still a bit worried. Hopefully the fact that I put which school i'll enter using the hpsp will help me a great deal in getting selected since they're choosing based on who they think will get into the school.

 

[BlueDevil2012]

Starting this year they allowed anyone with a GPA of 3.5> and 19AA> to have their applications looked at before being accepted to dental school. Unfortunately, ******* congress couldn't figure out their ****, and due to the government shutdown, caused a delay in the review of applicants that were supposed to get looked at in October. They completely skipped the November board as well. December 10th ( i believe) is the 2nd review board for the army. I was supposed to get looked at for the october board but apparently they only reviewed a handful of applicants then. My recruiter keeps on telling me i'm a shoe in but i'm still a bit worried. Hopefully the fact that I put which school i'll enter using the hpsp will help me a great deal in getting selected since they're choosing based on who they think will get into the school.

My recruiter didn't mention this. So if you already have a loa are you given priority? Or are you reviewed in the order that they are receieved?

 

[Papasmurf1234]

My recruiter didn't mention this. So if you already have a loa are you given priority? Or are you reviewed in the order that they are receieved?

I believe the applications are reviewed in the order they are received. It wouldn't be fair for someone who turned it in by December 1st to get priority over someone who had theirs in by October 1st. However, if you already have a LOA i would feel that your application may get looked at. Or at least while the board is reviewing your application they will notice that you already have an acceptance and you will most likely find out faster. But either way, whether you get the scholarship or not, you find out 2 weeks after the board date. My recruiter told me they pushed back all the board dates all the way until May so i'm not sure how they are going to review all of the people that submitted their application since pre-October until Dec 1st. I think they will review an X number of applicants in this december board and then push back the rest of the applicants who turned it in later to the next month board and so on. Again, i'm not the army so I don't know.

 

[Stereum]

Again, i'm not the army so I don't know.

Sometimes I don't even think the Army knows. Unfortunately, my Army recruiter has been somewhat shoddy. They didn't even send me the AMEDD application until this week despite me doing all the major background check stuff already. My Navy recruiter has been much more on the ball. In fact, I'm getting somewhat tired of the calling. Anyway, if anyone knows when any of the military boards meet, I would like to know.

 

[Papasmurf1234]

Sometimes I don't even think the Army knows. Unfortunately, my Army recruiter has been somewhat shoddy. They didn't even send me the AMEDD application until this week despite me doing all the major background check stuff already. My Navy recruiter has been much more on the ball. In fact, I'm getting somewhat tired of the calling. Anyway, if anyone knows when any of the military boards meet, I would like to know.

As far as the army goes, as I said in my previous post, they have their second board meeting this December on the 10th. And they will continue to have their board meetings on the 10th every month. And your comment is both hilarious and sad because I kind of think that the army doesn't really know their stuff either. For some reason their communication isn't as efficient and not all the recruiters are aware of the same information. Luckily, my recruiters (I have 2) have been nothing but wonderful. AMEDD was the first thing they sent me and it's like 60 or 70 pages long if i remember correctly so good thing they did.

Does your Navy and Army recruiter know you are applying to both disciplines and are they both o.k. about it? Usually, they only want you to commit to one branch since they have to do a lot of work per applicant and for them to do all that work and you not choosing their branch over the other is considered too big of a cost to take you on. Maybe that's why your army recruiter is being "shoddy" since he figures you might take the navy scholarship over the army if you get both.

 

[BlueDevil2012]

My recruiters have been great, I've just been very busy wrapping up the semester so AMEDD took me forever and MEPS here in Nashville has been booked for the past month and a half so the earliest I could get my physical is Dec 20th. I would really like my packet to be complete for the Jan board meeting. I've heard that the Navy sometimes conducts interviews, has anyone had to interview through the Army?

 

[Papasmurf1234]

My recruiters have been great, I've just been very busy wrapping up the semester so AMEDD took me forever and MEPS here in Nashville has been booked for the past month and a half so the earliest I could get my physical is Dec 20th. I would really like my packet to be complete for the Jan board meeting. I've heard that the Navy sometimes conducts interviews, has anyone had to interview through the Army?

As far as I'm concerned there is no interview with the army. I recall asking this to my recruiter and he said no. This is probably because there are so many spots in the army.

 

[Teeths]

As far as I'm concerned there is no interview with the army. I recall asking this to my recruiter and he said no. This is probably because there are so many spots in the army.

Sorry if you had already answered this, but would you say it's too late to look into this? The reality of the pricetag hit me and I'm starting to consider HPSP again

Also, a bit of a tangent but do you think being a woman factors into their decision, either positively or negatively? I say positively because I assume the majority who apply for the scholarship are men and negatively because they know they may have to give maternity leave at some point.

 

[Troyvdg]

Sorry if you had already answered this, but would you say it's too late to look into this? The reality of the pricetag hit me and I'm starting to consider HPSP again

Also, a bit of a tangent but do you think being a woman factors into their decision, either positively or negatively? I say positively because I assume the majority who apply for the scholarship are men and negatively because they know they may have to give maternity leave at some point.

Being female won't affect you negatively. I'd talk to a recruiter ASAP. Packets are starting to get submitted because acceptance started rolling in (mine was just submitted yesterday). It's a lot of paper work, and getting letters of rec all over again, but well worth it.

 

[NMC2010]

^ Agree with Troyvdg up here. Definitely not too late, but you'll want to get hold of a recruiter quickly. You can do this on the Air Force, Navy, or Army websites if you don't know where your nearest station is. I would advise against trying for the Air Force HPSP because those are extremely competitive. Navy and Army are easier to get into, and I think the Army is easiest for the 4 year HPSP (don't quote me on that) simply because they give away the most.

My recruiter told me it really isn't that hard to get the scholarship because so few people apply for it (for dentists anyways). I know it seems like another 4 years of your life to give up in addition to the 4 years of dental school, but consider the points mentioned above, and it's really worth it:

- Make 70k+ / year
- ALL of dental school paid for + 20k signing bonus + paid 2k/month for living expenses while in school = no debt (for only a 4 year commitment to military)
- Allows you to attend whatever school you want to, not having to worry about tuition cost
- Learn from some of the best dentists, refining skills as if in residency
- Access to best technology in field
- Opportunity to do research
- Opportunity to specialize
- Good hours (typically 40 hrs/week, no weekends)
- Get to choose the 3 locations you want to be stationed at / travel to where you want (even overseas)
- Learn how to run your own clinic/practice for later in life
- Still allows for family life
- Enter as an officer

I'm sure I'm missing some things here, but overall, this is a very good deal. My dentist did HPSP through the army and couldn't say enough good things about it. A periodontist I shadowed did a similar program through the Navy and seemed to think the military gives great opportunities as well.

 

[Teeths]

Being female won't affect you negatively. I'd talk to a recruiter ASAP. Packets are starting to get submitted because acceptance started rolling in (mine was just submitted yesterday). It's a lot of paper work, and getting letters of rec all over again, but well worth it.

^ Agree with Troyvdg up here. Definitely not too late, but you'll want to get hold of a recruiter quickly. You can do this on the Air Force, Navy, or Army websites if you don't know where your nearest station is. I would advise against trying for the Air Force HPSP because those are extremely competitive. Navy and Army are easier to get into, and I think the Army is easiest for the 4 year HPSP (don't quote me on that) simply because they give away the most.

My recruiter told me it really isn't that hard to get the scholarship because so few people apply for it (for dentists anyways). I know it seems like another 4 years of your life to give up in addition to the 4 years of dental school, but consider the points mentioned above, and it's really worth it:

- Make 70k+ / year
- ALL of dental school paid for + 20k signing bonus + paid 2k/month for living expenses while in school = no debt (for only a 4 year commitment to military)
- Allows you to attend whatever school you want to, not having to worry about tuition cost
- Learn from some of the best dentists, refining skills as if in residency
- Access to best technology in field
- Opportunity to do research
- Opportunity to specialize
- Good hours (typically 40 hrs/week, no weekends)
- Get to choose the 3 locations you want to be stationed at / travel to where you want (even overseas)
- Learn how to run your own clinic/practice for later in life
- Still allows for family life
- Enter as an officer

I'm sure I'm missing some things here, but overall, this is a very good deal. My dentist did HPSP through the army and couldn't say enough good things about it. A periodontist I shadowed did a similar program through the Navy and seemed to think the military gives great opportunities as well.

Thank you both! I am definitely looking into it (most likely the Army because of my situation and things you've mentioned NMC) and I hope to set up an appointment ASAP. The reality of cost finally hit me and I think it stings too much for me to handle it on my own. I realize there are tons of positives about this program and I can really find only one negative so that's pretty good in my book. Thanks again! 🙂

 

[Teeths]

Oh, one more question before I talk to a recruiter. Does anyone know how the Army would be for pedo? I'm extremely interested in being a pediatric dentist and I didn't really see that listed on their website as a specialty... 🤔


Edit: Or someone correct me if I'm wrong about that. I guess I'm unsure of how that would work if I'm interested in a specialty. Would I go to dental school, then a residency program, then the military to fulfill my commitment to them or is it dental school, military/whatever specialty programs they have to offer? May seem like a stupid question, but I honestly don't know.

 

[NMC2010]

Oh, one more question before I talk to a recruiter. Does anyone know how the Army would be for pedo? I'm extremely interested in being a pediatric dentist and I didn't really see that listed on their website as a specialty... 🤔


Edit: Or someone correct me if I'm wrong about that. I guess I'm unsure of how that would work if I'm interested in a specialty. Would I go to dental school, then a residency program, then the military to fulfill my commitment to them or is it dental school, military/whatever specialty programs they have to offer? May seem like a stupid question, but I honestly don't know.

I'm not sure about pedo, I know you'll mostly be treating soldiers. There are humanitarian missions you can go on where I assume you'd be treating children (and adults), but I don't know about the duration of these missions or how helpful it would be for a pedo specialty. My guess is that you'd have limited opportunities, but I'd advise talking to a recruiter to see if there are any options for pedo.

 

[BlueDevil2012]

Oh, one more question before I talk to a recruiter. Does anyone know how the Army would be for pedo? I'm extremely interested in being a pediatric dentist and I didn't really see that listed on their website as a specialty... 🤔


Edit: Or someone correct me if I'm wrong about that. I guess I'm unsure of how that would work if I'm interested in a specialty. Would I go to dental school, then a residency program, then the military to fulfill my commitment to them or is it dental school, military/whatever specialty programs they have to offer? May seem like a stupid question, but I honestly don't know.

If u are interested in Pedo also look into the NHSC scholarship. They allow a GPR or Pedo residency .

 

[Papasmurf1234]

Sorry if you had already answered this, but would you say it's too late to look into this? The reality of the pricetag hit me and I'm starting to consider HPSP again

Also, a bit of a tangent but do you think being a woman factors into their decision, either positively or negatively? I say positively because I assume the majority who apply for the scholarship are men and negatively because they know they may have to give maternity leave at some point.

Don't quote me on this but I would say gender plays no role. If it was a combat situation, they would probably prefer males but since they are looking for dentists (and dentists are always placed in safe areas) it won't matter to them much.

If you haven't started your application you are not exactly late but...to put it in perspective, it would be like applying to schools in October or November.
If you start now, even if you are fast, depending on your recruiter, you won't finish for a month and a half (minimum). So, the fastest board you'll be ready for is February board but most likely you are looking at being reviewed in March. By march, there will be very few spots left and your level of competitiveness will play a huge factor (unlike right now, where they're accepting pretty much anyone that gets into dental school).

Another thing to consider. If you had any intrusive surgery (where they had to repair ligaments/etc), or you have been diagnosed with depression/anxiety/etc. AND if it was officiated (you went to a hospital and received an official diagnosis), you are at a disadvantage because the military wants bionic human beings who have absolutely nothing wrong with them. If you had stitches (like me) but it's obvious that you didn't have any fractured bones or reconstructive surgery then it won't matter much.

 

[Papasmurf1234]

For anyone that wants better perspective about what it's like to be a army dentist right now, here is what a person i've been messaging told me. He is currently a dentist in the army:

Our financial compensation in the Army is pretty good in my opinion. As a Captain fresh out of dental school I make about 65k a year (base pay, housing pay, and food pay). In addition to my pay as a Captain I get 20k per year as a dental bonus, which brings to total pay up to about 85k. That's my pre-tax amount, however of that 85k the housing and food pay total to about 21k and that is completely untaxed. If you add in the tax advantage created by no taxes on 21k as well as the cost of healthcare (which is free in the Army) you total to an equivilant of about 105k in pre-tax money.

Note: you'll officially take home about 85k, my figure of 105k is basically saying that you'd have to make that much in the private sector to take home the same ammount after taxes that I make. After taxes I keep about 67k, which is very nice to have with no student loan debt.

The way the housing pay works is you can either live on post for free with no cost of utilities or you get a pay based off of your rank, location, and if you have dependents or not. So for me at Ft. Bragg, NC as a Captain with a wife I get $1515 each month that is tax free. The food pay is minimal, about $200 per month.

As for leave and breaks there's good and bad things about that. You earn 2.5 days of leave each month which totals to 30 days per year. Leave can be used pretty much anytime you want with little fuss. In addition to charged leave there are 13-25 days off per year due to hollidays/training hollidays. Note however that these hollidays are not a "given," some times they disappear or you work them due to the needs of the Army. (For example, this week Friday is a training holliday, but I'm working it as we need to have one dental clinic open that day and my clinic was selected. I volunteered to work it and my boss is giving me 2 extra days off in December to compensate, so it's not really that bad). Also, there are opportunities to take leave without spending your days for different things, like house hunting, training, or conferences. So for me, I've been active for 5 months and have taken 26 days off so far without spending one day of my leave.

Hope that clarifies up the financial situation as an army dentist

 

[Papasmurf1234]

Oh, one more question before I talk to a recruiter. Does anyone know how the Army would be for pedo? I'm extremely interested in being a pediatric dentist and I didn't really see that listed on their website as a specialty... 🤔


Edit: Or someone correct me if I'm wrong about that. I guess I'm unsure of how that would work if I'm interested in a specialty. Would I go to dental school, then a residency program, then the military to fulfill my commitment to them or is it dental school, military/whatever specialty programs they have to offer? May seem like a stupid question, but I honestly don't know.

For specializing, as far as i'm concerned, you can apply to get your training through the military again (on top of dental school). However, it's also year-per-year payback. So if your pedo residency is 3 years then you will owe a total of 7 years to the army.

One positive thing NMC forgot to mention about the scholarship is that the army will pay for all of your supplies as long as they are required by the school. This includes loupes (but they will only cover up to a certain amount).

Another thing is that after your 4 years of ACTIVE service, you will still owe 5 years of INACTIVE service (or was it 3...i forget). Basically, it means that if there is a war you can get deployed as an active member anytime during the 5 or 3 years after your four years of active service.

 

[Teeths]

Don't quote me on this but I would say gender plays no role. If it was a combat situation, they would probably prefer males but since they are looking for dentists (and dentists are always placed in safe areas) it won't matter to them much.

If you haven't started your application you are not exactly late but...to put it in perspective, it would be like applying to schools in October or November.
If you start now, even if you are fast, depending on your recruiter, you won't finish for a month and a half (minimum). So, the fastest board you'll be ready for is February board but most likely you are looking at being reviewed in March. By march, there will be very few spots left and your level of competitiveness will play a huge factor (unlike right now, where they're accepting pretty much anyone that gets into dental school).

Another thing to consider. If you had any intrusive surgery (where they had to repair ligaments/etc), or you have been diagnosed with depression/anxiety/etc. AND if it was officiated (you went to a hospital and received an official diagnosis), you are at a disadvantage because the military wants bionic human beings who have absolutely nothing wrong with them. If you had stitches (like me) but it's obvious that you didn't have any fractured bones or reconstructive surgery then it won't matter much.

Thanks for your response! I'm going to be calling Monday and hopefully setting up an appointment for this coming week if possible. If you don't mind me asking, what's all involved that takes a little while? I assume a physical, LORs (from who? professors? and if so can they be the same we've used for dental school?), transcripts, other paperwork? My undergrad GPA isn't very competitive but I will be graduating with a masters this semester. DAT is average. I also have 2 letters of acceptance if the more the merrier plays into it. I'm really hoping I still have a fighting chance!

I haven't had any type of surgery, not even any stitches or casts when I was younger. I don't have any medical diagnoses so I'm good there and in pretty decent shape/athletic.

Thanks for your all of your help!

 

[Teeths]

For specializing, as far as i'm concerned, you can apply to get your training through the military again (on top of dental school). However, it's also year-per-year payback. So if your pedo residency is 3 years then you will owe a total of 7 years to the army.

One positive thing NMC forgot to mention about the scholarship is that the army will pay for all of your supplies as long as they are required by the school. This includes loupes (but they will only cover up to a certain amount).

Another thing is that after your 4 years of ACTIVE service, you will still owe 5 years of INACTIVE service (or was it 3...i forget). Basically, it means that if there is a war you can get deployed as an active member anytime during the 5 or 3 years after your four years of active service.

Awesome, thanks very much. And yes, I understand about the inactive part as well, my older brother served in the Air Force before going to college.

 

[Papasmurf1234]

Thanks for your response! I'm going to be calling Monday and hopefully setting up an appointment for this coming week if possible. If you don't mind me asking, what's all involved that takes a little while? I assume a physical, LORs (from who? professors? and if so can they be the same we've used for dental school?), transcripts, other paperwork? My undergrad GPA isn't very competitive but I will be graduating with a masters this semester. DAT is average. I also have 2 letters of acceptance if the more the merrier plays into it. I'm really hoping I still have a fighting chance!

I haven't had any type of surgery, not even any stitches or casts when I was younger. I don't have any medical diagnoses so I'm good there and in pretty decent shape/athletic.

Thanks for your all of your help!

No problem! That's what this forum is for. When you first contact your recruiter, he will send you two files (a general info document that is about a page, and an AMEDD document that is about 50-70 pages long (i forget exactly how long)). AMEDD takes a while so i'd get that done ASAP. As for other documents, you will need your passport, social security card, drivers license, mortgage payment (or any sort of bill that proves you live at the residence you declared at), birth certificate (or naturalization certificate if you weren't born here), and a couple other things I can't remember. They're all pretty general stuff. Apart from that, you will send in the same exact LOR you sent to your dental schools (but you can ask your LOR writers to change "to dental schools" to "hpsp board committee" or something along those lines). You don't HAVE to, I didn't, but it can't hurt either. You need to send in transcripts from every institution you've attended (even if it's a CC where you took 1 class). There's a lot that goes into this packet but i think as far as documents go that's most of it.

Typically, if you have over 19AA and 3.5GPA then you are set (right now, not sure about boards later on). The physical takes a while (it's an all day thing) and it usually takes scheduling a couple weeks in advance.

You should include the school you will attend if you get the HPSP scholarship to make yourself more competitive. By the time you get your packet in, pretty much everyone that applies will have which school they're gonna attend. The only drawback is that, if you get the scholarship, you HAVE to attend that school. For instance, let's say right now you want to go to UCLA but then in february you get an interview from UCSF and you get accepted. But....you put UCLA as the school you're gonna attend. You can't change it. Once it's in writing, it's solid.

 

[BlueDevil2012]

I'm not so sure that the LOA you include in your packet is a binding decision. Although I had 4 acceptances I only had one official letter through the mail and my recruiter said to go ahead and scan it to him so he could include it in my packet but that I could choose to attend any school that I was accepted to if given the scholarship. I will double check for sure because the schools said official acceptance packets were in the mail, if this is the case i will swap my loa for my top choice.

 

[NMC2010]

No problem! That's what this forum is for.

I've gotta say, this is without a doubt the best thread I've seen on HPSP - definitely learned some things. Thanks everyone that's contributed so far! Hopefully others will see the benefits of HPSP and consider it as an option.

 

[Troyvdg]

You should include the school you will attend if you get the HPSP scholarship to make yourself more competitive. By the time you get your packet in, pretty much everyone that applies will have which school they're gonna attend. The only drawback is that, if you get the scholarship, you HAVE to attend that school. For instance, let's say right now you want to go to UCLA but then in february you get an interview from UCSF and you get accepted. But....you put UCLA as the school you're gonna attend. You can't change it. Once it's in writing, it's solid.

The school you attend can absolutely be changed. you have to submit a school for your packet, but you can always change that school. My recruiter emphasized this because I have not decided on a school.

 

[NMC2010]

The school you attend can be changed. you have to submit a school for your packet, but you can always change that school. My recruiter emphasized this because I have not decided on a school.

My recruiter told me the same thing Jaesango's did, that once you tell them you're going to attend a certain school, it's finalized and they will only give you enough money for that school. I think you can submit multiple acceptances and can choose from any of them, but you have to decide on one of those and can't change it afterwards.

Edit: May differ depending on branch - I applied for the Army HPSP.

 

[Troyvdg]

My recruiter told me the same thing Jaesango's did, that once you tell them you're going to attend a certain school, it's finalized and they will only give you enough money for that school. I think you can submit multiple acceptances and can choose from any of them, but you have to decide on one of those and can't change it afterwards.

Maybe once you receive the scholarship...but you're not tied to the school you submitted with your packet.

 

[Stereum]

Does your Navy and Army recruiter know you are applying to both disciplines and are they both o.k. about it? Usually, they only want you to commit to one branch since they have to do a lot of work per applicant and for them to do all that work and you not choosing their branch over the other is considered too big of a cost to take you on. Maybe that's why your army recruiter is being "shoddy" since he figures you might take the navy scholarship over the army if you get both.

I told my Army recruiter, but not my Navy recruiter. Frankly, she asked me if I was thinking of applying to another service, and I said yes. She said it wouldn't affect any decision, but I agree with your point. My Navy recruiter didn't ask so I didn't say anything. From what I understand about the military, never give out information that isn't directly asked of you.

 

[aqz]

My recruiter also told me you can change your designated school at any time. He also encouraged me to submit as many letters of acceptance as I can as well as saying that the bigger the name, the better.

 

[Papasmurf1234]

Maybe once you receive the scholarship...but you're not tied to the school you submitted with your packet.

Hmmm this is all very interesting. I told my recruiter that I received several acceptances but I wasn't sure which one yet and he said until I decide I can't include it with my packet. He also said once you submit the LOA you're officially bound to that school, should you accept the scholarship.
This is an example of the army not knowing things themselves...all of the recruiters seem to be saying different things. I'm going to email my recruiter and ask him if I can submit all of my LOAs. I thought I asked him this before and he said no....but anyways I'll post back here after getting a response from my recruiter.

 

[AKDent]

Hmmm this is all very interesting. I told my recruiter that I received several acceptances but I wasn't sure which one yet and he said until I decide I can't include it with my packet. He also said once you submit the LOA you're officially bound to that school, should you accept the scholarship.
This is an example of the army not knowing things themselves...all of the recruiters seem to be saying different things. I'm going to email my recruiter and ask him if I can submit all of my LOAs. I thought I asked him this before and he said no....but anyways I'll post back here after getting a response from my recruiter.

Do they want the official LOA's or can you send in the email?

 

[BlueDevil2012]

Hmmm this is all very interesting. I told my recruiter that I received several acceptances but I wasn't sure which one yet and he said until I decide I can't include it with my packet. He also said once you submit the LOA you're officially bound to that school, should you accept the scholarship.
This is an example of the army not knowing things themselves...all of the recruiters seem to be saying different things. I'm going to email my recruiter and ask him if I can submit all of my LOAs. I thought I asked him this before and he said no....but anyways I'll post back here after getting a response from my recruiter.

I just sent my recruiter an email for clarification as well. Will post their response.

 

[Papasmurf1234]

Do they want the official LOA's or can you send in the email?

I sent the email acceptance letter

 

[Papasmurf1234]

This is what my recruiter said,

As far as the Army is concerned you will have committed to a school once you
raise your hand, swear the oath, and all paperwork for payment has be sent
to the school of your choosing. All this happens within 2 weeks of being
selected.

The fact that you have been accepted to many schools is great, but honestly
the Army doesn't care what school you are accepted to but more importantly
what school to pay.

 

[Troyvdg]

Do they want the official LOA's or can you send in the email?

edited: you can send an emailed LOA

 

[Papasmurf1234]

Official meaning they have to be on letterhead and signed, but you can scan and email them. I did that for a couple. If you do navy, they require 3 LOR and 3 employment references/or 6 LOR...it's a lot of people to ask haha. army and af only require 3.

He was referring to Letters of Acceptances not Letters of Recommendations

 

[Troyvdg]

He was referring to Letters of Acceptances not Letters of Recommendations

ha. just realized. edited for truth.

 

[NMC2010]

@Teeths

This is in response to your LECOM vs NYU thread, but I thought this might be better info to post here for other people interested in HPSP.
___________________

Go for NYU!

I don't think you will have a problem with getting the 4 year Army HPSP if you complete all the paperwork quickly. If you're really on the ball (as is your recruiter), you could probably get it all done in 2-4 weeks. The longest part will be getting the letters of recommendation and diplomas sent to your recruiter (you can use same LoR as AADSAS), and getting your physical at MEPS. Depending on how busy MEPS is, you might be able to get in very soon; my recruiter got me in less than a week after I first met with him.

Here's a list of everything except the 61 page AMEDD form. It sounds daunting, but I did all of my AMEDD in a few hours of one day. You might want to start getting some of this stuff around now so it's ready as soon as possible.

__ Copy of Birth Certificate

__ Copy of Social Security Card (Must be signed)

__ Copy of Passport

__ Copy of all transcripts sent to address below (Undergrad and Higher)

__ Copy of all Diplomas (Undergrad and higher)

__ Official copy of DAT (Sent to address below)

__ Copy of AADSAS

__ Copy of dental schools applied to

__ Letter from Dean’s office at (university) stating what courses you are

currently taking and that you are in good standings.

__ 3 Letters of Reference (Professors or Direct Supervisors)

__ Motivational Letter (Why you want to be an Army Dentist) (Word

doc) <--- Can just modify personal statement from AADSAS

 

[Longcatislong]

I just finished meeting with my recruiter and signing the final thing today for the Army. He told me not to worry about getting it, as there are still ~70 spots left and usually only 100 - 120 applicants nationally for the 4 year army HPSP. Seems like a great deal that people are really missing out on. In addition to the perks Aqz mentioned above, you can even work on specializing or comprehensive dentistry, and have some of the best dentists and technology in the nation to help you with that. They also teach you how to run your own business when you start the program upon completion of dental school. You have your own clinic set up and sometimes work with other dentists. Hours are good too, usually 7:30 - 4:00 five days a week, and as an officer, you get to choose the locations you want to be stationed at.

My stats aren't even that great compared to some others, but he said with the stats I have, I should be fine so long as I get accepted.

You get to choose? I've never heard that. I thought that you go wherever the army needs you.

 

[Teeths]

You get to choose? I've never heard that. I thought that you go wherever the army needs you.

I don't know if this is really how it is, but from what I understand you get to pick your top 3 choices of what bases you would like to be stationed at and they'll most likely place you at one of those.

 

[ModifiedBass]

You get to choose? I've never heard that. I thought that you go wherever the army needs you.

"Choose" is used lightly here. I think you get to make a list (I don't remember if it's 3, 10, whatever) of where your top choices would be, but that doesn't mean you'll be stationed at any of those locations.