Not at all, I'm glad to help! I was helped by many ahead of me so I'm happy to pay it forward.
I interview at the same place on the 15th.
we will just miss each other,
About deployments-highly unlikely because we are drawing down. Also because deployment is pretty much necessary for promotion, there are more people who want to deploy than there are slots for deployment. So...if you don't want to deploy, you probably won't deploy.... but this is the military so there are no guarantees. I had a friend who was stationed in San Diego as a psychologist for several years. The. Out of nowhere he was deployed to Iraq for a year. However he was very much far in the back. He returned just fine and is now back to his other PCS &knew hospital location.
I don't know anything about being on ready reserve after your contract years (3) are up. But I do know that as soon as your three years commitment is completed you can resign your commission and go to the civilian world. However if those are your intentions, the Navy does not want to give someone a scholarship who may not stay on for a career. As far as internship, ...internship for HPSP recipients is only in Portsmouth Virginia, NOT at any other ssites like Bethesda or San Diego. Internship for HPS candidates is guaranteed by the way,
so you will not be competing with other any appic applicants.
If you don't get the scholarship but still want to join, decide to join you can your last year of your graduate program through appic you can try to match for the Navy internship. These internships that are completed through appic are in Bethesda Maryland or San Diego. If you went that route you would essentially commission right before you start internship. If I remember correctly entering the service that way will obligate you to seven years rather than the 3 years on HPSP.
There is not a sign on bonus for each HPSP scholarship recipients. The HPS the scholarship pays $2100 stipend every month and all of your tuition books medical insurance and student fees. Internship is paid very well as an H PSP scholarship compared to other any pig internships. I believe you would be paid as an O2 Lieutenant Pay ( I believe but check w recruiter for sure). Either way it's a boatload higher than what a civilian internship pays, plus BHA (basic housing allowance ode gin what zip code you are in, but with dependent sits substantial like $1-2,000 )
If your spouse is not in board, I don't encourage you to accept the scholarship. Joining the military, you can expect a lot of unknowns. I've seen many military marriages fall apart because the stress and changes on the non-military spouse were too much for the marriage to handle. You really have to want to be an officer and see yourself as an officer first and only a psychologist second. If being an officer isn't what you want, you will make for a very unhappy psychologists. Psych is only a part of your role in the navy. Leadership is primary. I can't stress that enough. Life in the higher ranks (officers) can be a great opportunity for travel/exploring/adventure. But it does our a considerable amount of string on family. So if your wife is an introvert and has a hard time making friends quick, it may be harder on her than others who are more independent/extraverted. Nevertheless, being an officer there are a lot more perks (like 30 days off plus all federal holidays), but it is still not an easy life. It depends what you want and what your goals are. For me- I've always wanted to serve and live the adnevure. It also would help pay for tuition. It's a best match For my goals. So you need to know what you want. If you are doing HPSP for the tuition and stipend, hear me clearly: it is not worth it. If money is the primary motivator for this, do not apply. You will be miserable. You have to want to serve.
Deployment (specifically being stuck on a boat /carrier for 6 months) is possible on second, third assignments. But the good thing about Navy (and army) is that there is a lot of choice on where you want your duty station to be. If you want to be embedded in a unit (like marines), you may go/do what /where they go/do. If you want to work at a hospital, you may get an awesome place (navy is always coastal
They try to give you a 1st or 2nd choice. But there is always the risk of deployment. A new war can break out with new orders in a moment. FYI- You also will NOT be deployed from your first duty station assignment (which is about 1-3 years) because you are considered too "green" to be deployed on first assignment. You are "deplorable" until so much years/training has passed.
By the way, your "time ticker" doesn't start ticking until you are licensed. So if you get scholarship,be sure to do everything you can so the day you graduate you can pretty much be licensed (like taking the EPPP before graduation).
Read these publications:
http://www.wrnmmc.capmed.mil/ResearchEducation/GME/TheNavyPsychologist/TNP-5-2.pdf
http://www.wrnmmc.capmed.mil/ResearchEducation/GME/TheNavyPsychologist/TNP-6-2.pdf
Hopefully it can help you enter into the experience of a navy psych, even briefly to get a taste.
Hope this helps. Feel free to message me privately if you need more specifics.
PS- remember that navy psych is an anomaly to a medcom recruiter. We are so rare they hardly know how to help us. So be persistent in your questions to get the right answers. You can even tell your recruiter "I heard I should be Med cleared before my interview" which is totally true.
