Question about MDSSP/STRAP

[spidey066]

Current medical student here considering doing MDSSP for the Army Reserves. Lets say I did MDSSP for 3 years while in medical school (which would entail a 6 year obligation starting after residency). Now lets say I get accepted to a 3 year EM residency and decide to take STRAP for all 3 years. That would add an additional 6 years of service to my obligation (12 years of obligation total), however my MDSSP obligation gets reduced 1 year for every 1 year I am enrolled in the STRAP program. So I would owe 3 years of MDSSP obligation time rather than 6. So my total time of service owed would be: 3 (from MDSSP) + 6 (from STRAP) = 9 years total. Now here's the part where I am confused. Do those 9 years start as soon as I start residency? (meaning I would owe only 6 years of service after residency if I did a 3 year residency) Or do the 9 years start after I have completed residency? The reason I ask is because I've been doing research on the forums on SDN and have seen conflicting answers so I was hoping to get this cleared up.

I've been having trouble finding the Army Reserves website that details the specific rules of MDSSP/STRAP but I stumbled upon this on the National Guard website (I'm assuming NG follows the same rules as Army reserves regarding MDSSP and STRAP but please correct me if I'm wrong)

Here it says that your MDSSP obligation starts at the beginning of residency if you do STRAP right after MDSSP.

I also found this powerpoint document attached to a thread started in 2014 by coolrunnings22 about National Guard MDSSP/STRAP. Again, I'm assuming the rules regarding the NG and Army Reserves MDSSP/STRAP programs are the same. In that powerpoint document I found this slide:

This diagram also seems to show that MDSSP obligation would start at the beginning of residency. The thread containing the powerpoint file can be found at the following link:
MDSSP / STRAP / HPLRP and my situation

I was hoping someone currently in the Army reserves could clear this up for me. Thank you in advance.

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[DMBandFan86]

I believe the 9 years start after residency.

 

[spidey066]

If I were to do the national guard instead of the army reserves then would it be just the 6 years after residency?

 

[spidey066]

bump

 

[notdeadyet]

The 9 years start after the completion of residency. The graphic you're pointing to has been around many years, but a few years ago they changed the policy that MDSSP + STRAP payback starts after conclusion of residency.

There is no difference in this policy (including payout benefits and payback obligations incurred or there timing) between the ARNG and Army Reserve.