This is a response I posted to a statement made on a thread about military pharmacy and why people do it and get out. I think it is applicable here as well.
Quote:
Originally Posted by kkelloww
Probably the reason most want to get out is because of the pay difference. It is significant. ~65K vs 100K.
Actually, no. The reason most get out is because they do not want to be in the military. If they do think there is a huge pay difference it is because they are uninformed. I am an active duty military officer and my wife is a Pharm D (civilian hospital pharmacist). If the planets align I will start pharmacy school in the fall of 07. I speak to people frequently who either are currently military pharmacists or want to be. The biggest objections I hear are the pay differences and the risk of deployments.
Here is the reality on the money issue. Military pay AND BENEFITS are structured drastically different then civilian pay. Military pay consists of salary, food allowance, and housing allowance. Housing allowance is about 20% of your total pay and is not taxed (that means no fed, state, social security, Medicare, etc). Calculate how much greater your current take home pay would be if 20% of what you make had no deductions. You do not pay for medical (including ALL prescription drugs), dental, or vision insurance. You automatically have term life insurance for free (I think it is $200,000) and you can opt in for more (I pay $30 a month for $400k on me and $200k on my wife, try matching that in the civilian sector). If you get hurt, there is no disability insurance at 60% of your pay...you draw full pay, and there is no fee for that either. You do not pay into a 401K plan because of the military retirement plan-After 20 years of service you draw a retirement check each month that is 50% of your base pay when you retired (if you enter service as a pharmacist at the age of 26 you can retire and start drawing a pension check at 46), you can earn up to 75% for 30 years of service. In addition you have post privileges to the commissary (we pay about 25% less then a grocery store, figure out those savings over the rest of your life), PX, and a wealth of recreational facilities at any military base (it costs me $16 to play 18 holes of golf on saturday morning). My wife does make more money then I do of course, but what actually gets deposited into our checking accounts is not drastically different. Oh by the way, if you do get deployed you have NO DEDUCTIONS for taxes, social security, medicare, etc from ANY of your pay for the duration of the deployment and you get hazardous duty pay and family separation pay on top of it.
Most pharmacists who get out of the military do so because they do not want to be in the military and entered for the wrong reasons. It is easier to say I am getting out for the money then to say I made a poor decision or I didnt know what I was getting into. Many new pharmacists see the $40,000-$60,000 of debt relief that the military offers and dont look beyond that. It is not symptomatic of pharmacists, many other career fields in the military that offer signing bonuses see the same problems. I guess what I am trying to say is, make sure that you realize that as a military pharmacist you are IN THE MILITARY. It is a tough and stressful environment. You cant quit, call a headhunter, and start a new job on Monday if you dont like it. However, it also offers things that you will not get as a civilian pharmacist like camaraderie, tradition, history, and pride. You will be caring for the heroes of this country and the aging veterans of the greatest generation our nation has ever seen. At the end of the day you know you provided your patients with great care and you did your part to protect our freedoms and our way of life. Good luck on your decision!
