stationing in Asia

[ddschris]

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hi all!
I was wondering if i get to choose where to be stationed when I sign up with military force. i would love to have a chance to work in Asia, especially Japan or south korea, after i am done with my school. thank you

 

[BQuad]

You get to put in a wish list, but in the end it's where they need you. That said, South Korea shouldn't be hard to get. Japan is tougher, but it's supposed to be nicer. There is also Okinawa and the Navy has a spot down in Guam as well.

 

[ddschris]

thank you!
How long does one get to stay in one location?
If I get to stay in South Korea or Japan more than two years,
i will definately consider going for Military scholarships!
thanks

 

[BQuad]

South Korea is generally a one year tour if you go without your family, 2 years if you go with them, but in Korea you can usually extend for another year with no problem. I believe Japan is a 3 year assignment.

Also there is a chance of doing a continuous overseas tour, which means going to Korea then to Japan next or vice versus. Typically if you volunteer to go to Korea for a one year tour, they will try to give you a choice when you leave. A friend in Korea got to go to Japan for his next assignment. If you are in Korea and then go to Japan though you will probably need to extend your commitment to the Army to complete the full 3 years.

One last thing, if you are really set on going to Korea or Japan, I would recommend playing hardball with your recruiter and get them to to make your first assignment Korea or Japan as part of your contract. The recruiter will have to call Human Resources and talk to the "branch manager" who is in charge of assignment. Don't let him tell you "you''ll get any assigment you want". The Army is hurting for dentists so bad, you probably have a good chance of that working. They do it all the time for soldiers reenlisting or dentists coming straight to active duty. Just make sure you get it in writing and as part of your contract. Also there is no guartantee that you couldn't get deployed from Korea or Japan. So far it has only happened to 1 dentist over there and that was a few years ago, but you never can tell what will happen in this world.

Good luck.

 

[BQuad]

Korea is 1 year without your family, two years with, and Japan I believe is 3 years with no family restrictions. You can usually extend an extra year in Korea if you want and so far only 1 dentist I know of has deployed from Asia and that was a few years ago. You never can tell what the future holds though.

If that is your main concern, I would recommend playing hardball with your recruiter and telling them you won't sign the contract unless you can be guaranteed Korea or Japan as your first assignment (go for Japan first, if they say no, try for Korea). The recruiter will have to contact the "branch manager" in charge of dentists assignments to get an answer for you, don't let him say you'll have no problem getting your choice, instead make sure you get it in writing from the branch manager. They do this all the time for soldiers reenlisting or for dentists coming on active duty, so it is not really out of the ordinary, just usually HPSP applicants don't know enough to ask about it. Truthfully, you shouldn't have any problem getting Korea, but better safe than sorry.

Good luck.

 

[blankguy]

If you do get stationed in Asia, are there any training opportunities? Do you get to work alongside military dentist from those countries?

 

[BQuad]

In general you will not work with any dentists from those countries, though in Korea there are KATUSA (Korean Augmentees to the US Army) who are serving their required two years of military service with the Americans. They may be your assistant, sterilization or x-ray techs.

There are only 2 positions in Korea with the Infantry Division, there you may be able to do military training, like Expert Field Medical Badge, ranges, and more time in the field.

 

[KDBuff]

i don't think you're going to get any guarantees from your recruiter, to be honest those guys usually don't even know anything about the HPSP program or what military dentistry is like.

you need to look into which services have commands in different countries as well. based on what i've seen, you would have no problem getting an assigment in japan with the navy. that is, if you wouldn't mind going to okinawa...mainland may be a bit more difficult, but I would think still possible. also, if you end up on the mainland, it would most likely be attached to a ship, meaning you would be deployed from that location-not as likely from okinawa where you would be stationed with the marines.

i know the army has opportunities in south korea, my classmate is there right now. not really sure what else is available in the other branches.