USUHS vs. EVMS

[john6365]

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Hello everyone

I am having a hard time choosing between USUHS (Navy) and Eastern Virginia Medical School (EVMS) and would like to receive some advice.

Here are pros and cons of each school:

USUHS
Pro
- tuition-free education
- location (Washington D.C.)
- relaxed atmosphere
- more international opportunities and experiences

Con
- 7 year commitment after graduation (total of about 15 years in military)
- Uncertainty in availability of residency spots
- Deployment
- Military medicine (less freedom in practicing medicine)


Eastern Virginia Medical School
Pro
- location
- relaxed atmosphere
- no commitment after graduation
- brand new facilities

Con
- OOS tuition
- focus on primary care
- less recognized when it comes to residency matching


I plan to specialize in surgery and have a little interest in primary care. I have no military experience and have very limited knowledge about military medicine after SDN research and conversations with physicians. I think USUHS would provide me with unique experiences and opportunities in surgical fields but at the same time, I am not sure about committing such a long time in military. On the other hand, EVMS is a civilian medical school but I am concerned about financial burden and residency.

I guess the simple question is whether to choose military medicine or civilian medicine when comparing money (financial burden) vs. time (7-year commitment).

Thank you all in advance.

 

[TheMightySmiter]

I looked into military medicine for a while, and ultimately it's a huge personal decision--we can't even begin to make this choice for you. If you don't know much about military medicine, it's time to learn real fast (two days until May 15th) so you can make an informed decision. The biggest thing about military medicine is that you sacrifice a lot of future choices for the free tuition and stipend. You aren't guaranteed a residency in the area of your choice, you aren't guaranteed to live in any locations that you choose. Do you have a family or significant other you are planning to stay with long-term? A lot of military bases are in really crappy areas. Navy has the best base locations, but a lot of naval physicians have to take a year as a GMO (General Medical Officer) before they start residency--this puts you back a while in terms of education. You may be stuck with a lot of overseas assignments. This sounds cool, but, again, a lot of these are in bad locations. If you want to travel as a physician, you can do that without the military, so don't let that be the deciding factor. Another big difference in military medicine is that although you CAN match into a civilian residency, you are usually required to choose a military residency first if there are available spots in the specialty of your choice. Also, after fulfilling your entire commitment with the military, you will probably be in a similar financial spot even if you'd taken out all OOS loans for med school, because military attendings tend to make less than civilian ones.

There are definitely some positives to military medicine. You don't have to worry about traditional insurance billing and whether your patients can pay for their care, because it's all covered by the government. You also get to treat some of the most deserving people in the world. And if you like the military culture, you won't have a problem with it. Still, this choice ultimately has to be about whether or not you think you'll like military medicine. Don't let the scholarship and stipend influence this choice, because financially things will be a wash in ten or fifteen years. You should only go to USUHS if you truly think you'll love doing military medicine. If you're only considering this for the money, DON'T DO IT.