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Brocimus said:
Very awesome! Happy birthday and congratulations! Do you mind sharing some of your stats with us? Good to know that list is moving!
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Hey,

Here are stats. Undergraduate GPA = 3.2, Graduate GPA = 3.4, MCAT= 29 (something, can't remember).

My numbers aren't that good but as far as the rest of my application, I have spent the past couple of years running and establishing "Scribe Programs" where students work in Emergency Departments and the doctors so have a lot experience. I'm also a non-prior and older candidate (maybe means mature? but doubtful) which I think helped out.

Maybe being a female helped out too? I know they have a pretty uneven ratio there so perhaps I was one of the few women on the waitlist.

That's all I can think of as far as my Stats. Hope that answers some questions.

Added note: I definitely had my DoDMERB physical done before I even interviewed, I got on it really fast because I knew it'd take long.
 
My birthday is in may....maybe they'll say "hey, its this guys birthday...let's throw him a bone and pick him up off the alt list"....maybe?

on another note, if i dont get picked up ill be at georgetown (M.S.), so we should all get a drink!
 
TheGoose said:
My birthday is in may....maybe they'll say "hey, its this guys birthday...let's throw him a bone and pick him up off the alt list"....maybe?

on another note, if i dont get picked up ill be at georgetown (M.S.), so we should all get a drink!
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haha that would be awesome. I'm at the georgetown program right now, it's pretty intense but I think you'll enjoy it!
 
As a fellow USUHS hoepful for the term starting august 2010 I would love to know what kind of timeline can I expect?

I will be applying June 1, 2009 and have a 3.97 GPA.

I will be taking the MCAT April 18 and have averaged 35 on the 4 AAMC practice tests I have taken so far.

I have volunteered at an ER for a year, have 35 hours of shadowing ER docs and have volunteered at the Disabled Student Cultural Center at my school for 2, where I am on the board.

I am also a published author, having cowrote an english textbook used in Denmark.

My dream is to get accepted into the Navy program and I am hoping that my grades, MCAT and overall package is enough to get an acceptance letter as quickly as possible.

For those that interviewed in Jan and just got acceptance letters, if its not too much to ask, when did you first apply? Also what kind of GPA and MCAT did you have?

From the catalogue I get the impression that USUHS cares the most about GPA, second most MCAT and extra curriculars as third, (one of the reasons I will apply, as my extra curriculars are a bit sparse).

I would appreciate hearing from those who went to USUHS or are in the school now.

If I can get a 35 or 36 on the MCAT and apply at midnight on June 1, what kind of shot do I have?

And to those Navy lovers such as me, what advice can you give in reference to ranking services?

I have my heart set on the Navy Med Corp, where I plan to be a FP for 32 years util they force to me retire.

But I get the impression that Army is the easiest branch to get into by far, with Navy a distant second and AF a pipe dream for all but the most brilliant.

Should I put down only Navy when I interview and hope to awe them with my superb grades and MCAT? Then if I don't get in just do Navy HPSP and get in that way?

Thanks to anyone who can help answer my questions.
 
adamg said:
As a fellow USUHS hoepful for the term starting august 2010 I would love to know what kind of timeline can I expect?

I will be applying June 1, 2009 and have a 3.97 GPA.

I will be taking the MCAT April 18 and have averaged 35 on the 4 AAMC practice tests I have taken so far.

I have volunteered at an ER for a year, have 35 hours of shadowing ER docs and have volunteered at the Disabled Student Cultural Center at my school for 2, where I am on the board.

I am also a published author, having cowrote an english textbook used in Denmark.

My dream is to get accepted into the Navy program and I am hoping that my grades, MCAT and overall package is enough to get an acceptance letter as quickly as possible.

For those that interviewed in Jan and just got acceptance letters, if its not too much to ask, when did you first apply? Also what kind of GPA and MCAT did you have?

From the catalogue I get the impression that USUHS cares the most about GPA, second most MCAT and extra curriculars as third, (one of the reasons I will apply, as my extra curriculars are a bit sparse).

I would appreciate hearing from those who went to USUHS or are in the school now.

If I can get a 35 or 36 on the MCAT and apply at midnight on June 1, what kind of shot do I have?

And to those Navy lovers such as me, what advice can you give in reference to ranking services?

I have my heart set on the Navy Med Corp, where I plan to be a FP for 32 years util they force to me retire.

But I get the impression that Army is the easiest branch to get into by far, with Navy a distant second and AF a pipe dream for all but the most brilliant.

Should I put down only Navy when I interview and hope to awe them with my superb grades and MCAT? Then if I don't get in just do Navy HPSP and get in that way?

Thanks to anyone who can help answer my questions.
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Advice: Relax. You're more than competitive for any medical school. If you turn your AMCAS in early (anytime in June) you'll get the supplemental about a week or so later. Turn this in anytime in june/early july and you'll be fine. I think one of, if not the most important thing, for your USUHS applicant is being able to articulate why you want a CAREER in military medicine. Secondly have a clinical advisor/mentor that is going to write you a recommendation lined-up. This is required for USUHS and they wont consider you for an interview until you have one. Its not that the Navy is any harder to get into than the Air Force or Army. If you apply early enough it wont matter that there are more Army slots. The way it works is you rank the order of preference of services and then how likely you would be to accept an appointment in each service. You would be stupid not to at least rank all 3 services. Why are you so set on Navy? How much do you know about navy medicine? How much do you know about it in comparison to army or air force medicine? Do your research.
 
By Clinical Supervisor I assume they mean in regards to my ER volunteering.

I have gotten my volunteer coordinator to agree to write that LOR after talking to the nurses and techs I recommended.

Will this suffice or do I need something else?

As to my motivation for mil medicine, its based on a deeply held philosopical belief that a civilized society is one which takes care of its citizens.

I dream of practicing the purest form of medicine I can find. Medicine where I don't have to worry about getting 10-15 patients in an hour so I can make my clininc enough billable hours.

Medicine where I don't worry about malpractice insurance or lawsuits.

Medicine where my patients for the most part understand what a healthy lifestyle is (and where non are homeless or undernourished) and don't come in 300+ lbs and complain of aches and pain, (that kind of think really pisses me off).

Medicine where I have more time to focus on each patient and where I can treat them with whatever I need, not what their insurance will cover or what they can afford to pay out of pocket.

In other words I don't want a job or a career, I want a way of life.

A way of life where, no matter how much office politics there is, or beurocratic red tape, (which exists every where including civilian med) at the end of my day I hold my head high knowing the world is a slightly better place for what I have done in it.

The Navy, ironically enough, offers the kind of society I desire to spend my life in. Though far from ideal it represents a world where everyone has a role and a duty to fulfill, a contibution to make and in return the Navy takes care of its own.

Homelessness, hunger, lack of access to education for you or yours, lack of healthcare and a lack of security in retirement, all problems that plague the civilian world have basically been eliminated in the navy.

Basic economic security as described above, is, in my view, the hall mark of a great society.

Especially in today's economy, when my own parents are near suicidal with worry about their family's finances I am more determined than ever to make sure my kids never know that kind of fear or dread.

I know there are many draw backs to military med, tech not as up to date, career motivated *******s who don't care about doing honest, quality work, lots of red tape, moving around every 3-4 years, stricter codes regarding dress and conduct.

But for a bloke who dosn't drink, smoke or do drugs of any kind, who dosn't mind doing the best he can with what he has in any given situation, (ie do your job well and follow the rules) I think the Navy will offer some fanastic life experiences and the kind of lifestyle I crave.

As for the difference between the services here is what I gather:

Bases: Army has oldest, Airforce the newest and plushest but some terribe locations, (ND, MT, AK), Navy has the nices locations, (biggest bases are Bethesda, ie Washington D.C) San Diego and Pearl Harbor.

Working conditions: Army has you in an army hospital or a field hospital, AF is basically all base hospitals and Navy has most docs on land in hospitals and clinics but has lots of spaces open for anyone who wants to give ship board service a go.

Personally, I am drawn to the Navy for several reasons.

1. Family tradition, my grandfather and father both served in the Polish Navy.

2. I love coastal living and the navy bases are all coastal.

3. Assuming I am still single when I become O-3, I would love to try a year or two on an aircraft carrier, just because it will be the only chance in my life to experience such a vessel or visit the locations I can briefly visit on shore leave.

I know that many people do HPSP only to pay for med school and almost all end up winging about it later and counting the days until their commitments are up.

It seems that most people who end up hating the navy want to be specialists in fields like specialty surgery or dermo and can't find a residency, end up in civilian residency, end up with 3 more years on their contracts and complain that their skills get rusty.

But I have talked to many Navy Docs who absolutely love the lifestyle and most of these are FPs, the path I plan to take.

Do I think its going to be a cake walk? No, I expect OIS to be hell, no matter what people say, I will train at home as if I will be doing Special forces training in the boot camp from hell.

When ever it gets tough I will remind myself that few could stand such conditions and take pride in thriving where others would fail.

When I report for duty, especially on a carrier, (if I am lucky enough to get one) the first month will be rough, having to memorize the layout, the schedule, sleeping with the thunder of the flight deck above you, ect.

But in the end I am confident that I can percevier through the tough times and develop the kind of mental and physical discipline that will serve me well later in life.

Along the way I will be part of a fraternity like no other, making friends and meeting people that I could only meet aboard base or ship.

I might even meet the women of my dreams who shares my zest for the kind of adventure the navy offers.

I look forward not only to the benefits of helping to take care of and heal navy sailors and their families, but later as I get promoted to O-6 and assume leadership roles in base and or ship medicine I will gain the kind of leadership experience that I would not be getting in the civilian world.

In the end I know that I could make more money and live a very cushy lifestyle in the civilian world.

But somethings are more important to me. As long as I make enough to support my family in relative comfort and save for the future, other things count more, like living in a society I respect for taking care of its own and the pride in wearing a uniform that represents serving both my country and humanity.

The proudest day for me will be when I get promoted to O-6 and I can call my mum and dad and proclaim that their son, who they struggled to support and give all the oppertunities in the world to, is not only a doctor but also a Captain in the US Navy Medical Corp.

After 32 fulfilling years of service to my country and my fellow man I will retire with a very comfortable pension of $85k to my dream home of Oahu, where I will practice medicine in the civilian world.
 
Holy jesus kiddo that's quite a manifesto . . . you sound like you're on the right track, but you do have some misconceptions about milmed . . ..

adamg said:
By Clinical Supervisor I assume they mean in regards to my ER volunteering.

I have gotten my volunteer coordinator to agree to write that LOR after talking to the nurses and techs I recommended.

Will this suffice or do I need something else?
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Yes, this would be fine. Better if you could get one of the nurses/MDs to wright the letter, but a volunteer coordinator is also sufficient.

adamg said:
where I don't have to worry about getting 10-15 patients in an hour
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You will have this worry as well in milmed (although you wont be 'billing' anybody). Some military clinics are very busy!

adamg said:
Medicine where I don't worry about malpractice insurance or lawsuits.
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true. But you're still accountable! You can't just screw up.

adamg said:
Medicine where my patients for the most part understand what a healthy lifestyle is (and where non are homeless or undernourished) and don't come in 300+ lbs and complain of aches and pain, (that kind of think really pisses me off).
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True. But don't forget you still have to treat dependents and retirees . . .many of whom come in all shapes and sizes.

adamg said:
Medicine where I have more time to focus on each patient and where I can treat them with whatever I need, not what their insurance will cover or what they can afford to pay out of pocket.
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True, you don't have to worry about cost. But you still have to justify why you want to order that MRI, etc etc. You cant just do anything you want.



adamg said:
The Navy, ironically enough, offers the kind of society I desire to spend my life in. Though far from ideal it represents a world where everyone has a role and a duty to fulfill, a contibution to make and in return the Navy takes care of its own.

Homelessness, hunger, lack of access to education for you or yours, lack of healthcare and a lack of security in retirement, all problems that plague the civilian world have basically been eliminated in the navy.
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There's truth in this but the picture isn't quite as rosy. See the Pros/Cons thread.

adamg said:
The proudest day for me will be when I get promoted to O-6 and I can call my mum and dad and proclaim that their son, who they struggled to support and give all the oppertunities in the world to, is not only a doctor but also a Captain in the US Navy Medical Corp.

After 32 fulfilling years of service to my country and my fellow man I will retire with a very comfortable pension of $85k to my dream home of Oahu, where I will practice medicine in the civilian world.
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If for some reason you don't get picked up by the MC, you should become a recruiter:laugh::laugh:

You've got good numbers, good application, just apply early.
 
not going to quote your whole message but,

I'd talk to some military docs about how they feel about "being able to spend time " in clinic visits. Maybe they're not billing hours, but they're limited to 15 minute appointments and working under commanders who keep track of how many patient encounters they do. You dont have to worry about lawsuits and malpractice to an extent. Dependents and retirees can definitely still sue you if you screw up. A lot of the problems that exist in civilian medicine exist in milmed, and sometimes to an even greater extent.

Not trying to say one service is better than another but there are differences. How do you feel about having your training broken up? Spending 2-3yrs as a flight surgeon or on a ship after your internship instead of finishing your residency. This a more of a probability, not a possibility, in the navy. I totally agree about base location, in the army we do sort of get the short end there. Just do your research so you can make a completely informed decision.
 
holy crap that guy is intense
 
What is so funny about what I said? As I understand it the AF has the smallest number of slots open at USUHS and so it most competative to get into the AF.

I have also heard that the AF bases are the newest and "plushest" for doctors to live on, so AF is typically everyone's first choice.

Of course I have heard AF docs rant and rave about abysmal primary care facilities calling primary clinics, "war zones", so I don't know if this is really the case.

In terms of locations, looking at the AF base locator I see that most are in the southeast, along the east coast and in the midwest/texas area.

2 are in AK, 1 in Hawaii, 1 in guam a handful in CA and 2 in fl.

The navy is almost all east coast, west coast and pearl harbor, no AK.

So there are plenty of nice locations to be stationed in Navy and AF but more of a chance of crappy location in AF.

Then there is the issue of personal cool experiences, Navy can deploy you on a carrier, AF you are stuck on the ground.

Does anyone know any specifics regarding Navy primary care vs AF primary care beyond what I have noted?
 
Hey guys and gals i'm new here. I am currently an AD CW2 OH-58D pilot with 4 years in, trying to get to med school. After a lot of thought I think that USU is the route for me. I graduated top of my class in military intelligence when I was enlisted, and the same for flight school. I still have to finish some of the science preqs, and my degree is a B.S. from Embry Riddle. My undergrad GPA is a high 3.7 and I still need to take the MCAT. I think I'll be able to get in, but am worried about getting the letter of approval from the Army. I still owe a bunch of years of service time since flight school cost over a Mil. to the government. Also I still maintain a Top Secret clearance and have yearly flight physicals so from what I've read that will exclude me from some of the hoops most people have to jump through.

Does anyone have any experience getting the LOA from the Army, if so are they sticklers if you owe time?

I am not planning on applying until 2010 for the 2011 class, but just want to know if anyone else has been in this situation.

Any help is appreciated!

-Eric
 
inteleric1983 said:
Hey guys and gals i'm new here. I am currently an AD CW2 OH-58D pilot with 4 years in, trying to get to med school. After a lot of thought I think that USU is the route for me. I graduated top of my class in military intelligence when I was enlisted, and the same for flight school. I still have to finish some of the science preqs, and my degree is a B.S. from Embry Riddle. My undergrad GPA is a high 3.7 and I still need to take the MCAT. I think I'll be able to get in, but am worried about getting the letter of approval from the Army. I still owe a bunch of years of service time since flight school cost over a Mil. to the government. Also I still maintain a Top Secret clearance and have yearly flight physicals so from what I've read that will exclude me from some of the hoops most people have to jump through.

Does anyone have any experience getting the LOA from the Army, if so are they sticklers if you owe time?

I am not planning on applying until 2010 for the 2011 class, but just want to know if anyone else has been in this situation.

Any help is appreciated!

-Eric
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Your LOA is branch dependent so they have to make an assessment of their needs and whether they can afford to let you leave. I had no trouble getting mine with a 3 year commitment remaining. It has to be signed by your branch chief so if you want to save yourself some time and a possible MCAT retake if they tell you they're not gonna let you out for a couple years I'd talk to your branch manager and get a read before proceeding.
 
Quick question....what are AF students wearing at USUHS for a duty uniform? Since BDU's are still authorized for wear until late 2011, are there still people wearing them, or has everyone gone to the ABU by now?

Thanks
 
Anyone know if they'll let you in with a profile? I have a permanent no run profile. Anyway I would think it would be difficult to do their pre-med school officer course with the profile. Though I have already been through WOCS, and WOBC.

Anyone know anything about this?
 
Got my conditional acceptance call today for Army!!!!!!!! (3/7)
 
Cadams1 said:
Got my conditional acceptance call today for Army!!!!!!!! (3/7)
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Congratulations! So, it was a straight acceptance, right? You weren't placed on the waitlist before? Meaning there was still a spot open?
 
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When do we do the PRT and Weigh-Ins (Navy)?

Do the other services do their eqivelant at the same time?
 
Hi all!

I am a 4th year student at USUHS about to graduate (woohoo!!) and just wanted to offer my help for any that have any questions.

Also, for those new to the area who will be trying to find housing, there is very little military housing available, and thus you get your BAH (Basic Allowance for Housing) to help pay for rent/mortgage. Right now it is like $1600/mo if its just you, or about $1900/mo if you have dependents (wife/kids).

Dont forget one of the pros of coming to USUHS (not the only pro however) is the financial benefit.

If anyone has more questions about renting or buying a house in this buyer's market, just let me know. It's a great time to buy and you can rent out other rooms like I did and give your fellow classmates a deal on rent while you get most/all of your mortgage paid for (like I did).

I bought a house and even with the decrease in sales prices, Im not doing too bad and will still try to sell my house (or rent it). If anyone is interested in a great starter home in a great location (close to USUHS and the two hospitals you will work at- Walter Reed and National Naval MC), just check out the link below. Use my realtor and I'll give you part of the commission that would have gone to your realtor! I wont be able to check this website that often though, so if you are interested just call the numbers on the website.

http://www.spicerrealestate.com/prop_detail.aspx?property_id=272

Thanks!
tantomed
 
TheGoose said:
@ ods
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I am not going to ODS. I am asking about when we are in school. It is my understanding that this is done every 6 months. I just want to know when. Thank you.
 
Coastie2Doc said:
I am not going to ODS. I am asking about when we are in school. It is my understanding that this is done every 6 months. I just want to know when. Thank you.
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They are done fall and spring. You will likely have a practice PRT during the inprocessing time. Your first "real" PRT will likely be in late September or October and then the Spring will be around March/April timeframe.
 
I finally after 5 months of working on it (was conditionally accepted in nov.) got my medical waiver to USUHS. So now that I finally know it's really an option I'm having a tough time trying to figure out if I should go to USUHS or Georgetown (via HPSP). I know there are quite a few threads comparing USUHS and HPSP so sorry for adding another discussion here, but any thoughts could be really helpful.

I'm a senior now and so am only 22 years old, and the prospect of more or less planning the next 24 years of my life (via the USUHS track) when I haven't yet been alive that long is daunting, and with HPSP I guess I'd at least have the option to opt out earlier. I come from a military medicine family so I probably understand the life a little better than someone with no military background, but still am having a really hard time making any headway on a decision.
 
drcarter77 said:
I finally after 5 months of working on it (was conditionally accepted in nov.) got my medical waiver to USUHS. So now that I finally know it's really an option I'm having a tough time trying to figure out if I should go to USUHS or Georgetown (via HPSP). I know there are quite a few threads comparing USUHS and HPSP so sorry for adding another discussion here, but any thoughts could be really helpful.

I'm a senior now and so am only 22 years old, and the prospect of more or less planning the next 24 years of my life (via the USUHS track) when I haven't yet been alive that long is daunting, and with HPSP I guess I'd at least have the option to opt out earlier. I come from a military medicine family so I probably understand the life a little better than someone with no military background, but still am having a really hard time making any headway on a decision.
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my 2 cents would be to do hpsp given your comments above. there seems to be a little more flexibility that way, and you seem to have a good deal of the additional knowledge that usuhs provides.

i often like to think of where you would rather spend 4 years, but they are almost in the same city, and residencies would both be in mil hospitals.

are you accepted into the same branch for both? that could be a deciding factor as well.... 🙂
 
itsmymango said:
my 2 cents would be to do hpsp given your comments above. there seems to be a little more flexibility that way, and you seem to have a good deal of the additional knowledge that usuhs provides.

i often like to think of where you would rather spend 4 years, but they are almost in the same city, and residencies would both be in mil hospitals.

are you accepted into the same branch for both? that could be a deciding factor as well.... 🙂
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thanks for the input. both would be Navy (my family would kill me if i did anything else).

does anybody have any input regarding residency placement between USUHS and HPSP students?
 
drcarter77 said:
I finally after 5 months of working on it (was conditionally accepted in nov.) got my medical waiver to USUHS. So now that I finally know it's really an option I'm having a tough time trying to figure out if I should go to USUHS or Georgetown (via HPSP). I know there are quite a few threads comparing USUHS and HPSP so sorry for adding another discussion here, but any thoughts could be really helpful.

I'm a senior now and so am only 22 years old, and the prospect of more or less planning the next 24 years of my life (via the USUHS track) when I haven't yet been alive that long is daunting, and with HPSP I guess I'd at least have the option to opt out earlier. I come from a military medicine family so I probably understand the life a little better than someone with no military background, but still am having a really hard time making any headway on a decision.
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Man, I should really be pushing you to do HPSP, given how heavy the waitlist is this year, especially if you're Navy! 😀 But I can't do that in good conscience.

You have to really ask yourself, what's the source of your hesitation? If it's the timeline, as you described above, then here's some things to consider:

1. It doesn't have to be a 24-year track, or even a 20-year one. There are USUHS grads who get out after they've fulfilled their 7-year AD. At that point, you'd probably be at your 12- or 13-year mark in the military. (If you do an additional 7 years in the reserves to make 20, you can collect retirement at age 60, just FYI). Why would someone get out at the 12- or 13-year mark and not go for the full 20? There's plenty of reasons. You may have better civilian opportunities, better pay , etc . . . Anyway, my point here is that it is not necessarily the case that going to USUHS = a military career (full 20 on active duty).

2. The delta in payback HPSP vs USUHS is 3 years. Though this seems small, I've been told not to underestimate this difference. A lot of things can happen in 3 years, especially as you get older (marriage, kids, etc). So this delta may pursuade you to go HPSP . . . .but you also have to think about what kind of medical training you'll be getting into (what kind of doctor you want to be), which I know is hard (if not impossible) to predict. B/c as an HPSPer, say you do neurosurgery or IM then some IM specialty, you could end up having to pay back just as much time as a USUHS student.

3. Resid: Not nec the case that you'll be allowed to do a civ res as an HPSPer, so don't let them hook you on that selling point.

Gosh, it sounds like I'm convincine you to go to USUHS, what am I doing!?

If the source of your hesitation is more than just the timeline, if you're also uncertain about milmed in general, then that's a much bigger dilemna.
And if you can't make up your mind come 5/15, would suggest you take another year to think about it. In otherwords, go to G-Town, think about it some more, then do the 3-year HPSP route (or go completely civ then come in through FAP).

good luck!
 
Like DrMetal I probably shoudl say just go HPSP to get you off of the USUHS list, especially considering that my future right now hinges on getting off of that Navy waitlist and I cannot apply again next year (NROTC). But what you really need to ask yourself is which school would you feel most comfortable attending for the next four years. If the answer is Georgetown, go there. If the answer is USUHS go there. Just make sure wherever you decide to go that you will be happy there because you'll be there for the next four years.

(And obviously if you still have reservations about military medicine I would heavily advise agains going to USUHS or taking the HPSP till you are sure its something you could devote a nice chunk of your life to)

Anyway both schools are great so you are really in a good position. Good luck and congrats!
 
drcarter77 said:
thanks for the input. both would be Navy (my family would kill me if i did anything else).

does anybody have any input regarding residency placement between USUHS and HPSP students?
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I have spoken to 5 physicians who did Navy HPSP because I was very interested in it, and they all told me to expect to do a GMO tour before you go through your residency training (you may not, but you probably will). Out of the 5, 3 of them ended up doing a 4 year GMO tour as a flight surgeon to do their payback and then entered residency after as a civilian (in other words, they got out because they did not enjoy the GMO tour, which would be something you should look into to see if it is something you would want to do because there is good and bad with doing these tours, and I am sure you can find a thread discussing this). The other 2 ended up doing a 2 or 3 year tour and then did a military residency and have remained in the service for their career. I do not have a lot of info on how likely it would be to do a GMO tour from USUHS, whether that is something that would dissuade you or not.
 
wow thanks again for all the input everybody. I'm definitely sold on military medicine. I didn't mean to make it sound like my family was pushing me into it or anything its always been something I've wanted to do for at least a while. I've very familiar with the benefits and the payoff for retirement as my uncle and father both did HPSP and my dad stayed in the 20/24 and my uncle got out at his first chance. I'm hoping to do a general surgery residency and am fine with a GMO tour should that be what is required of me but would like to sub-specialize as well.

So my thinking with the usuhs timeline was at like 5 residency 2-3 fellowship, 7 payback, and the 3 year additional option to have the 6 year reserve commitment fulfilled. So that equals 17-18 right there, in which case I don't think there is any scenario that would financially justify getting out and throwing away career retirement benefits.

HPSP doesn't have the reserve requirement to the best of my knowledge (please correct me if I'm wrong) so that would put you at 11-12 years in before you could get out, which I could see you being able to make up for financially if you felt that you didn't want to be in the military any more and went into private practice.

thanks again for everyone's advice, I'm planning on going to the second look day and hopefully i'll be able to reach some sort of decision and be able to give one of the spots to somebody else soon enough, sorry to the people that i'm making wait in the mean time.
 
freubr said:
I have spoken to 5 physicians who did Navy HPSP because I was very interested in it, and they all told me to expect to do a GMO tour before you go through your residency training (you may not, but you probably will). Out of the 5, 3 of them ended up doing a 4 year GMO tour as a flight surgeon to do their payback and then entered residency after as a civilian (in other words, they got out because they did not enjoy the GMO tour, which would be something you should look into to see if it is something you would want to do because there is good and bad with doing these tours, and I am sure you can find a thread discussing this). The other 2 ended up doing a 2 or 3 year tour and then did a military residency and have remained in the service for their career. I do not have a lot of info on how likely it would be to do a GMO tour from USUHS, whether that is something that would dissuade you or not.
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I here this from everybody on the board, that basically going straight through training is a possibility but there's also a very real chance you wont.

Does it matter if you're an awesome student or not? If you have a very high USMLE score, good EC's and good grades are you pretty much guaranteed to get a residency (one of your choice)? Or is doing great in school no guarantee of a residency?
 
NoMoreAMCAS said:
I here this from everybody on the board, that basically going straight through training is a possibility but there's also a very real chance you wont.

Does it matter if you're an awesome student or not? If you have a very high USMLE score, good EC's and good grades are you pretty much guaranteed to get a residency (one of your choice)? Or is doing great in school no guarantee of a residency?
Click to expand...


With respect to this, I was told that, as it is in the civilian match, the better you do in school, the more likely you will match in military residencies. So it can't hurt your chances to do well in school. But the military only has so many spots for residency, and it doesn't seem like that will change. It is competitive and if you don't match, GMO tour is where you are headed. However, if you are an incredible student and want to specialize in an area in which the military does not have much training, or it is an area of need, it is possible that they would let you out to do a Civ residency (only for HPSP). But this would take a lot of convincing, I am told. My question would be, "do USUHS students have a leg up on HPSP students in terms of matching in military residencies since HPSP does technically allow the option of going to civ residencies if necessary?"
 
freubr said:
However, if you are an incredible student and want to specialize in an area in which the military does not have much training, or it is an area of need, it is possible that they would let you out to do a Civ residency (only for HPSP). But this would take a lot of convincing, I am told. My question would be, "do USUHS students have a leg up on HPSP students in terms of matching in military residencies since HPSP does technically allow the option of going to civ residencies if necessary?"
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The caveat for the first part about wanting to train in something the military doesn't have is that it also has to be something that the military wants. If you want to train as a underwater basketweaver but the military has no use for an underwater basketweaver then they won't send you to train as one.

The second part what I have heard is that USUHS students don't have a leg up on the match except for the fact that they have done their clinical rotations in these hospitals so they can better tell where they want to go. (and possibly make some connections before matching) If someone else has better information please do provide it.
 
NoMoreAMCAS said:
I here this from everybody on the board, that basically going straight through training is a possibility but there's also a very real chance you wont.

Does it matter if you're an awesome student or not? If you have a very high USMLE score, good EC's and good grades are you pretty much guaranteed to get a residency (one of your choice)? Or is doing great in school no guarantee of a residency?
Click to expand...

If you're Navy no, it probably won't matter. If you're Army or Air Force it will.
 
SirGecko said:
The second part what I have heard is that USUHS students don't have a leg up on the match except for the fact that they have done their clinical rotations in these hospitals so they can better tell where they want to go. (and possibly make some connections before matching) If someone else has better information please do provide it.
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Techinally USUHS dont have any advantage. Realistically we probably have a slight one just because we do have more time to get to know the residents, staff, and program directors at hospitals we're interested in. If you're interviewing with a PD, who happened to go to USUHS, and you went to USUHS that at least gives you some common ground already in the interview. So techincally there is no advantage, we dont get extra points from the selection board or anything, but we do spend a lot more time in military hospitals/can do research with military faculty. So the opportunities to make connections are much greater than only doing 1-2 ADTs a year.
 
According to one of the Deans at USU that I spoke with, though we aren't given any point advantages, we do have a upperhand in that we are forced to do a military residency and that is factored in when choosing between USU and HPSP candidates...current as of about three weeks ago.

WBP
 
mslall said:
If you're Navy no, it probably won't matter. If you're Army or Air Force it will.
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Why is that? Is the Navy just terrible for matching into any residency? Does being a Navy doc give you least chance of going straight through in training?

What i seem to read over and over again in these threads is that the Air Force doc's are the least likely to go straight through training. Almost everything I read, from or about AF doc's, is Flight Surgeon this and Flight Surgeon that.
 
NoMoreAMCAS said:
Why is that? Is the Navy just terrible for matching into any residency? Does being a Navy doc give you least chance of going straight through in training?

What i seem to read over and over again in these threads is that the Air Force doc's are the least likely to go straight through training. Almost everything I read, from or about AF doc's, is Flight Surgeon this and Flight Surgeon that.
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The GMO is of the highest prevalence in the Navy. There might be a chance of going straight through in FP or Psych, but there's almost no chance of matching into a competitive or surgical specialty without doing a GMO or flight surgeon tour first, at least in the Navy. Since there are so many GMOs in the navy you'd be competing against all those returning GMOs who will almost always have more points on the selection boards rubrick. GMO rate is about 85-90% in Navy about 25-30% in AF, and about 15-20% in Army.

Being a stud in school and on your USMLE's definitely helps. It is definitely possible to match straight through in competitive specialties in the Army and AF. Doing a GMO is still a very real possibility in those branches, but not NEARLY as high as it in the navy where almost every one does an operational tour before completing a residency.

I think the reason you see more from Air Force docs is that those going into the navy generally expect to complete a GMO tour, so they dont whine or complain about it. I think a lot of the discontent from those who get placed as flight surgeons in the air force didn't expect to be placed in that position (either they were unaware of the possibility or applied to specialties where the really weren't that competitive). I'm not saying that all Flight Surgeons weren't competitive for some specialties; its totally possible to be competitive and still not match. As long as you know the option exists and would be ok with it, it shouldn't be an issue.
 
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Hey, I was wondering if USUHS students get the same $20K signing bonus that HPSP students do. I thought I remembered someone saying we did but I'm not exactly sure.
 
no, you get a nice salary instead
 
pkchax said:
Hey, I was wondering if USUHS students get the same $20K signing bonus that HPSP students do. I thought I remembered someone saying we did but I'm not exactly sure.
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yeah, no signing bonus for us.
 
dwb8p said:
Yeah, no $20k bonus, but you get roughly 2x the monthly pay, free healthcare, and a ton of other active-duty benefits not in HPSP.
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do you not get any health benefits in HPSP?
 
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Yeah, USU doesn't give the 20K sign-on bonus, however, my recruiter told me that the HPSP bonus won't be granted until after completing MedSchool. You get all the individual benefits for doing HPSP (they reimburse everything if it isn't covered upfront) but nothing for family members except life insurance if something happens to you.

Also on the note of residencies, USU is training career military physicians so they want you to train in a military residency. HPSP is slightly different in that they realize that most of HPSP scholars are using the program to get through MedSchool so they allow them to apply to civilian residencies in addition to military residencies. This means that USU students are typically selected over HPSP students for military residencies, however, if a position is available and HPSP students obtain a military residency, they have to withdraw from the civilian ones. (again, according to my HPSP recruiter)

Back to acceptances though....anyone from January or February interviews hear anything yet??
 
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