Hsps Program and the Air force!!!! Help Me

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Mz_fifi90

5-Year Member
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May 28, 2012
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Ok well I am a senior in college and I want to go to med school. So I was thinking to join the army and get the hsps scholarship for school. So I did my research and I would like to know a few things.

1. Does this scholarship provide a housing allowance? Medical..etc? I know they do give a $2000 stipend and $20000 sign up bonus

2. Since I am enlisting with my degree, what would my rank be? And would I get
Compensated according? Based on my rank? Or does that not apply to me bc of the scholarship?

3. what happens during basic training for me?? After I finish I would come back for school correct?

4. Can some please explain gmo? And I read that you can do a min of 3 yrs in return for your each of your scholarship years, is that true? And do I have to do my residency at the army or a civilian base?

5. If I join right now while in my senior year of college would I be able to get a waiver in order to complete it with my degree? And wOuld I still get benefits and pay? I am kinda in a tight spot right nOw

Thanks for all you help!!!! :)
 
Mz_fifi90 said:
Ok well I am a senior in college and I want to go to med school. So I was thinking to join the army and get the hsps scholarship for school. So I did my research and I would like to know a few things.

1. Does this scholarship provide a housing allowance? Medical..etc? I know they do give a $2000 stipend and $20000 sign up bonus

2. Since I am enlisting with my degree, what would my rank be? And would I get
Compensated according? Based on my rank? Or does that not apply to me bc of the scholarship?

3. what happens during basic training for me?? After I finish I would come back for school correct?

4. Can some please explain gmo? And I read that you can do a min of 3 yrs in return for your each of your scholarship years, is that true? And do I have to do my residency at the army or a civilian base?

5. If I join right now while in my senior year of college would I be able to get a waiver in order to complete it with my degree? And wOuld I still get benefits and pay? I am kinda in a tight spot right nOw

Thanks for all you help!!!! :)
Click to expand...

You probably won't be able to get many of the answers you're looking for from a forum geared towards people applying to the Air Force Academy. Have you talked to a recruiter?
 
Last edited:
I moved this to a more appropriate part of the forum.

Stealth_81
 
Mz_fifi90 said:
Ok well I am a senior in college and I want to go to med school. So I was thinking to join the army and get the hsps scholarship for school. So I did my research and I would like to know a few things.

1. Does this scholarship provide a housing allowance? Medical..etc? I know they do give a $2000 stipend and $20000 sign up bonus

2. Since I am enlisting with my degree, what would my rank be? And would I get
Compensated according? Based on my rank? Or does that not apply to me bc of the scholarship?

3. what happens during basic training for me?? After I finish I would come back for school correct?

4. Can some please explain gmo? And I read that you can do a min of 3 yrs in return for your each of your scholarship years, is that true? And do I have to do my residency at the army or a civilian base?

5. If I join right now while in my senior year of college would I be able to get a waiver in order to complete it with my degree? And wOuld I still get benefits and pay? I am kinda in a tight spot right nOw

Thanks for all you help!!!! :)
Click to expand...

Well, you happen to be a bit lucky as I can provide at least some insight into your questions although in reality you really need to be talking to an officer recruiter if you are about to head to medical school.

1)There is no housing allowance except for the 45 days a year active duty training where you will get full active duty pay.

2)Semantics here: you will not be enlisting, you will be commissioned. If accepted into the program you will be commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the Army Reserve.

3)"basic training" also known as OBC for the Army is a 6wk course (may be 4wks, can't fully remember) that occurs in Texas. You will most likely do it just before starting medical school.

4)GMO: General Medical Officer. Basically it is a position that you could potentially take after you complete your first year of residency being the doctor for an aviation battallion or similar. You could be a Captain and would be assigned to a specific operational unit. Not all that common for the Army, very common for the Navy. The pay back is one year per one year of scholarship NOT including time in internship/residency. So the minimum time in after graduating medical school is actually more like 6-8 years. Your residency will most likely be completed at an Army hospital. There is a small subset of people who are sent for training in the civilian "world" but I wouldn't count on it.

5)You cannot simply "join" the HPSP program. It is a competitive application and in 99.9% of the time you will not be selected without an acceptance letter to medical school in your file. No matter if selected or not your benefits will not begin until either you start medical school or complete officer basic.
 
Wanting to go to med school and going to med school are two different things. As the Dr. said above you need that acceptance before anything happens. When you do get it, the nitty gritty details will fall into place.

My buddy got an ed delay out of ROTC and had outstanding job experience (Johns Hopkins surgical first assist), great MCAT scores + GPA average and has heard nothing back from schools besides a few secondaries. Just saying that padding your curriculum vitae is probably more important than worrying about HPSP. However, for the army that made it seem like once you got your acceptance HPSP was a sure thing. Not sure if that has changed or not.
 
Our older DS is in med school on an AF HPSP.
He talked to the recruiter during his senior year of college and the recruiter walked him through a bunch of stuff. The recruiter told him minimum score he had to meet for MCAT to be qualified with his GPA, plus be physically qualified (DoDMERB). Then all that was left was getting into med school.

DS met those minimums but he didn't get in med school first try -- was waitlisted at 3 schools. So, he got a job at a hospital as a medical scribe that year and reapplied. Got in 2nd try.

Most of the paperwork he'd done with the recruiter the first time was still valid other than different dates and new signatures. DoDMERB physical was still good.

Once he had letter of acceptance from med school it was about 2 months before the HPSP paperwork came through and then DS was commissioned 2nd Lt in AF reserve (for him happened in March).
He did 5 week COT (commissioned officer training) at Maxwell AFB in AL (went in June).
http://www.au.af.mil/au/holmcenter/OTS/COT-RCOT/InboundCOTTrainees.asp

He just completed first year of med school; this summer he has 45 days active duty, of which 2 weeks will be spent at Aerospace Medicine school. Not sure what he is doing the other 4 weeks.

DS also applied to USUHS - got early interview first time applying. Second time they lost part of his application and he got a late interview which was basically for a waitlist spot. Would have chosen USUHS over HPSP if he had been offered an AF spot. At USUHS you are active duty the whole time in med school -- so would get housing allowance, etc.
 
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