I have received the Army HPSP scholarship and an acceptance to TTUHSC. TTUHSC is one of the most affordable schools in the country. But HPSP would ensure that I graduate with 0 debt. Is there anyone who is also doing HPSP or knows someone who has that could give advice on this or share their experience? I have virtually 0 information on training or even how many years would need to be paid back. Thank you in advance
HPSP vs. debt at same program
- Thread starter tx1999
- Start date
I'm applying for HPSP and am WL at USUHS. Honestly, I wouldn't solely consider the financial benefit of HPSP. It's been about 3 years since I started talking to recruiters and gathering as much information about HPSP and I've come to the conclusion that military medicine is something I WANT to do. Yes, the financial flexibility is a huge plus, but it's not worth it if you believe that you will be sacrificing things when you are paying back your time. For instance, from what I've researched, it is very common to do an intern year and then straight to service via a GMO tour. A lot of specialties don't get approval for "straight through" training, so the GMO tour after an intern year is a possibility. If you take the $20k signing bonus, then you owe another 4 years on the reserves after your initial 4 year (assuming you're taking the scholarship for all of med school) obligation.
What it boils down to is what you value and how you see yourself practicing medicine after training. The military will make you serve dual roles as a physician and as an officer, which I think is such a great opportunity. Everyone is different though. Considering how low Texas tuition is, I don't think you'd graduate with an insane amount of debt that couldn't be paid off within a couple years after residency. Just some things to consider. Congrats!
What it boils down to is what you value and how you see yourself practicing medicine after training. The military will make you serve dual roles as a physician and as an officer, which I think is such a great opportunity. Everyone is different though. Considering how low Texas tuition is, I don't think you'd graduate with an insane amount of debt that couldn't be paid off within a couple years after residency. Just some things to consider. Congrats!
- Joined
- Jan 21, 2016
- Messages
- 12,470
- Reaction score
- 21,097
@tx1999 would you like me to move this to the Military Med forum? You'll probably get more answers there.
@ftrdr2021 had some good advice as well.
@ftrdr2021 had some good advice as well.
JohnJacobJingleheimer
Full Member
- Joined
- Oct 16, 2021
- Messages
- 303
- Reaction score
- 482
To me, it sounds like your main draw is the money. While my knowledge on HPSP is limited, what I do know is that, from a financial standpoint, it is a poor decision the large majority of the time. The government isn’t about to let you get the better end of the deal. You will pay them back with your time; time that, by your hourly pay rate as an attending, is going to be more valuable than the money you borrow. This is especially true when they’re paying for a school with relatively low COA.
Say you have 200k debt from medical school. You could EASILY pay this off in 2 years on an attending salary with the right spending habits. The 4 year commitment you owe to the gov’t cannot be done in 2 years. Throw in the fact that you’ll be a grown adult being told where you can live and when to be there, and that’s a yup no thanks for me. Again, the government is not going to give you money without make sure they get their worth. Them getting their worth means you paid it back in full and then some, one way or another.
Say you have 200k debt from medical school. You could EASILY pay this off in 2 years on an attending salary with the right spending habits. The 4 year commitment you owe to the gov’t cannot be done in 2 years. Throw in the fact that you’ll be a grown adult being told where you can live and when to be there, and that’s a yup no thanks for me. Again, the government is not going to give you money without make sure they get their worth. Them getting their worth means you paid it back in full and then some, one way or another.
Yes please! I'm new to SDN so I wasn't sure what the best place was.
- Joined
- Feb 27, 2008
- Messages
- 1,341
- Reaction score
- 181
Saw this after it got moved to milmed. Even without getting into the specifics I can garuntee you that everyone on this forum (milmed) will tell you that avoiding debt is not a good primary motivator for joining the military. (Though it happens a lot) In this case if you are a texas resident doing HPSP is a particularly bad idea because you aren’t even avoiding that much debt.
- Joined
- Jan 21, 2016
- Messages
- 12,470
- Reaction score
- 21,097
- Joined
- May 19, 2013
- Messages
- 218
- Reaction score
- 277
Current Air Force staff psychiatrist here who did HPSP. Echoing what’s already been said, if you’re doing it solely for financial reasons the absolutely DO NOT accept HPSP. If you WANT to serve in the military, then by all means accept it. Practicing medicine in the military is a different animal than civilian. You’re a physician yes, but as stated above you’re an officer as well and that carries with it an administrative burden that you cannot comprehend at this time.
You’re told you’ll “just be a doc but in the military”. I spend as much time in pointless meetings and extra paperwork that the military deems essential as I do in actual patient care. You also have to be aware on any patient how their specific medical condition and your treatment of said condition impacts the mission or the member's ability to perform their duties within the military.
You’re told you’ll “just be a doc but in the military”. I spend as much time in pointless meetings and extra paperwork that the military deems essential as I do in actual patient care. You also have to be aware on any patient how their specific medical condition and your treatment of said condition impacts the mission or the member's ability to perform their duties within the military.
- Joined
- May 19, 2013
- Messages
- 218
- Reaction score
- 277
You also are putting yourself at risk of being deployed or just being stationed in a terrible area for several years. You may have to delay your training and do GMO/Flight surgeon for a few years if you're not super competitive and/or trying to go for a super competitive specialty. All things to consider. Ultimately the question should be, do you want to serve in the military or not? Do not do it just to come out of school debt free.
- Joined
- Aug 5, 2011
- Messages
- 528
- Reaction score
- 398
Depending on your specialty and where you practice many civilian hospital systems will pay back student loans over 5 years or at least a lot of it. Especially in rural areas.
- Joined
- Mar 5, 2013
- Messages
- 228
- Reaction score
- 192
Hmm, yeah I agree with everyone else. Especially in Texas where school is so cheap. I’ll add a few soft caveats.
1) It is nice not having to worry about debt in medical school. Just one less thing to think about, and you drink your coffee without worrying about interest rates on said coffee.
2) it’s nice being able to start saving earlier. I already had a pretty decent amount of savings after residency and we all know the important of time in the market.
3) Sure, you can end up in horrid locations, but you can also end up in awesome ones. Kind of the luck of the draw on that one honestly. I have lived in some cool places i otherwise wouldn’t have.
4) Service is a kind of bonding and also creates a large social network for future jobs.
5) This is a big negative that likely will continue to worsen, but our medical bonuses are not and have not been adjusted for inflation in like 30 years. Given the current rates, our bonus has shrunk quite a bit relative to cost of living just over the last year this is likely to worsen making the pay gap between civilian and military even more stark…so yeah, definitely don’t do it for the money.
1) It is nice not having to worry about debt in medical school. Just one less thing to think about, and you drink your coffee without worrying about interest rates on said coffee.
2) it’s nice being able to start saving earlier. I already had a pretty decent amount of savings after residency and we all know the important of time in the market.
3) Sure, you can end up in horrid locations, but you can also end up in awesome ones. Kind of the luck of the draw on that one honestly. I have lived in some cool places i otherwise wouldn’t have.
4) Service is a kind of bonding and also creates a large social network for future jobs.
5) This is a big negative that likely will continue to worsen, but our medical bonuses are not and have not been adjusted for inflation in like 30 years. Given the current rates, our bonus has shrunk quite a bit relative to cost of living just over the last year this is likely to worsen making the pay gap between civilian and military even more stark…so yeah, definitely don’t do it for the money.
