To become a doctor in the military, should I join the Reserves as a medic first?

2018-10-17T08:58:19-04:00

Hi, first question here. I am a high school senior who is heavily considering military service of some sort, preferably as a doctor in the Army. I plan to apply to HPSP or USUHS after my undergrad. However, an Army recruiter got ahold of me through my school and asked me to consider joining the Army Reserve as a medic during college, claiming that it will provide me with extra experience and financial aid that will help me on my way to med school. They also said that I can fullfill my active duty time from the enlistment contract after I get commisioned. However, I talked to two teachers that were officers in the military who told me to not trust recruiters. Also, especially with the high attrition rates of prospective medical students, my parents would kill me if I stayed as enlisted. With that said, would the benefits outweigh the costs of joining the Reserve as a medic first, or should I wait until I finish my undergrad and apply directly to military med school? Additionally, if I were to choose the enlisted Reserve route first, how much extra time would this take?

Response by CPT Private RallyPoint Member made Oct 17 at 2018 9:54 AM

2018-10-17T09:54:15-04:00

My 2 cents: wait until you graduate and then apply to USUHS. Get any other scholarships you can as im assuming you have a solid GPA and SAT/ACT scores. I have a good number of friends currently at USUHS and while being prior service certainly helps get in, I've watched a lot of buddies with good intentions stay enlisted (I almost did the same).

Best of luck!

Response by SFC J Fullerton made Oct 17 at 2018 11:25 AM

2018-10-17T11:25:48-04:00

Honestly, with your goal of becoming a doctor, an enlistment in the Army Reserve as a combat medic is going to do little in terms of assisting you with medical school. The college money is a drop in the bucket for what you will need, and the medic training (civilian equivalent to an EMT) is not going to exempt you from the required courses you will have to take in pre-med. There are paths to becoming an Army Doctor, but an Army Reserve medic isn't really one of them. The good news is that those paths can significantly cover the expenses of medical school, whether up front with scholarships or on the back end with student loan re-payment. You would just owe the Army active duty time, followed by some reserve time, as a commissioned health care professional. Good Luck.

Response by 1SG Private RallyPoint Member made Oct 17 at 2018 6:19 PM

2018-10-17T18:19:08-04:00

Enlist as a medic, No. Join ROTC, yes.

Response by SFC Private RallyPoint Member made Oct 17 at 2018 7:57 PM

2018-10-17T19:57:53-04:00

You should join either the active or reserve component and use the Tuition Assistance to pay for your undergraduate. Being a medic is irrelevant, just focus on college in order to meet the prereqs for medical school. The active component has a program for Soldiers with bachelors to attend a post bacc program at USUHS for two years to prep for med school application.
The reason you should enlist first is because you will be viewed more favorably than your civilian competition because you've shown you're adaptable to military life already. There is no extra time added or slowing you down by enlisting first. The only part that will slow you down is the period you are in basic and AIT. You can just as easily be a fueler or supply clerk, it's only one weekend a month and two weeks over the summer. The best part is that you can finish your undergraduate without owing any money.

Response by MAJ Private RallyPoint Member made Oct 17 at 2018 8:34 PM

2018-10-17T20:34:11-04:00

I would look into ROTC for Pre-Med or Biology. If you had good grades in High School and did well on the SAT/ACT, you should consider college first. Then if you are accepted to medical school while in your junior-senior year in college, you could request an education delay and receive a full scholarship to medical school with residency training in the military. We also have a very competitive program at the Uniformed Services Health Science University (USHSU), this is where the Army, Navy and Airforce train a good number of our physicians. The benefit is that you earn 2LT/ENS pay while in medical school (about $48K per year of pay) and all tuition is paid for by the service. Time as a medic will it help you become a Physician, but it could help you decide if Medicine is your calling. Good luck.

Response by SFC Private RallyPoint Member made Oct 18 at 2018 11:29 PM

2018-10-18T23:29:11-04:00

At your age I had similar plans and did my research. I’m going to give you the facts of MY experience and then my opinion. I planned on going to West Point, but chose ROTC because I already had my AA and wanted to graduate sooner. It didn’t go according to plan. Someone convinced me being a Special Forces Medic would make me more competitive for Med School. Recruiter convinced me being a Medic was the best way to ensure I would be an SF Medic after I earned a green beret. Recruiter wasn’t completely forthcoming with me and I stayed a Medic. Struggled with Chemistry so I figured I would attend the IPAP (PA Program) and then go to Med School later. Didn’t go as planned, went Reserves to go to Nursing School and work towards being a Nurse Practitioner. Going back to college in my mid 20s was harder than I expected. Realized being a Medic was what I loved, being an NCO was my calling.

I’m not a Doctor and at this point have no desire to do anything other than what I do now.

Key Takeaway: Life Changes

My Opinion: If you know for sure that you want to be a doctor, follow that dream. Focus on that. If you can afford school without the Army, finish your Undergrad and go to Med School. The Army will still be an option for you after you become a doctor. Trust me, the AMEDD Recruiters will find you. Once you’re in, whether it’s as a Medic or a Cadet, things can get in the way and becoming a doctor COULD become more difficult and MAY not be an option the longer it takes to get there. This could be good or bad depending on whether or not you’re like me. Weigh your options.

If my daughter were asking me these same questions, I would tell her to find a way to get into Med School on her own and THEN join the Army. If you have additional questions I will be with Dozens of Army Reserve Doctors in about 30 hours and they’ll be more than happy to provide additional guidance.

P.S. You’d probably make a good Medic and enjoy the hell out of it. Make the decision for you, not for your parents.