My friend's brother wants to enroll in the army so he can go to med school

[shance]

HELP!

Can any of my fellow DUers provide some feedback, advice and/or articles that could help better explain the facts to my friend's younger brother that might make him rethink this decision.

It would be especially helpful if anyone has information pertaining to going to med school via the military.

Thanks so much.

[NC_Nurse]

1. Tell him to go to nursing school first

he can get it paid for by working for a year or two at the hospital where the school is. Then, if he still wants to go to med school he can, he'll be a better doc for having been a nurse, believe me. :)

[Name removed]

4. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[shance]

17. Great suggestion.

I have always heard nurses know as much, if not a little more than doctors do. :)

My father was a doctor and I think he was pretty unique in that he was pretty smitten and protective over the nurses on his team and it seemed very mutual.

[noamnety]

2. How does he feel about the war?

If he supports it, I wouldn't argue him out of enlisting. The military folks that are over there need some relief; I'd rather see it come from those who support the war than people who oppose it that are on an indefinite backdoor draft.

If he doesn't support it, that's a whole other story.

[seito]

3. I have a friend that works for the the Army

He said Army Doctors are getting deployed to Iraq as quick as they arrive.

[jmowreader]

5. Are you talking the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences?

http://www.usuhs.mil

That school's primary advantages are (1) they pay for you to go and (2) it's a very fine med school.

Its primary disadvantage is that you get to stay in the military for the rest of your life once you graduate.

They also require you to have at least a bachelor's degree before you're accepted, so if he doesn't have one he needs it.

[shance]

18. Thanks. You know I don't know what schools he's looking at

right now.

My friend mentioned he's looking at joining the military in order to go to med school. She called me because she knows I'm involved in anti-war issues and activism, and she wanted see if I had any information I could send her way that would make him rethink his idea and perhaps more clearly understand what will be asked of him. From the way the Administration is hiding everything, I don't think there's any way of receiving an honest answer these days as to the requirements, not to mention that the rules seem to change at the whim of the Administration.

[Pork Chop]

6. Maybe he should join the Texas Air National Guard

Then he could go AWOL and get his education payed for after four years of "service."

[Blind Tiresias]

7. It has advantages and disadvantages

First off, your friend has to get into medical school on his own, then he can apply for the military scholarship.
The biggest advantage is that there is no debt coming out of med school, b/c the military will pay your way and give you a ~$1000/month stipend. They will also pay for all of your books other school-related expenses like insurance etc. Another advantage is that you come out of med school with as a captain so you make far more money as a resident, than you would as a civilian (something like $75,000 vs 40,000). You also dont really have to deal with too much paperwork and insurance claims, b/c the military takes care of all of that.
The BIGGEST disadvantage is that you are theirs. They can tell you what residency they want you to pursue (military needs a lot on internal med and surgery), they tell you where you are doing your residency, and after your residency, then you have to do your service wherever they decide. The usual committment is 5 yrs in return for 4 yrs of payment. The airforce has a 2 yr program with 3 or 4 yr committment.
I (2nd yr med student) ultimately decided not to do it based on personal politics and the fact that I want to be able to choose my own destiny when it comes to residency and location. I would recommend your friend look into the navy or airforce first because those branches are not as stringent as the army. The airforce provides the least chance to actually be sent into a combat zone, b/c navy docs end up servicing marine ground units.
Seriously if you have any more questions abt it hit me up, because I was oh so close to signing a contract with the air force for this scholarship. Also keep in mind that, despite the fact that you get your commission right away, you dont actually serve until you finish med school (4 yrs), finish residency (at least 4 yrs), so the political climate might change by then. The only way this cannot happen is in a national emergency, they can call you up.

[NNguyenMD]

14. Hey my friend is in your year, do you know Ashley Miller?

[tlcandie]

8. Yes, he can get a first hand experience of med school

but on the table instead of on the floor... very subjective view that! Better take care or he might come away with scars and memories instead of a degree. :cry:

[shance]

19. No doubt you see through the smoke too.

Yes, he's young and Im assuming he doesn't have a couple of hundred thousand to get through med school, so of course he is looking at any and all ways he can pursue what he wants to do.

However, there is such a string attached to this training. Its certainly a carrot at the end of a string.

It's a string no child should have to be yanked by.

[karlrschneider]

9. Has he any college? ROTC? He might be able to get a commission..

.

[Stop_the_War]

10. Tell him he'll never get to study at med school if he ends up in a...

flag-draped casket!

[Laurab]

11. They would own him the rest of his life

but then, the rest of his life could be quite short if he joins the army. I think that was one of the "back door drafts" they've been considering - medical personnel. If he wants to live long enough to save lives, he'd be better off starting off as a civilian nurse, like others have said. I have to wonder about anyone who's considering joining the army for ANY reason at this point in time. Maybe when the neoCons are no longer in power, but not now...

[Lydia Leftcoast]

12. Does he have his bachelor's degree yet?

Has he taken his pre-med courses?

[shance]

20. I dont know if he has or not.

I will find out.

[NNguyenMD]

13. I go to med school, here's what I can tell you about paying for it...

Unless he and his family are financially disadvantaged, its most likely that he'll have to pay for med school like everyone else.

But there are some alternatives...

One of my friends goes to University of Tennessee at Memphis School of Medicine, and his tuition is paid by a trust by an African American medical society. This is only helpful of course if one, you're African American, and two if you're a resident of TN.

Ok another alternative, if your friend's brother has a passion for research in the biological sciences, he can get FULL tuition coverage if he successfully enrolls into an MD, Ph.D. program. The catch is, on average it takes 7 years to complete both degrees. So whatever you save in cash, you pay for with time, but if you love research and intend to make it a key part of your career, then its a great deal. Nearlly every single medical school gives full tuition coverage when you enroll into their dual MD, Ph.D programs.

Alternative three? He can join the national health corps

http://nhsc.bhpr.hrsa.gov/

This is a program that offers full loan or tuition coverage for each year you agree to serve in the service corp in an underserved community. These are often rural communities, but sometimes urban too, that are in great need for physicians. Loans are paid, and again you need to pay your dues with time, but what better way to do so that in serving in a community that needs doctors. The only drawback, if it can be seen as one, is that you are a bit locked in your choices of specialties. You can only do Primary Care specialties, Emergency Medicine, OB, and General Surgery I believe.

If I can think of anythign else I'll add more. Goodluck to your brother's friend.

PS: Oh yeah one more thing, don't forget to focus onto getting his home state university if he wants to save that tuition money. The tuition differential between my school, a state school, and the private school the next town over is near double.

To be frank though everyone ends up paying for med school, if its not with loans then its with service. It all depends on how you want to go about it. The National Health Corp is a great way to serve the needy without having the headaches of loans and financial worries on your head. I'd highly reccomend that if he's interested.

[shance]

21. Thanks so much for the info***That's very informative.

I will have my friend log on here at DU so she can see the good info posted here and she can ask some questions I don't know to ask.

The National Health Corp huh? That sounds interesting.

Lots of good recommendations. Will definitely pass this on and have them come over and ask some questions themselves.

Thanks again.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

15. "First, do no harm.."

A rather obvious contradiction with going to med school. Soldiers don't carry guns as fashion statements.

[independentchristian]

16. Tell him to stop living in the past

If he goes that route he'd be lucky to make it to '08.

[Hippo_Tron]

22. Student Loans?

Unless he DOESN'T plan on going into private practice, it's definately a good financial investment.

[0rganism]

23. Alternatively, he could consider the free medical school in Cuba

Cuba's Latin American Medical School provides 100%-free medical training to its students, and the US gov't recently waived the travel embargo for Americans who wish to study there, although this is by no means a sure thing. After graduation, the student is obliged to practice in a low-income area of his/her choosing, usually in the country of origin.

There are some obvious reasons not to go, but if he's already considering the military anyway, this is probably no worse. If money is the only barrier, this is one way around it.

Cuba is exporting doctors to the rest of the world, imagine that.

[ngant17]

24. Cuba's LASM

For a recent article on Cuba's LASM (Latin American School of Medicine), see a Dec. 23 article by Fitzhugh Mullan in the New England Journal of Medicine.

The LASM opened in 1999 and the first US students came in 2001, that group is planning to graduate in 2007. Currently the US medical student population in Cuba is around 75 people from 18 states, Wash. DC and Puerto Rico. Cuba has offered 500 free scholarships for US citizens. Its LASM school is located a few miles west of Havana on a former navy base. It will plan to graduate 1500 new physicians in August, and they are from all over the world.

Part of the idea behind LASM, I think, is to reduce some of the workload that Cuban doctors have had to perform in foreign countries, there are over 25,000 Cuban doctors in over 60 different countries, and when these LASM-trained doctors graduate and go back to work in their own barrios and undeveloped areas, that's one more Cuban doctor who can return back to his or her country and serve the Cuban people in their own homeland.

Rev. Lucius Walker of the IFCO (Inter-Religious Foundations for Community Organizing) has recruited students for the LASM. You should try to get someone to sponsor you into LASM, you don't have to speak Spanish, it doesn't have anything to do with money and you don't need to be sponsored by Rev. Walker. If you are poor (that's most of us, right?), you certainly won't be disqualified to go to LASM at all, in fact, that is probably the biggest asset in your favor. IMHO it is recommended that you be active in the altruistic social organization(s) of your choice, as it will be a plus in your favor.

EDITED BY ADMIN: COPYRIGHT

[Moderator]

25. ngant17

Per DU copyright rules
please post only four
paragraphs from the
copyrighted news source
and provide a link to
the source.


Thank you.


DU Moderator