Q for Military Guys

Hey guys...the military has offered to pay for the rest of my education and I'm thinking about letting them. Just wondering if anyone on here has actually done this (specifically in the Air Force or Navy as they have the best deals for what I'm doing) and what your opinions are about it. Thanks in advance.

The catch is usually that you have to be in the service for so many years. My older brother went to the Air Force Academy. He was obligated to be in service for five years after that. Also, even if you resign after that, you can be reactivated if I remember correctly. If you decide to go that route, go with the Air Force. They're the best.

yeah I have friends who have done it and you need to commit for usually 4 or 5 years at a minimium so be very careful... but as a Doctor at least you'll have more options and as long as you get the education you want from the schools you want it sounds like a good plan. Vets always have good benefits for life.

You might want to wait another year... the rules are very diffrent under this administration. Id hate to see you being sent to iraq, doing your "term", which is basically forever.

I am looking at the AF vs. Navy because the Army has a very bad rep of activating docs straight out of med school and not letting them get their residency in for a couple of years. The AF seems to be the best one on paper, but the navy has it's advantages. I'm going to lay out what I know right now and see if I can get some input from you guys.

Air Force:
1) Will only pay for 3 years b/c all of the 4 years scholarships are already taken and they are not retroactive, meaning I cannot get a 4 year next year.
2) Have a very good rep, from talking to people who have gone through this process, of not activating people before their residency.
3) Good residencies and good chances of getting one, some better than others
4) Can do a civilian residency if I want to, but it's a lot of paper work
5) 3 year service requirement when I finish residency
6) Slight chance of being forced into becoming a flight surgeon before residency (about 50/year) and not getting to do my residency for another 2 years
7) Pay $1900 a month while I'm in school and I owe them 4 weeks a year, which I can use as rotations so they count for school...during which I get paid as a capt.

Navy
1) They have a 4 years scholarship which is retroactive
2) 4 year service requirement
3) $20,000 signing bonus (huge diff)
4) $1900/month while in school...the rest of this similar to AF
5) higher chance of being activated w/o going through residency, but not by much
6) when I finish residency I will most likely be on a ship away from my family for some time, whereas with the AF they will most likely go with me
7) Good residencies

I guess the biggest diffs are the AF doesn't offer the signing bonus b/c they don't need to...their spots are already filled. And they only pay for 3 years, but they only require 3 years as well. Also where I end up when I finish my residency is big too. I still have to find out more about the residencies, locations, and likely places I'll go in 4 or 8 years. But that's about it....what do you guys think?

Yo, no noke... go Air Force. We treat our people MUCH better. The atmosphere is a lot more relaxed compared to other services. Most bases are ran more like businesses, and less like the "military." It's hard to put into words, but it's just different.

sounds like TGG gave you the best answer Cap'