I went to UoP, $360k + and paid it off in three years of military service. I dare anyone to beat that. Do the military if you're worried about money at all. Personally, anything over $250 K, I would recommend HPSP (fulltime service and full scholarship). Anything 150-250K probably would be best to do National guard, but deployments are picking up again so you could be sent out for 6 months either way. 90% + of all dentists get out of the military as soon as their commitment is up. Most of us can tolerate it for 3-4 years after that, but why tolerate it after that unless there are clear benefits either monetarily (there are not) or through lucky base locations, such as getting stationed overseas in Europe or Asia in a desirable location.
I disagree that the military is easier to specialize in. It used to be like that in the past, but applications have become more competitive for traditional specialties. I have noticed a few people who were not accepted for specialties in the military, but subsequently were accepted into civilian programs. The military expects you to spend a few years inside and then do deployments, airborne/ air assault, EFMB, ect to boost your application. If you aren't interested in doing 'army'/ military things, then you have less chance. However, if you have stellar grades in the top 15% of your class, obviously you will easily get in to either civilian or military residencies.
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If you could go back, would you pursue the military scholarship?
