Active Duty vs. Guard/Reserves - What is best?
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- Опубліковано 2 жов 2024
- Hey UA-cam,
I wanted to take a few moments and talk about some differences between active duty and guard/reserves. For the purpose of this video, I'm putting guard and reserves in the same category.
Both avenues are great in their own way, but there are some things to consider before joining.
Let me know what you think! Can you speak from experience on which is best and what worked for you?
Sir please correct me if I’m wrong but I understand that if you are special forces in the National Guard you deploy just as much or sometimes more than your Active Duty counterparts. Is there any truth to that? If that’s the case does it really leave time for civilian life as well? Also when your deployed do you act in a reserve role so just like backup if needed or are u basically front and center like the active duty guys. Please explain I’d really appreciate it. Thanks.
That's relatively accurate. It all depends on the unit and their op tempo. The are all on rotations. So what I am hearing right now is a deployment every 3 or 4 years. They use the special forces as much as they can. However, they're not typically 1 year deployments. You'll still have time for civilian life, but not every civilian job pairs well with part time service. Gov jobs work well, but self employment or jobs where you can't get covered easily can be very difficult.
If you're deployed, you are likely the primary group there. They deploy you in the rotation to allow for other units, including active duty to get a break.
That's how I understand it.
So if I am interested in going to college and getting my degree as a dentist now, I would not be able to go active afterwards with my degree and be a military dentist? I’ve been a little confused on which path to take, I’d like to be on track with my degree and I planned on going active after I received it. Thank you for this informative video
Hey Reese, thanks for the question!
You absolutely can go active duty after you get your education. You would be able to join as an officer, and if you're already a qualified dentist, they would be happy to have you.
However, here are my two cents if your ultimate goal is to be a dentist in the military.
Between undergraduate degree and dental school, you are looking at 7-8 years of schooling if I understand correctly. Unless you are able to make that happen debt free, I would highly suggest looking at options for beginning your career in the military now in the reserves or national guard.
This would allow you to get undergrad paid for or far cheaper than if you took out loans. Once you have your undergrad and are applying to dental schools, the Navy, Army and Air Force have the HPSP (HEALTH PROFESSIONS SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM) for those wanting to enter the medical fields. These scholarships can cover all of your dental school and pay in you the process. After completing dental school using the HPSP you will have a service obligation (likely 4-5 years).
If done this route, that would mean you graduate as a dentist with 8 or so years of service (because you've been in the guard or reserves and on military programs from the beginning), debt free, likely with money in the bank and a good job in place.
Let me know if you have any other questions.
@@jasonburds Thank you for the detailed answer! I was considering Reserves and going to basic in January if everything goes as planned; evidently covid-19 is beginning to spike once again, or at least here in Ohio it is definitely making a reappearance. I am not sure if they will rearrange ship dates because of the virus.
I financially cannot afford to go to school so I wanted to get the tuition assistance at the least; my cousin who served active told me to do active to get the Post 9/11 GI bill, however, I had wondered if I could volunteer for active duty within my 6 year Reserves contract period and get in those 90 days?
For the HPSP, I had considered it due to the fact that I was planning on permanently remaining active after graduating with my DDS (doctorate of dental surgery) and getting my twenty years. The pay and benefits in active duty Air Force are fantastic and if I were to get deployed, I would still be doing something I was passionate about. I have heard it is very rare to get this scholarship? Do my chances increase if I was previously enlisted in the Air Force?
Thank you so much for your help! Keep up the great work, your videos are very informative and helpful :) I hope you are staying safe and doing well during these crazy times.
@@reeseorr8259 My pleasure man! While covid can definitely cause issues, the military won't stop filling the ranks. They can't afford to have massive holes in their recruiting and training processes.
I think active duty is good for someone who isn't quite sold on what they want to do yet. DDS is a long road, and doing active duty first will only make it longer. There are ways to get school paid for through the reserves or guard and still volunteer for every opportunity to get those 90 days.
I would suggest shopping around. I don't know where exactly you are in Ohio, but consider looking into neighboring states and what their army and air guard education benefits look like. Reserve benefits are the same across the board (from what I understand), because it's federal, but the states run the guard, which means every state can have different education benefits. I know NH has the tuition waiver, which allows any guardsmen to go to a state school completely free, while another state may only have tuition assistance. Episode 20 of the Military Bottom Line Podcast might help with better understanding the decision and possibilities.
At this rate, you're making all the right moves so I don't think the HPSP will be too hard to get. Prior service will definitely help though. Just keep in mind, everything is more realistic than you may think right now.
If you have more questions, the best way to reach me is on IG @militarybottomline
@@jasonburds Thank you for all of your assistance! I'll watch that video next then. Thank you for saying that, it's hard to know if you're doing the right thing until it's already done. I don't have any support so it's hard to know if I'm on the right path for my education at the currently moment.
UA-cam is generally my only social media platform I keep, I tend to stay away from social media for the most part so I don't become dependent on it in my daily life; but if I do get instagram and have any further questions, I will let you know!
@@reeseorr8259 smart man. Most of the time social media is a waste of time and a distraction. Just leave comments on the videos if you have questions. I'll get back to you.
There are numerous ways to get to your goal line. I'd be happy to talk with you over the phone if you have more questions.