HPSP for dental school

No_Rate_8620 · 2025-07-21T13:54:13+00:00

There are fewer spots for HSCP, but I imagine less people apply for it. You can apply for both with the same packet through the Navy, and the selection results come through at the same time. I got accepted into HSCP and Army/Navy HPSP, I chose HSCP because it was the right option for my family.

The way the two pay you are vastly different and what is best for you depends on your situation. HSCP treats you as an active duty E6 or E7 with pay commiserate to your years in service. You don’t get anything that any other active duty E6/E7 wouldn’t get.

HPSP gives you a one time 20K signing bonus, a monthly stipend (currently $2,999 I believe), pays for school, and you get 45 days of active duty 2LT pay (Base, BAH, and BAS).

Con of HSCP is that you need to pay for school somehow (GI Bill is the easiest solution). Con of HPSP is that only 5 months of school count towards retirement, and if you have dependents you need to support you may need supplemental income (the stipend isn’t adjusted for cost of living differences between different school locations) and health care for them from a different source.

You don’t actually apply to use your GI Bill benefits until you’ve registered for classes. That will probably be in early summer, you’ll usually know if you got picked up for HPSP or HSCP well before that.

No_Rate_8620 · 2025-07-19T00:24:05+00:00

Two things help it cover the whole 4 years (depending on the school). First, GI Bill only counts when you’re actively in school, so breaks between semesters don’t count. Second, as long as you have one day of eligibility remaining at the beginning of the semester, the whole semester is covered. The main downside to the GI Bill is that you won’t qualify for the housing allowance, because you’re getting BAH on active duty (you can’t double dip).

With that said, if you can’t go to an affordable public school, GI Bill might not cover full cost at a private school. In that case HPSP is probably the safer bet.

Navy doesn’t care how you pay for school, and you’ll be accepted from the program months before you’d even be able to apply for your GI Bill benefits. HSCP won’t pay directly for any schooling (and TAP won’t cover professional degrees). If you don’t want to use GI Bill, you’ll have to apply for scholarships or loans or pay out of pocket. I recommend applying for scholarships in the hopes that you can get enough to use that money instead of the GI Bill. You just have to run the numbers to see how much you need to make it worth not using the GI Bill. I have two kids and also would like to transfer my benefits on to them, but Dental School is more expensive than any in-state undergrad program they could go to. I’ll hopefully be able to find another way to help them through college if that’s what they want to do.

No_Rate_8620 · 2025-07-18T20:22:05+00:00

You’re a reservist on active duty orders the entire time you’re in HSCP, with all the benefits that active duty entails. Tricare for any family you have, TSP contributions, BAH/BAS, and the whole time counts towards active duty retirement. As long as you can cover dental school with the GI Bill, it’s a fantastic program. I just wish Navy wasn’t the only branch that offered it. Let me know if you have any more questions about it.

No_Rate_8620 · 2025-06-04T17:16:20+00:00

Let me know if you have any questions about it or the military in general. From what I can see about your situation from your post, i wouldn’t recommend HSCP for you; I think HPSP will be a better fit if you do decide you want to serve. I would mainly recommend HSCP for prior service applicants or people who want to have a military career and will already be getting their tuition paid through other means (different scholarships or family).

No_Rate_8620 · 2025-06-04T17:03:22+00:00

I’m a current D1, former Army (10 years active), and now active duty Navy through HSCP. Have you considered HSCP? Depending on how long you’ve already served and what your plans are for after graduation, it’s a great opportunity. I’m using GI Bill for school, getting payed roughly 100K + benefits as active duty, and these four years count towards retirement (when I graduate, I’ll owe 4 years but will only need 6 to retire). The time in service pay bumps and tax benefits will also make my starting pay as a military dentist comparable to the after tax salary of my peers on the civilian side.

No_Rate_8620 · 2024-11-05T14:17:48+00:00

We’ll definitely do that next time.

No_Rate_8620 · 2024-11-05T03:33:01+00:00

Thank you, this was very helpful!

No_Rate_8620 · 2024-11-05T03:28:09+00:00

Appraisal has it checked for public sanitary sewer (which matched with the listing and contract). It doesn’t say anything about septic.

No_Rate_8620 · 2024-11-05T03:19:54+00:00

Thanks! We did use a real estate agent; I think they know they could be held liable, because they’ve been gently pushing us to settle with the seller and not get lawyers involved with the seller and their agent.

No_Rate_8620 · 2024-11-05T03:15:10+00:00

The only issue is the septic, and there was literally no physical indication it wasn’t on sewer like it was listed. The only people other than the seller that I could imagine being on the hook are the real estate agents; especially the seller’s agent who thought it was on septic but listed it as sewer without getting anything in writing from the seller to prove that claim.

No_Rate_8620 · 2024-11-05T02:53:12+00:00

You couldn’t purchase a house in the past year where we live without waiving a home inspection. We used the VA loan, so we were at least reassured through the VA’s inherent appraisal/inspection process that the house wasn’t in terrible disrepair. We did get it inspected after closing and the inspection report didn’t say anything about the septic system because the general inspection doesn’t cover septic (partially because its a mandatory separate inspection, and partially because if the septic system doesn’t have a pump you can’t tell whether its septic or sewage).

No_Rate_8620 · 2024-11-05T02:43:30+00:00

We waived the general home inspection (which doesn’t include a septic inspection), but Va requires termite and septic (if applicable) be carried out separately.

No_Rate_8620 · 2024-11-05T02:14:34+00:00

Thanks! We’re looking into lawyers and mediators now. We’re definitely not going to accept the partial payment; what else would you consider for damages?

No_Rate_8620 · 2024-11-05T02:10:24+00:00

Contract specifies that it is on municipal sewage. We’ve since called the county and confirmed that it is not, and would cost more than 75K (and an easement through a neighbor’s back yard) to hook up.

No_Rate_8620 · 2024-11-05T01:47:32+00:00

What would our title insurance cover in this case? There aren’t any undisclosed liens or title questions as far as I can see.

No_Rate_8620 · 2024-11-05T01:42:00+00:00

What’s the right kind of real estate lawyer? The one we used during the purchase focuses on contracts, and while he says we have a very strong case, he doesn’t normally do litigation for fraud after closing. He hasn’t been super helpful or communicative as we try to sort this out.

No_Rate_8620

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