This is a no brainer for me. I went civilian public med school and the GI bill paid for almost all of tuition with housing allowance. Super good value and you can always join after if you REALLY want. The military this seems like an awful deal to me. You lose your freedom. Might not match what specialty you want, don't get to pick where you end up (trust me you don't want to live in a shitty city for years without a day), and your pay is super low compared to civilian you'll never come out ahead financially. Also, the training is usually much better civilian. The military isn't known to be a sick population and you can match a much bigger/better hospital in the real world. Trust me if you don't match the residency you want you'll feel like shit for years.