Army or Airfoce...

[TMJ0000]

Hey guys.
Anyone knows what the difference between army and airforce is?

I'm trying figure out where to apply. The army recruiter is giving a bunch of negative stuff about the AF but I don't believe this guys. I think that whatever he says it's kind of biased.

What do you guys think?

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[Lemming]

I'm working with an AF recruiter. What kind of negative stuff does your Army recruiter say about the AF?

 

[MaxAnn]

Most folks think the AF is the best of the bunch as far as quality of life. I have heard this from people in the Army and the Navy respectively. I think the Army recruiter is trying to shy you away from applying with the Air Force. I know the Army has to hit their recruitment goals like everyone else, but I think it is unprofessional for the recruiter to talk bad about another branch to an applicant. This goes on all the time I am afraid.

Dude, I would apply to both if you are unsure and take the one that you think will best fit your long term goals. Having been in the Army, I can attest that the Army is more physical than the AF or Navy, but that doesn't mean that you will get less time to train.

To put it another way, the mentality of a soldier would be somewhat different from the mentality of an airmen. Pick the one that best resembles yours and go with it since that will make your time in more productive.

 

[virginiabeach]

Navy

 

[Truedat]

Come on, the AF is the way to go. They have such a better quality of life. Just walk on to an AF base vs. an Army base. The difference is night and day

 

[USAFOMS]

A lot of similarities in paperwork.

Unlike the Army and Navy, Air Force AEGD residents get certified in IV sedation and can actually do it at your next base. The Army and Navy don't.
As far as i know, only oral surgeons in the Army and navy can do IV sedation

 

[SNOZBERRIES]

The Army generally deploys younger officers (Capts). The Air Force tends to deploy those with more clinical experience (Maj/Lt. Col/Col).

 

[UOP_Dentist]

Come on, the AF is the way to go. They have such a better quality of life. Just walk on to an AF base vs. an Army base. The difference is night and day

I'd have killed myself if i gone green. Air Force is the way to go!! Less deployment opportunity (good or bad, depending on how you look at it).

 

[pauljeekim]

what's so bad about the army?

as an officer, isn't it about the same in all the branches?

 

[MaxAnn]

The Army is the most physical of the branches, but some people enjoy that sort of lifestyle. If you go Army, it is not the end of the world. You are not indebted to the Army for life. You could just make up your mind to grind out for the remainder of your contract and then drive on with your life somewhere else.

Seriously, there is good and bad in the Army, but I would rather do it than have to deal with loans for 20 to 30 years. That is just an insane amount of debt that is not often realized by borrowers until after school is over.

 

[Tooth]

From what I understand, whether true or not, the AF is perceived as the most desireable of the three branches. This is apparent by the recruitment problems that only the Army and Navy have. My only complaint of the AF is that their recruiters tend to be lazy because they meet their recruitment goals without even trying. If you want one to push paperwork for you, you're going to have to beg them to do it over and over again. On the flip, the Army and Navy will gladly push your paperwork through without problems.

 

[Kunsan]

Air force > Navy > Army

 

[ArmyPreDent]

Go Air Force! just trust me.

 

[UOP_Dentist]

Actually, the Navy usually meets their goal, but usually at the last minute before the next fiscal cycle. The Army is the only one that cannot convince enough people to accept their scholarships.

Yes, the Air Force is perceived to have the best lifestyle for dentists. The education opportunities are the best. I worked at Lackland AFB in the dental residency programs for a year and was extremely impressed with them. More so than what I have seen with the Navy programs. That us what made my decision harder to make between AF and Navy. In the end, it came down to the fact that I have been in the Navy for 8 years and enjoy the Navy, so that outweighed more than the plush AF life.

Navy DDS,

are you a dental student, resident, or dental officer? Were you prior enlisted? And are you seeing it as a career? Sorry for the many questions. I'm debating on whether i should pursue AF as career or get out to pvt practice. Loans are overwhelming and i didn't have the benefits of HPSP

 

[MaxAnn]

How would you compare Navy dentistry on a ship as compared to Navy dentistry on land? I am curious to find out your answers. You seem well-informed.

 

[MaxAnn]

I understand. Can you give any highlights about Navy dentistry at sea? I think it could be helpful.

 

[Deep Impact]

Here is the shore side...two versions

My GPR days:
0700 "quarters"-short meeting to discuss admin issues and discuss cases (in-house patients, emergency cases, etc.)
0715-1130 patients
1130-1300 Lunch+30min PT (exercise time)
1300-1600 patients
I was on call every 4 nights since it was 4 of us in the program. Our program was very busy with trauma. We thank the macho Marines.

My shore duty abroad:
0700 quarters
0715-1130 patients
1230-1600 patients
I'm on call every 3-4 months. Not bad at all. We have had guys deploy to the gulf from our clinic in the past two years.

I've been to many Navy clinics and most stick with the schedule above. It's pretty much a 7-1600 job.

We have a few dentists who came off ship tours. All of them have positive things to say about their experience.

But if you've been away from Navy Dental for a few years, you might not grasp what's happened/happening to the Navy Dental Corps...merger with the medical side and the shortage of general dentists are the main issues. (Let me qualify: shortage of general dentists who actually do dentistry. I was told that there are too many "admin" type dentists who sit up top of the food chain). Also, the promotion rate for the past two years for those in zone for O-5 has been very low. If you want to spend 20 years+ doing dentistry in the military, Air Force may be the place to be unless the Navy starts promoting more dentists. It's not a difficult decision when you look at the facts:
AF says over 90% will get promoted to O-5, where as the Navy will promote less than 50% in zone(below zone)...

HPSP is a great deal and the military is an awesome place to get started (in my case anyhow).

 

[shamrock2006]

Deep Impact-
How long have you been w/ the navy? Do you think you'll stay in long-term? Do you think you're getting as much as experience as your civilian counterparts? I'm Air Force..just finished up training the other week..so i'm locked with them. I'll start school this coming august. I'm tryin to get as much feedback as possible from many sources regarding what its really like in military dentistry...esp. from those who have been/are there.

 

[SNOZBERRIES]

I agree with Deep Impact. The military is an excellent way to learn and learn fast. He is also right about the promotions. In the AF, we have guaranteed promotions up to Lt. Col (O-5). These are all based on a time line. If you don't "automatically" get to this point, then you must have really screwed up somewhere. Although we have a shortage of dentists (8-10%) below manning, we are not quite as short as the Army and Navy. Here is my typical day in the AF clinic. It takes a little more effort to make O-6, but if you do your time and professional military education pretty much everyone makes it.

0730-1130: clinic. I'm at a small base so I do everything in my clinic time. I am usually double booked with sick calls and exams just like our civilian counterparts. If you were at a bigger base, you might spend an entire half day doing only sick calls or exams.

1130-1230: lunch

1230-1630: clinic

Tues and Thurs we PT from 0700-0800. Clinic starts at 0830
We have required Med Group/Dental Training on Thurs afternoons.
PT 1530-1430 Fri afternoon.

I do IV 3rds all day Wen. and 1/2 to all day Fri.


Right now there is only me and my commander. He only sees patients in the morning, so you can imagine I'm pretty busy. We will get another dentist 1 Sept after his residency. I am on call every other week.

Even if you don't make it a career, you will be more than ready for the fast paced civilian lifestyle. A military dentist would be an asset to any private practice due to your time management, comprehensive procedures, and quickness you will develop in the military.

 

[Deep Impact]

Snozberries, are you OMFS? Or are u qualified/credentialed to perform 3rd molar extractions with IV sedation in the AF? That's pretty cool if they let you do that.

Yeah, that promotion rate...I actually know a guy who was passed over for O-5 twice in the Navy. Then he transferred to the Air Force and made O-5 in the next cycle. I wonder there is such a big discrepancy in the promotion rate among the branches.

 

[SNOZBERRIES]

I have been accepted to OMS but I haven't started yet. I was credentialed to do IV sed and fully impacted 3rds during my AEGD.

It doesn't make much sense not to promote dentists to at least an O-5. It would help in retainability, in my opinion.

 

[Deep Impact]

Deep Impact-
How long have you been w/ the navy? Do you think you'll stay in long-term? Do you think you're getting as much as experience as your civilian counterparts? I'm Air Force..just finished up training the other week..so i'm locked with them. I'll start school this coming august. I'm tryin to get as much feedback as possible from many sources regarding what its really like in military dentistry...esp. from those who have been/are there.

I've been in exactly 3 years. I got into OMFS residency, so yeap, I'll be around a bit longer. Navy has been very nice to me and my family. Despite the growing pains in the dental corps, I've accomplished my goals and met my needs. Can't speak for my colleagues though.

I have been accepted to OMS but I haven't started yet. I was credentialed to do IV sed and fully impacted 3rds during my AEGD.

It doesn't make much sense not to promote dentists to at least an O-5. It would help in retainability, in my opinion.

Hey, I'm starting OMS also. Haha.

 

[BQuad]

what's so bad about the army?

as an officer, isn't it about the same in all the branches?

I know this thread is kind of old, but I just joined the Forum, and it doesn't look like anyone in the Army replied. Here's the good, bad and ugly.

The good about the Army:
AEGD programs are good, but not as good as the Air Force from what I've read here.
Good chance of getting into residencies
Helpful mentors even outside of residencies

The Bad:
Deployments, plan on deploying, now for 15 months. Dentists are in relatively safe environments, not out doing missions, a dentist hasn't been killed in any war since Vietnam. But you are still away from home. Specialists deploy for 6 or 7 months.

Senior officers are getting close to retirement which gives some a I don't care I'm getting out soon attitude. Junior officers are unfairly burdened with deployments, even though many senior officers have been in 20 years without ever deploying.

The Ugly:
After my AEGD program I volunteered to go to Korea so I could follow on to Alaska where my wife was living. Once I was in Korea, I was told that in order to go to Alaska, I would need to extend my obligation for 16 months since Alaska is considered an "overseas" assignment. I was in Alaska for exactly 1 year before they sent me to Iraq and now that I'm over here it looks like I'll have to stay for 15 months. To top it off they sent 2 other general dentists here on 6 month tours because they had "short notice" with no consideration of the hardship time I already spent away from my wife. So of the 4 years I've been in I've been away from my wife for 3 (granted the first year we weren't married yet).

Take it from an Army dentist, Go Airforce! 3-6 month deployments, same benefits. The only reason I did Army was because they gave 4 year HPSP's and the AF didn't. Looking back I would have gladly paid for the first year of dental school to go Air Force instead.

Never trust recruiters about anything they cannot show you in writing.