NewDayThe HPSP army is one of the scholarships offered to students. The Army has many scholarships and programs available for healthcare professionals to help them graduate with little or no debts or strain in their pocket.
One of these scholarships is the Health Professions Scholarship Program (HPSP).
This scholarship helps candidates secure their medical career while they render committed service to the Army Medical team, whether in the United States or abroad. This article will explain more about the HPSP.
What is the HPSP Army?
The Health Professions Scholarship Program (HPSP) Army is a scholarship program available to healthcare workers to access total tuition fees and a monthly stipend.
This scholarship can be accessed by both medical students currently studying and those with future ambitions who have been accepted into accredited institutions.
Students or candidates under this scholarship program do not have a different curriculum or medical school experience from others; they attend not just military schools but any civilian school.
There are no uniforms nor deployments during school periods; however, scholarship holders must complete military electives.
Who Can Apply for the HPSP Army?
HPSP Army is for people who wish to pursue a career in:
- Nursing
- Dental
- Optometry
- Veterinary
- Counselling and Clinical Psychology
- Medical including Osteopathy
Benefits of HPSP Army
There are some benefits HPSP candidates will enjoy, and they include:
- Full 100% tuition: The program will contact your school and take up the responsibility of paying your tuition for two years, three or four years, depending on the course of study.
- Funding for books, equipment, and other school fees: The program handles all required books, equipment, supplies and educational costs. The program reimburses all charges paid from a personal account during the expense report.
- Monthly stipend of $2,608 and an additional monthly allowance for food and housing. This monthly stipend lasts for 10.5 months.
- Students are entitled to a full officer’s salary during school breaks.
- During the 45-day annual training, applicants get the same active-duty pay and benefits as an Army second lieutenant.
- A $20,000 sign-on bonus.
HPSP Army Reserve
The HPSP is available to those in the active-duty commissioned service and students in the Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC).
Nevertheless, the application method is the same for civilians; however, those in reserve must get a contingent release from active duty to apply for the scholarship program.
Army HPSP Dental
The HPSP is available for dental students enrolled in a D.D.S. or D.M.D. program in any institution recognized by the American Dental Association. This scholarship lasts for about three to four years.
Scholarship holders are entitled to all benefits like full tuition, monthly stipend, and full officer’s salary as a Second Lieutenant.
At the end of the academic program, graduates will be commissioned as Dental Corps Captains with active duty service.
National Guard HPSP
The National Guard has a slot for students to get access to the Health Professions Scholarship Programs (HPSP) and its benefits. Students from their first year of study till the last year.
Applicants get the scholarship program’s benefits but must serve at least one year in active duty service. The National Guard also gives additional stipends or allowances to students.
HPSP Army Acceptance Rate
The Health Professions Scholarship Program (HPSP) is competitive but not a little more rigorous than the average medical school.
However, this scholarship program is competitive as it accepts only medical students, and a regular medical school has many candidates.
Also, there are so many competitions as tremendous benefits are attached to the scholarship program HPSP.
With the high number of applications each year, the HPSP accepts about 85%. The selection board holds recruitment twice a year.
This scholarship program is available to other Armed Forces like the Navy which you can check here, and Air Force which you can check here.
HPSP Army Requirements
The requirements for the scholarship include:
- Applicants must be at least 18 years and above; you can be 17 but with parental consent. The program accepts ages from 18 to 42.
- You must be a U.S. citizen or have a permanent residency.
- A minimum cumulative G.P.A. of 3.2 and an MCAT score of 500.
- Be a full-time student during the entire scholarship program.
- Candidates must be enrolled in any accredited institution in the United States, Puerto Rico, or Canada.
- Be qualified as a commissioned Officer.
- Candidates must be medically fit and certified by a medical professional.
HPSP Army Physical Requirements
After meeting the above mentioned requirements, the program has some physical needs that candidates must meet. These physical requirements ensure students are healthy enough to save as active duty officers.
The Military Entrance Processing Stations are nationwide, and HPSP applicants can take their physical exams. The physical requirements include a fitness test of Push-ups, Sit-ups, and a 2-mile run.
HPSP Army Handbook
The Army gives out handbooks to HPSP applicants to help them familiarize themselves with the requirements for the scholarship program. The HPSP Army handbook includes contents like:
- Student status
- Military service obligatory
- Entitlements and military pay
- Mandatory active duty for training
- Officer basic course
- Mandatory application for military residency training
- Mandatory licensure examinations
HPSP Army Application Process
To apply for the HPSP Army, you should follow the steps below:
- Get all transcripts, letters of recommendation, test scores, and all paperwork ready.
- If you still need to enroll in any medical school, you can start applying while also applying for the scholarship program.
The more you waste time, the more other people get the slots. Acceptance takes three months, so you have enough time to apply to schools.
- Contact an HPSP Army recruiter and schedule a preliminary interview.
- Fill out the application form for the service that interests you.
- Your recruiter will schedule a physical examination near the Military Entrance Processing Station.
- The selection board will review your paperwork and application form.
- If accepted, you will receive a letter, and your recruiter will finalize the process.
How to Apply for HPSP Army in 5 Steps
Below are the five simple steps to apply for the HPSP scholarship. Steps are also presented in the image and PDF infographics.
Step 1: Find a Recruiter
Find an U.S. Army Medical or local recruiter by following the instructions in the next heading. After finding a recruiter, schedule a preliminary interview.
During the interview, you’ll get to learn about joining the US Army health care team and the HPSP application process. They will also provide the application forms.
Step 2: Organize Necessary Paperwork
Gather your transcripts, letters of recommendation and test scores. You’ll need these to submit with your HPSR application.
Step 3: Complete Your HPSP Application
After organizing your necessary paperwork, complete your HPSP application form at the same time as you’re applying to your desired medical schools.
It is advisable to include and indicate all of the medical schools you have applied to in your HPSP application.
Step 4: Submit your HPSP Application
When your application is complete, submit it, along with your letters of acceptance, through your US Army recruiter.
On receiving your application, the selection board will go through your it for proper evaluation. After the evaluation, you’ll be sent an Award Notification letter which will state whether or not you’ve been accepted.
Step 5: Finalize your HPSP Enrolment
Once you are accepted to an accredited physician of medicine or physician of osteopathic medicine degree program, contact your recruiter to finalize your HPSP enrolment.
Download the HPSP application Infographic in PDF: here
How to Find an Army HPSP Recruiter Near you?
The reason a recruiter is necessary is that, a recruiter will help you to find the right career, ensure you’re set up for success in all that you do and guide you on the HPSP scholarship process.
You can easily find a suitable Army HPSP recruiter near you by following these steps:
Step 1: Visit the army HPSP recruiter finder website by visiting here. On landing, scroll to where you see “TAKE THE FIRST STEP” and fill the form below it with the following details:
- First Name
- Last Name
- Date of Birth
- MM/DD/YYYY
- Phone
- Zip Code
Step 2: Choose the Army career path you’re most interested in. The available options include:
- Full-time Service
- Weekend & Part-time Service
- Healthcare Students & Professionals
- Leadership Training for College (ROTC)
Step 3: Select the school you’re most interested in from the list of schools that will drop down. Selecting this is necessary so as to connect you to the right person, but if you don’t have any school at mind, select undecided.
After that, check the agreement box and click on the “SEND ME INFORMATION” and expect an email with detailed information about recruiters near you
You can request a recruiter or call the number 1-888-550-2769 to request help.
FAQs
How to Get into the HPSP army?
How do you get into the HPSP army? You can get into the HPSP army by following the steps below:
- Submit application by visiting the army application portal. See the application steps below
- Get enrolled
- Get your letter of acceptance.
- Apply for the scholarship in your career field
How much does Army HPSP pay?
The Army HPSP pays a monthly stipend of more than $2,200 while you attend school. The U.S. army will also pay 100% of your tuition for a graduate-level health care degree at any accredited school in the US or Puerto Rico.
Additional benefits also include salary increases with rank advancement once you graduate and enter active duty. You will also receive payment for 45 days as a Second Lieutenant while on active duty training plus a monthly allowance for food and housing
Bottom line
HPSP Army is one of the scholarship programs designed to help medical students get to the top of their careers as medical professionals while serving as active-duty military officers.
I believe this article has all the information you need for the scholarship, including how to locate a recruiter near you. Feel free to share your thoughts in the comment section.
NewDay
Wole Akinloye