winterallsummer Posted January 29, 2012 Author I'm wondering how difficult it is to get a job at a HRSA job and get approved. For those with insight, how difficult is it? I am willing to move but really don't want to be COMPLETELY rural. I am fine being 30-40 minute drive from a decent city but I don't want to be isolated from mankind out in BFE. Has anyone been approved or rejected? What improves your odds, good GPA in PA school? How long does it take to get the job and get approved? Once you are approved, let's say a 5 yr contract, can you change sites or no? Do you get your money at the start or end of the job? Thanks as always :).
winterallsummer Posted January 29, 2012 I'm wondering how difficult it is to get a job at a HRSA job and get approved. For those with insight, how difficult is it? I am willing to move but really don't want to be COMPLETELY rural. I am fine being 30-40 minute drive from a decent city but I don't want to be isolated from mankind out in BFE. Has anyone been approved or rejected? What improves your odds, good GPA in PA school? How long does it take to get the job and get approved? Once you are approved, let's say a 5 yr contract, can you change sites or no? Do you get your money at the start or end of the job? Thanks as always :).
winterallsummer Posted February 25, 2012 Author Bump. Anyone had luck with https://www.3rnet.org/default.aspx ?
ssiegelpa Posted March 12, 2012 Does anyone know if you can get NHSC for something other than Primary Care? I am looking into a job in a "underserved population" in Neurosurgery and I was wondering if I would be eligible? Thanks
ssiegelpa Posted March 12, 2012 Does anyone know if you can get NHSC for something other than Primary Care? I am looking into a job in a "underserved population" in Neurosurgery and I was wondering if I would be eligible? Thanks
mostrike1 Posted March 14, 2012 Getting the job is the same as getting any other job. Be the best applicant of the bunch and you will be offered the job. Getting the NHSC loan repayment money can be more challenging. I received the loan repayment and the process of applying was (at that time) a bit unorganized. I found out in June that I was accepted, and I had sent in all my paper work in early December. Though, I must say getting 60K into my bank account to give to sallie mae was amazing. Can't wait for year 3 to roll around.
mostrike1 Posted March 14, 2012 Getting the job is the same as getting any other job. Be the best applicant of the bunch and you will be offered the job. Getting the NHSC loan repayment money can be more challenging. I received the loan repayment and the process of applying was (at that time) a bit unorganized. I found out in June that I was accepted, and I had sent in all my paper work in early December. Though, I must say getting 60K into my bank account to give to sallie mae was amazing. Can't wait for year 3 to roll around.
vaston Posted March 14, 2012 Much of it depends on what clinic you are working for. You need to decide what 'COMPLETELY rural' means to you. It sounds like you want the best of both worlds: an NHSC job that isn't actually rural. Unfortunately they are very few and very far between. The purpose of the NHSC is to find practitioners that are willing to work in RURAL areas (And no, you will not find an NHSC Neurosurgery job, sorry). There are a few inner city/urban clinics that will qualify, but you will be up against a stack of applicants. In addition, many NHSC sites want at least 1 year experience in primary care. Think of it this way: the more rural the clinic the easier you will have it trying to land the job. Some of these clinics are in dire need of providers, but they never get applicants because they are so rural. What are you willing to give up in order to get an NHSC job? As far as approval goes, your best bet is to land a job that is already an NHSC approved site. You can get a rural job with a non-approved site then apply to have the site included in the program. If you get a job at a previously approved site then you have to go through the application process with NHSC. The process this time opened up in late December and stays open until April I believe. Apply early, there will be thousands of people you will be up against. Your chances of getting approved depend a lot on the score your clinic receives from the NHSC. The higher the score = the higher the need (and usually means a more rural area....usually). If you check the NHSC website they have a breakdown of the scores and how much you get based on that score. So your best chance of getting loan repayment is with a clinic that has a score of 14 or higher. When it comes to changing sites, as long as they are under the same clinic business it shouldn't be a problem, you would have to inform the NHSC of your new supervising physician and the new site. Keep in mind, the new site may actually have a different score than your original one, which may change how much funding you are qualified for. My current experience is this: I had my job lined up 2 weeks before graduation. I am working at a Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) in a very rural area that currently has a score of 17. The clinic is fully aware of the NHSC benefit and had all of their paperwork ready for me as soon as the application cycle opened. I submitted my completed application in the first week of January. I contacted the NHSC last week and was told that the review process take up to 10 weeks. I'm currently 8 weeks in so I should find out soon. Good luck with your search. I found my job using http://www.3rnet.org. Remember, the name of that site is RURAL Recruitment and Retention Network..........
vaston Posted March 14, 2012 Much of it depends on what clinic you are working for. You need to decide what 'COMPLETELY rural' means to you. It sounds like you want the best of both worlds: an NHSC job that isn't actually rural. Unfortunately they are very few and very far between. The purpose of the NHSC is to find practitioners that are willing to work in RURAL areas (And no, you will not find an NHSC Neurosurgery job, sorry). There are a few inner city/urban clinics that will qualify, but you will be up against a stack of applicants. In addition, many NHSC sites want at least 1 year experience in primary care. Think of it this way: the more rural the clinic the easier you will have it trying to land the job. Some of these clinics are in dire need of providers, but they never get applicants because they are so rural. What are you willing to give up in order to get an NHSC job? As far as approval goes, your best bet is to land a job that is already an NHSC approved site. You can get a rural job with a non-approved site then apply to have the site included in the program. If you get a job at a previously approved site then you have to go through the application process with NHSC. The process this time opened up in late December and stays open until April I believe. Apply early, there will be thousands of people you will be up against. Your chances of getting approved depend a lot on the score your clinic receives from the NHSC. The higher the score = the higher the need (and usually means a more rural area....usually). If you check the NHSC website they have a breakdown of the scores and how much you get based on that score. So your best chance of getting loan repayment is with a clinic that has a score of 14 or higher. When it comes to changing sites, as long as they are under the same clinic business it shouldn't be a problem, you would have to inform the NHSC of your new supervising physician and the new site. Keep in mind, the new site may actually have a different score than your original one, which may change how much funding you are qualified for. My current experience is this: I had my job lined up 2 weeks before graduation. I am working at a Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) in a very rural area that currently has a score of 17. The clinic is fully aware of the NHSC benefit and had all of their paperwork ready for me as soon as the application cycle opened. I submitted my completed application in the first week of January. I contacted the NHSC last week and was told that the review process take up to 10 weeks. I'm currently 8 weeks in so I should find out soon. Good luck with your search. I found my job using http://www.3rnet.org. Remember, the name of that site is RURAL Recruitment and Retention Network..........
winterallsummer Posted March 19, 2012 Author Okay, thanks for the advice. Rural it is. I am just going to have to deal with moving back to the country. So long as I don't end up in Alaska. So you said it opens in December, but most PA programs graduate their students in the summer. Did you work at the clinic for several months before applying then? Also I do want to do family practice, so this is one perk for NHSC.
vaston Posted March 19, 2012 So you said it opens in December, but most PA programs graduate their students in the summer. Did you work at the clinic for several months before applying then? My program graduated in early December. The application cycle opened in the last week of December. Made it easy for me I guess :)
Just Steve Posted March 19, 2012 it is my understanding that a practitioner can apply for loan repayment regardless of how long they have been working for a qualified clinic. For example...a PA has been working for a practice for the past 5 years. The clinic was just approved as an NHSC site last month. The PA is now eligible to apply for loan repayment. So, I am assuming that working for a few months before applying is not a negative thing. My curiosity lies in wondering if the previous 5 years of service for the PA to that same clinic satisfies the service obligation or if the time starts once they are approved?
winterallsummer Posted March 19, 2012 Author Another question: Assuming you have a clinic with a good score (16+) and apply early, what are your chances of being accepted? How competitive is it?
winterallsummer Posted March 19, 2012 Author Another question: Assuming you have a clinic with a good score (16+) and apply early, what are your chances of being accepted? How competitive is it?
vaston Posted March 20, 2012 it is my understanding that a practitioner can apply for loan repayment regardless of how long they have been working for a qualified clinic. For example...a PA has been working for a practice for the past 5 years. The clinic was just approved as an NHSC site last month. The PA is now eligible to apply for loan repayment. So, I am assuming that working for a few months before applying is not a negative thing. My curiosity lies in wondering if the previous 5 years of service for the PA to that same clinic satisfies the service obligation or if the time starts once they are approved? The time starts once they are approved. Working at a clinic for 5 years then asking for a retroactive payment will not work. Once you are approved you are locked into a 2 year agreement to remain at that clinic. Would be nice if it were retroactive, but that is not part of their program.
vaston Posted March 20, 2012 Another question: Assuming you have a clinic with a good score (16+) and apply early, what are your chances of being accepted? How competitive is it? I don't know. The NHSC told me they have thousands of applicants every year, but the did not give me a breakdown based on clinic score. All I know is that the higher the score the better your chances are. I'm guessing the majority of applicants work at clinics with a score of <14. But that is just an assumption. You would have to contact them for the specific numbers.
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