Joel Schofer's Career Planning Podcast

Here are the slides I used to record this episode of the podcast: Debt, College, and Discretionary Spending   Here’s the screencast:

Here are the slides I used for this episode of the podcast: Tips on Building Your Career During Residency

Navy Medicine has been undergoing a lot of change. We have a new Surgeon General, a new Corps Chief, and a renewed focus on readiness. With these changes come a new career progression and path for the Medical Corps (MC) Officer (PDF version, PPT version). Let’s take a look at the new model and discuss […]

What better to do during a global pandemic than listen to a screencast about managing your career! Here are the PPT slides I used for it: Playing the Game – Managing Your Military Career

Here are the slides I used for this podcast, in both PDF and PPT format: Personal Finance for the Military Physician – A 2020 Update – PPT Personal Finance for the Military Physician – A 2020 Update – PDF  

Here is a screencast/podcast of this updated lecture as well as the PDF of the slides I used: FY 21 Promotion Boards Slide Deck

I updated my Personal Finance for the Military Physician talk for 2019 and have this week’s articles listed below:   Here are this week’s articles: 1 in 3 eligible active-duty troops signed up for DoD’s new retirement system 10 Ways To Know You Are Competent to DIY Your Investments 12 Things You Should Know About […]

I gave this talk to the medical staff at NMC Portsmouth a few weeks ago, and I finally got around to recording it for all to enjoy… Here is a PDF of the slides: FY20 Promotion Boards – What are They Looking At and How Can You Get Ready Here is a video screencast you […]

Recently I advertised the USUHS Commandant position. A reader asked: Any thoughts on whether you think this is a position that would make an O5 competitive for O6? This is a common issue. A position is advertised, but you want to know if it will help get your promoted to O5 or O6 if you […]

If you are particularly interested in this post, I’m sorry. You or someone you care about probably failed to promote. In reality, nowadays it is normal and expected to fail to promote to O5 and O6, so you have company. Here are my suggestions for those that fail to promote. First, try to figure out […]

Whenever a promotion board starts, the members are provided two items to guide them as they decide who to promote, the board precept and the convening order. These documents are available on-line and should be used to figure out how to promote and write your fitrep.   The Board Precept The precept is released in […]

O5 fitreps are due soon, so it is time for me to write my fitrep. How do I do it? Here are the steps I go through: I get the Surgeon General’s priorities and the convening order for last year’s O6 board. (If you were an O4, you’d want the O5 convening order. If you […]

The standard advice has always gone something like this: “If you are above zone, you need to send a letter to the promotion board so that they know you are still trying to promote. Otherwise they won’t pick you.” Now that they no longer stamp officer records with “AZ” (above zone) and they look exactly […]

During the last Specialty Leader Business Meeting, the Detailing Update mentioned that there were about 10 cases of officers who lost their promotion due to a security clearance issue. As a result, I added a new section to the Promo Prep document. In it you can find out how to check your security clearance. Here’s […]

A reader recently asked me for help preparing for a big interview that I had done in the past (the interview to become a Specialty Leader). We both thought that interview prep would be a good blog post, so here is my advice after 10+ interviews for significant leadership positions: Be prepared for an in-depth […]

While you need to go to the promo prep for a full record review, here is a video podcast that should give you an idea of how much work you need to do. Download your OSR, PSR, and ODC from BOL. Then watch this video:

If you are particularly interested in this post, I’m sorry. You or someone you care about probably failed to promote. In reality, nowadays it is normal and expected to fail to promote to O5 and O6, so you have company. Here are my suggestions for those that fail to promote. First, try to figure out […]

1. You can’t control the investment markets, so focus on the two things you can control – investment costs and your asset allocation. No one, and I mean no one, knows what is going to happen in the investment markets. Study after study have shown that the overwhelming majority of people who try to beat […]

(Here is a pdf of this article, one of my personal finance columns I write for a national Emergency Medicine newsletter.  Find more of them here.) I cut a check and paid off my mortgage in February, making me debt-free.  It cut my living expenses by about a third and ensured that in four years, […]

Here are the slides for a lecture on “Outside the Box Opportunities” that I gave at the 2017 Transition to Practice Symposium at NMCSD for all the graduating residents and fellows: Outside the Box Opportunities Topics covered include: Moving after your are selected for promotion How to PCS away from a command you want to […]

Here is the Powerpoint and screencast of a lecture I gave on Fitreps a few weeks ago at the NMCSD Transition to Practice Symposium for all the graduating residents and fellows.  Without audience participation, the lecture went from 30 minutes down to 18.  Enjoy! Fitness Reports in 30 Minutes

Here are the slides and a screencast of a lecture I recently gave at a national conference on tricks for long-term asset protection: Tricks for Long-Term Asset Protection

BLUF – If you are hoping to retire but are not willing to serve 3 years as a Commander or Captain, you should decline the promotion.  (This is not applicable if you are resigning.  Only if you are hoping to retire.) The policy regarding promotions and retirements is governed by OPNAVINST 1811.3A.  If you are lucky enough to […]

Here is an audio podcast of a 30 minute lecture I gave at Naval Medical Center San Diego’s Transition to Practice Symposium that they put on last week for all the graduating residents and fellows.  I hope you enjoy it.

This video podcast/screencast is a recording of a talk I gave at a national Emergency Medicine conference two months ago.  Bottom line up front: Long-Term Care Insurance – You probably don’t need it if you’re financially disciplined. Disability Insurance – You might need it. Umbrella Liability Insurance – You definitely need it. Where can you […]

Recently Navy Personnel Command (PERS) has started enforcing some policies that had largely been ignored, and I’ve heard a few horror stories from people trying to resign from the Navy.  With that in mind, here is how you can resign without encountering problems.  Assuming that you’ve already decided to resign, here are the steps you […]

Thousands of times a year Navy physicians struggle to do something that no one really ever teaches them how to do…write their fitrep.  I have read the Navy fitrep instruction, taken guidance I’ve received from senior Navy leaders and classes I’ve attended, and consolidated it into one document that you can read from start to […]

The Graduate Medical Education Selection Board (GMESB) results were released last month with a 30 DEC deadline to accept or decline any spots you were offered.  Undoubtedly there were some people who didn’t get what they want. I’ve participated in the last three GMESBs and would like to offer tips for people looking to match […]

This post will help you learn all that you can about deployments.  Personally, I’ve done three deployments, one as a GMO during the initial invasion of Iraq, and two after residency.  In 2010 I deployed with the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit or MEU and earlier this year I deployed to GTMO.  In addition, as both […]

There has been a lot of recent activity surrounding the new Blended Retirement System (BRS), and I don’t intend to reinvent the wheel and explain the whole system to you when there are some nice resources that already exist: DoD BRS 1 Page PDF Summary BRS NAVADMIN DoD BRS Article and Video Military OneSource BRS […]

One of the most important markers of a good fitrep is that your trait average is above your reporting senior’s trait average.  Since most officers initially write their own fitrep and create their own trait average on the first draft, it is important to find out your reporting senior’s trait average so that you can try […]

LCDRs all over Navy Medicine are busily writing their fitreps, so I wanted to offer some assistance.  Keep in mind that when you write your block 41, the narrative portion of your fitrep, you are writing it for the promotion board.  Many LCDRs struggle to find the right words to express all the things they’ve […]

We are all required to get continuing medical education or CME.  Just as important, however, is continuing financial education (CFE).  I’m as busy as the next guy, but I am able to stay reasonably up to date on all aspects of personal finance that are relevant to my situation.  Thanks to podcasts, blogs, RSS readers, Facebook, […]

Here is a PDF of the FY17 Medical Corps LCDR promotion board statistics, summarized here: Above Zone – 3 of 7 eligible officers selected – 43% selection rate In Zone – 219 of 249 eligible officers selected – 88% selection rate Below Zone – 24 of 503 eligible officers selected – 5% OVERALL – 246 […]

Yesterday an officer e-mailed me and asked for tips on improving his concurrent FITREP, which I thought would make a nice blog post. A concurrent FITREP is most often received when you are deployed.  It is “concurrent” because not only are you getting a FITREP from your deployed command/unit, but you are also getting one […]

The classic advice has always been to purchase your home if you can afford it, but in the military the decision is much more complex.  You can’t simply compare your rent versus a mortgage payment.  You have to consider tax breaks, fees associated with purchasing real estate, and how long you expect to stay at […]

I receive questions all the time about what happens when you are passed over for promotion and are now “above-zone”. If you find yourself in this position, here is what you need to do: Realize that it is not the end of the world. Based on the FY 17 CDR promotion board statistics, 56% of […]

If you are one of the lucky people who made CDR, I have some things for you to consider: The next 2-3 years of fitreps may mean very little to your overall career.  First, you are soon going to be in the most competitive group in the Medical Corps, Commanders scratching and clawing to make Captain. […]

Here are the promotion board statistics from the FY17 O5 board released yesterday: Below Zone – 0 officers selected/382 eligible – 0% selection rate In Zone – 85 officers selected/192 eligible – 44% selection rate Above Zone – 40 officers selected/129 eligible – 31% selection rate You can find an introduction to promotion board math […]

I recently attended a brief where we were given an update on the upcoming change in how we receive our special pays.  This new plan is called “Consolidated Special Pays” or “CSP”.  Many of the details of the new plan are not finalized or available yet, but here are the highlights: All of the different special […]

One of the most important documents viewed during promotion boards is your Performance Summary Report or PSR.  It is the document that summarizes all of your FITREPs for the board, and it can be difficult to interpret.  I created a screencast that will show you how to read your PSR.  Here are the PPT slides […]

There are a lot of people you can turn to when you need career advice.  There’s your Specialty Leader, your Detailer, and other senior mentors you’ve developed relationships with during your career.  If you want your record reviewed, you can either e-mail your Detailer or go to the Advanced Medical Department Officer’s Course (AMDOC) where […]

Additional Qualification Designation Codes or AQDs are 3 letter codes that: Identify special skills required by a billet. Identify a qualification awarded to an officer for serving in a specially coded billet. In other words, they are tools used by Navy Personnel Command (PERS) to assign officers to billets. They also serve another purpose, though, […]

Two recent events led to this post.  First, this article about becoming a multimillionaire in the military appeared on military.com.  Second, I was having a discussion with some other officers about this topic and they thought my opinion on the subject was different from what they had heard before.  Because of this, we’re going to […]

Recently there have been some high level discussions in the Senate Armed Services Committee, including our top Navy admirals, about reforming the Military Health System (MHS). Here is a transcript of the congressional testimony of Dr. Jonathan Woodson, the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs, and VADM Raquel Bono, Director, Defense Health Agency.  In […]

Investing in stock and bond mutual funds (not individual stocks and bonds) is the simple way to get higher investment returns than more conservative investments like bank accounts, money market funds, or certificates of deposit (CDs).  By owning stock funds, you own businesses, and the long-term return of these businesses is what will increase your […]

The FY17 Staff Corps O6 Board Convening Order was released after conclusion of the board.  The best news was that the promotion opportunity for Medical Corps was 70%, up from 50% last year, which was an all-time low.  Aside from that, though, if you read through the convening order, it basically tells you how to […]

(Here are some Military Career Progression Slides from a career planning lecture I often give to accompany this post.) The typical career progression for a Medical Corps officer if promoted on time (the first time they are in-zone) is: 5 years – selected for promotion to LCDR 6 years – promoted to LCDR 11 years […]

The following is from a PDF document created by RDML(s) Swap, Chief of the Medical Service Corps, and adapted for the Medical Corps with permission.  Her unedited PDF is here: Talking Points #33 AZ IZ Stamps INTRODUCTION Promotion boards are an integral part of how the Navy identifies the best and most qualified officers to […]

I was recently selected to be the Emergency Medicine Specialty Leader, and earlier this week I attended the BUMED Business Meeting for Specialty Leaders and Program Directors.  Below are the highlights I thought were of interest to a general Medical Corps audience: BUPERS is removing the AZ (above zone) and IZ (in zone) stamps on […]

The benefits of tax-favored retirement plans like the Thrift Savings Plan or an Individual Retirement Account (IRA) are too great to ignore, and over the span of your career sheltering your investment earnings from the taxman will benefit you tremendously.  For example, assume that you make a $4,000 annual contribution for 45 years and earn […]