(a) In General.—
Each participant in the Program shall provide service as a full-time employee of the Department for the period of obligated service provided in the agreement of the participant entered into under section 7603 of this title. Such service shall be provided in the full-time clinical practice of such participant’s profession or in another health-care position in an assignment or location determined by the Secretary.
(b) Determination of Service Commencement Date.—
(3)
(A)
In the case of a participant receiving a degree from a school of medicine, osteopathy, dentistry, optometry, or podiatry, the participant’s service commencement date is the date upon which the participant becomes licensed to practice medicine, osteopathy, dentistry, optometry, or podiatry, as the case may be, in a State.
(B) In the case of a participant receiving a degree from a school of nursing, the participant’s service commencement date is the later of—
(c) Commencement of Obligated Service.—
(1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), a participant in the Program shall be considered to have begun serving the participant’s period of obligated service—
(A)
on the date, after the participant’s course completion date, on which the participant (in accordance with subsection (b)) is appointed as a full-time employee in the Veterans Health Administration; or
(B)
if the participant is a full-time employee in the Veterans Health Administration on such course completion date, on the date thereafter on which the participant is assigned to a position for which the participant’s course of training prepared the participant.
(2)
A participant in the Program who on the participant’s course completion date is a full-time employee in the Veterans Health Administration serving in a capacity for which the participant’s course of training prepared the participant shall be considered to have begun serving the participant’s period of obligated service on such course completion date.
(d) Course Completion Date Defined.—
In this section, the term “course completion date” means the date on which a participant in the Program completes the participant’s course of education or training under the Program.