Calling all Marines! Recruiter comes tonight.

[bigcountryok]

IF IT IS NOT IN WRITING IT IS NOT TRUE!!!!

Do not beleive a word the recruiter says if it is not in writing. The selected MOS being one of those things. You have to remember that the recruiter's career is on the line. He has quota's that he MUST meet or his fitness report will suffer. If things go too bad he gets sent back to the fleet with a failed B Billet assignment which is basicly a career ender.

With that said, I strongly recommend that he gets into an MOS that he can use on the outside. They will feed you lines about leadership skills and what not, while yes they help there is alot to be said for actual expereince in the field. In the future he can change is MOS once he is in the fleet, but only if there is a need for those skillsets, the command approves, and the school is available.

Key things to focus on are can your son make this experience line up with his life goals and help them achieve them. Most recruiters will give you the info you need, but sugar coat it some.

Another thing. Yes there is a high probability of a deployment and yes there is a high probability of being stationed in Okinawa or serving sea duty. He needs to face that now rather than be surprised when he gets orders.

Final thing is to realize that everyone serves at least 8 years. The first 4 years may be active duty, but you will have another 4 years of Inactive Reserves. During the 4 years of inactive reserves you can be called back to duty at anytime. This applies to all branches of service.

Good luck to your son. Semper Fi

 

[HMFIC]

I signed up on a Quality Enlistment Program that guaranteed me a choice of which coast for my first duty station, my MOS and a promotion on graduation of boot camp. For my part, I had to enlist for 6 years active and score high enough on the ASVAB (which I aced). If he can get this type of deal, tell him to go for it. I choose a path that had career growth outside of the military and that was a wise decision, but it also was my passion too, so who's to say which of those were the true factor.

Otherwise, wish him the best and set him on his way. At 21, I suspect he'll be one of the oldest in boot camp and that could help him to advance further and quicker if he has the maturity to go with it. So in an odd way, it could benefit him. I ended up doing well in boot camp and in conjunction with my QEP promotion, also received a meritorious promotion to Lance Corporal as well. So even if he doesn't qualify for a signing promotion, he could still earn one too.

I think one of your statements tells it all though... you said he decided. That is pretty big in my book. If he decided to become a Marine, then in many ways it doesn't really matter what it is he does while in the Marine Corps. To earn the title, he will have to prove what he's made of and that will translate well to anything he does in the future.

Ooh-Rah!!

 

[druryj]

Get a guaranteed enlistment. Make the recruiter agree on what his job or duty is before any contract is signed. Otherwise he'll probably be on his way to an infantry assignment.

With the current mess going on across the world, overseas deployment is almost guaranteed.

This may be why he wants to join the MARINES.

 

[druryj]

I signed up on a Quality Enlistment Program that guaranteed me a choice of which coast for my first duty station, my MOS and a promotion on graduation of boot camp. For my part, I had to enlist for 6 years active and score high enough on the ASVAB (which I aced). If he can get this type of deal, tell him to go for it. I choose a path that had career growth outside of the military and that was a wise decision, but it also was my passion too, so who's to say which of those were the true factor.

Otherwise, wish him the best and set him on his way. At 21, I suspect he'll be one of the oldest in boot camp and that could help him to advance further and quicker if he has the maturity to go with it. So in an odd way, it could benefit him. I ended up doing well in boot camp and in conjunction with my QEP promotion, also received a meritorious promotion to Lance Corporal as well. So even if he doesn't qualify for a signing promotion, he could still earn one too.

I think one of your statements tells it all though... you said he decided. That is pretty big in my book. If he decided to become a Marine, then in many ways it doesn't really matter what it is he does while in the Marine Corps. To earn the title, he will have to prove what he's made of and that will translate well to anything he does in the future.Ooh-Rah!!

This is so true.

 

[SoonerP226]

I can't speak to the service, but if he can get into ATC, he should be pretty much guaranteed a good job when he leaves (as long as you don't mind having to raise your hand like a 2nd grader to go to the bathroom, as a recently-mandatorily-retired ATC friend of mine said), because the FAA is short of ATCs--and getting shorter as more of them hit the mandatory retirement age. As I understand it, the washout rate for new FAA ATCs is very high, so having experience in it from the USMC should give him a big leg up.

 

[ExtremistPullup]

(as long as you don't mind having to raise your hand like a 2nd grader to go to the bathroom

LoL, my son is in first grade and they don't have to ask permission to leave the class room to go to the bathroom

 

[HMFIC]

I can't speak to the service, but if he can get into ATC, he should be pretty much guaranteed a good job when he leaves (as long as you don't mind having to raise your hand like a 2nd grader to go to the bathroom, as a recently-mandatorily-retired ATC friend of mine said), because the FAA is short of ATCs--and getting shorter as more of them hit the mandatory retirement age. As I understand it, the washout rate for new FAA ATCs is very high, so having experience in it from the USMC should give him a big leg up.

LOL. The Marine Corps even provides good training for this in boot camp.

Drill Instructor Sergeant Badass, SIR! Private dingleberry requests permission to use the head, SIR!

 

[ExtremistPullup]

[/B]

This may be why he wants to join the MARINES.

They will make you feel bad if you want to join for another reason then that.

 

[angsniper]

LOL. The Marine Corps even provides good training for this in boot camp.

Drill Instructor Sergeant Badass, SIR! Private dingleberry requests permission to use the head, SIR!

Wouldn't that be "this recruit" requests permission?

 

[grizzly97]

LoL, my son is in first grade and they don't have to ask permission to leave the class room to go to the bathroom

It's worse than that...they even order you step by step how to shower. "TURN ON THE WATER! WET YOUR LEFT ARM! TURN OFF THE WATER! PUT SOAP ON YOUR LEFT ARM AND SCRUB YOU NASTY ******* D*** TUGGIN ARM! TURN ON WATER! WASH SOAP OFF YOUR NASTY ******* D*** TUGGIN ARM! etc...."

Wouldn't that be "this recruit" requests permission?

You would be correct. Until you pass the reaper, at least at MCRD, you must refer to yourself in the third person.