There are always questions in the Assessment and Selection subforum at http://professionalsoldiers.com/forums/index.php.Originally Posted by JohnO
I would suggest reading all the threads before asking any questions.
There are always questions in the Assessment and Selection subforum at http://professionalsoldiers.com/forums/index.php.
I would suggest reading all the threads before asking any questions.
"Gunfighting is a thinking man's game. So we might want to bring thinking back into it."-MDFA
Beware of my temper, and the dog that I've found...
I have a lot of firsthand experience with SF, if he wants an opinion on where the regiment is at now from someone who isn’t trying to sign him up for anything, feel free to pm me.
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Unless he is interested in serving part time, he should avoid the guard. There are full time guard opportunities but they are far from a sure thing. I know some full time guard officers with long tabs and they many of them had to move out of SF to move up in the guard.
Another thing to consider is that the national guard is tied to the state it's in so unless he loves that area and wants to stay there, he should look elsewhere. Yes, there are interstate transfers, no, they do not go as smoothly as advertised. At least in my state, they do everything they can to retain soldiers. I've seen IST's drag out over multiple years, and a CBP officer who was in my state on a 2 year detail was referred for a brigade level article 15 for not flying back for annual training after his detail ended and his work moved him back to Louisiana. His IST paperwork had been pending for almost a year at that point. No article 15 in the end, but it took multiple senior officers intervening to get it shut down.
I bet if he kissed the right asses he could get an 18x contract or a ranger contract from an active recruiter. If his goal is to slay bodies and blow shit up the rangers might be a better fit anyhow. Not that SF doesn't do that stuff but there is also a large focus on training and advising local forces. Green berets aren't really analogous to navy seals. Two different jobs. Might be worth doing some research on what they actually do.
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Roger that. I told my son that even very well conditioned and prepared luck is a big factor, as in bad luck with a training injury.
He knows the job functions of the different units. His initial direction toward NSW was largely motivated by publicity. It was the SOCOM component getting the most press. Taking him to meet a recently retired DEV Group SEAL a little over a year ago probably factored into the equation.
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At the moment I think he still is weighing all that in his head. Mom is a very pro-college and thinks everyone should have a basic foundation which she gave him through homeschooling. Still she thinks he should have a bachelor's degree like his older siblings.
As I mentioned earlier he met the Guard recruiter through his friend from Cadets now at Ft. Leonard Wood in Basic. This Guard recruiter is the only one that made an impression on my son. I think mom's influence telling him that the Guard could allow him to take college classes has some influence. Yet my son knows the Guard SF isn't the typical 1 weekend a month 2 weeks a year deal.
My son keeps talking about having what he calls himself "the golden ticket". Acceptance of his academic credentials, ASVAB score that qualifies him for what he wants and passed physical at MEPS. Just yesterday he finally got the acknowledgement that his Home School credential met Uncle Sam's requirement. He crushed the online test the Navy gave him. He has no reason to think he will have a problem with the physical.
A few weeks back he went to Skydive CT and made his 1st parachute jump. It was a tandem jump from 14K feet. He loved it and is chomping at the bit to go back. I think he did this knowing that the direction he is headed in includes Jump School and wanted to try it.
He has some good skills. A very analytical mind that can look at things he isn't familiar with and figure out how they work. He doesn't get flustered in any way very even tempered no matter the situation. The police officers who run the Cadet program go way out of their way to tell me how much he means to them and say things like, "having your son in the program makes this all worthwhile". The following is the letter of recommendation my son's advisor wrote in support of his Eagle Scout Application early last year. (Names redacted).
When -------- enters a room his smile and pleasant nature becomes contagious. At 17 years of age, he is already a role model to his piers and a natural leader of men. I am confident he will be successful in all his future endeavors.
------ has been a XXXXXX Police Cadet for about a year. The Cadet program is designed for young adults ages 14-21 who desire to have a career Law Enforcement or public service. The Cadet programs are run by police departments. I am an advisor and police officer for the XXXXX Police Department.
------- has already proven himself to be an invaluable member of the XXXXXX Police Cadets. In the last year, ------- has volunteered countless hours to better the quality of life and improved the safety of the citizens of XXXXXX. ------- has worked on food drives for the needy, XXXXXXX’s award-winning National Night out and assisted patrol officers on real world calls for service.
--------- is the epitome of the scout motto and the proof of this can be found in his involvement and successes with his education, church, sports, the Boy Scouts of American and his dedication the XXXXXX Police Cadets and the citizens of XXXXXXX.
I can think of no better candidate to recommend for Eagle Scout or represent what an Eagle Scout should aspire to be.
Respectfully Submitted,
Officer ----- ------- Badge number #----
Tell mom to land the helicopter. It's not as if you have to complete a degree by the time you're 22 or they'll never let you in college. If he wants to go another way, it's a better choice than getting a degree he doesn't want, doesn't need for his chosen career, or abandons before he graduates. If he washes out of SFAS and works in the rigger's shop, he gave it a shot, and he'll still get veteran preference/points if he wants to go into LE.
"Gunfighting is a thinking man's game. So we might want to bring thinking back into it."-MDFA
Beware of my temper, and the dog that I've found...
College is definitely a personal decision. I did the guard while in college and hated it. It wasn’t an SF group, but I’ve become more and more convinced that the generalization of guard being guard is true, regardless of unit.
That said, college on active isn’t fun but it’s very doable. A big part of me regrets going to college when I did. In hindsight for me, I should’ve gone to 75th as an 11B.
But either way, college will be a major factor in promotions down the road.
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Woe be me to declare something as an authority on the subject, but I'd red-flag the idea of him completing an in-person degree in the 19th or 20th and have him seek out a 2nd and 3rd opinion from someone other than a recruiter. He'll be able to take "some" classes, but he'll be deployed constantly (my coworkers in the 19th and 20th are deployed every year or two) and the needs of the service don't give a flying fuck about when his semester starts and ends.
Again, I don't pretend to be an authority on this subject as I'm not 18-series......but there seems to be a lack of 18-series here giving advice, and to me the idea of him going to college while being in the 19th or 20th seems specious at best.
"Are you ready? Okay. Let's roll."- Last words of Todd Beamer
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