So my son wants to be a Marine.

[DIESEL]

As the title says my 16.5 year old wants to be a Marine. He's wanted to be in the military as long as I can remember and I have only supported that while also helping him think about the very real possibility that he may not be able to serve on the front lines. He is a cancer survivor and bone marrow transplant recipient. As a result of that he can only receive blood transfusions with leukocyte reduced irradiated blood. Other effects of all the radiation and chemo are he has stage 2 kidney disease and hypothyroidism. I am taking him to the recruiting office tomorrow and wondering if any of you that have served have any ideas of questions we should ask or given the possibility that they may tell him he can't be a marine, what are some other areas of the military that he may be able to partake in? He says that he just wants to serve and doesn't really care what branch if the Marines aren't an option, although air force is his last resort. He is a pretty fit teen and has been very healthy (knock on wood) and into working out and boxing for the last few years. Thanks for any info.

[rcbusmc24]

PM me, I've got dudes in my branch that just came off recruiting duty....

Just got off the phone, According to my guy he will need documentation from his doctor showing that he is clear of the cancer, the recruiter will need that to submit for a BU MED waiver to enlist before he can contract / enlist him, we as a service don't worry about what might occur in the future medical condition wise as long as he is clear and qualified at the time of entry. As long as he is physically qualified for a MOS and has the ASVAB /GT test scores to be eligible for the MOS then there are no restrictions based on previous medical history. Any other questions feel free to ask...

[DIESEL]

Thanks again for the info. That's good to hear, he has been cancer free for 10 years now. I was thinking that the blood transfusions might be an issue if he needed blood in the field. Obviously I hope that is never going to happen but you gotta be prepared for the worst.

[vcdgrips]

Blessings to you and your son.

I have never served in the military. I have had a hand in counseling boys who have as an Asst Scoutmaster and have discussed this with other similarly situated Scout Dads.

The vast majority of the time, I encouraged them to look at all branches to include the Air Force and Coast Guard. Fit in the military, just like fit for a college (big city v. small town, Religious v Secular etc) is critical to an optimal outcome. This is particularly true on either extreme i.e. STEM kid going Air Force, small, very strong for size, wiry kid, with heart (3x tries to do the mile swim but got it done) going NAVY ROTC with USMC Option (Father is a Marine), Kid who did Fla Seabase liking Coast Guard. Many boys who knew that college was not for them 18-21 and wanted to serve go Army given pure size and breadth of opportunity.

Sign nothing on the first visit

Document everything in the process

If it is not in writing, it does not exist

The fitter you are, the easier it will be

The smarter you test, the more options you will have

If you do not like a particular recruiter for any reason or no reason at all, walk, there is always another.

Do your research re readily accessible info

Be careful what you wish for

Be safe and well. Please keep us in the loop.

[DIESEL]

We just got back from the recruiters and were told my son can't enlist because he takes a daily medication for his hypothyroidism. Not sure if it's worth trying a different branch, the guy said it's the same for all military service.
Does that sound right? He's pretty bummed but we kind of knew this might be the case, that's why we went while he is still young. Now we are exploring other ways to serve. Perhaps law enforcement, game Warden, FBI, DOD ect.

[TGS]

Now we are exploring other ways to serve. Perhaps law enforcement, game Warden, FBI, DOD ect.

As somebody that has had involvement off and on in EMS since 2002 or so, 4 years military, and current federal LE:

I suggest the fire service.

1) Nobody hates firemen.

2) Pay is great, especially considering many (most?) firemen hold down a 2nd job given their 24 hour duty schedules, and especially considering you don't need a mostly useless college degree to be competitive. Making $100k/year+ by age 25 with zero college debt is absolutely a realistic goal. As an EMT, most of the firemen I worked alongside who had 10 years on were making about $150k/year between their fire job and their 2nd job; trades were extremely popular given the freedom of scheduling and great pay...plumbing, HVAC techs, welders, and so on.

3) He can get involved as a volunteer cadet by the end of the week. Maybe he decides to do something else in life for work, but he can still stay involved and serve his community as a volunteer.

4) Depending on the agency he works for, there's lots of other opportunities other than polishing trucks and responding to smoke alarms. Big fire departments have lots of specialized units, just like the military or police. Technical/heavy rescue, high-angle rescue, USAR, dive recovery, water rescue, CBRNE/hazmat, bomb squad, arson investigators, wildland firefighting, wilderness rescue, etc.

5) Since you mentioned FBI: Special Agent (1811) jobs for the federal gov't are a long game, not a realistic short-term goal out of college. There's people that do it out of college, but most 1811 jobs want some other sort of life experience that helps you contribute to the mission. The majority of 1811s are hired in their 30s.

6) Did I mention that nobody hates firemen?

[Nephrology]

I got a kidney transplant @ 17, wanted to be a Marine for most of my young adult life (wonder if there's something to that). Was not medically qualified for service, big bummer at the time.

Ended up doing an MD-PhD despite absolutely zero interest in medical school til age 21. Just finishing up a 2 week rotation with transplant surgery that was probably the best two weeks of my life, planning a career in cardiac/transplant anesthesiology. If he's a good student and the service doesn't work out, there are worse things in life than being a doctor. Plenty of other great non-MD jobs in the medical field as well (RN, PA, CRNA, etc)

[Bergeron]

DoD civilian life can also be pretty awesome, if not on the same level of service as uniformed enlistment.

[trailrunner]

I wanted to join the Navy. I'm deaf in one ear so I knew I couldn't fly, so I wanted to join the sub program. I was doing very well in engineering school, so the recruiter was hot to get me, and my dad (E-9 Master Chief) spoke well of submariners, and I listened to what he said. Plus, they paid well in college and being in a tube underwater with a nuclear reactor and missiles appealed to me. Call me sick. But my deafness disqualified me. The recruiter even called Rickover's office to try to get a waiver. The answer was NO.

I got a kidney transplant @ 17, wanted to be a Marine for most of my young adult life (wonder if there's something to that). Was not medically qualified for service, big bummer at the time.

Ended up doing an MD-PhD despite absolutely zero interest in medical school til age 21. Just finishing up a 2 week rotation with transplant surgery that was probably the best two weeks of my life, planning a career in cardiac/transplant anesthesiology. If he's a good student and the service doesn't work out, there are worse things in life than being a doctor. Plenty of other great non-MD jobs in the medical field as well (RN, PA, CRNA, etc)

DoD civilian life can also be pretty awesome, if not on the same level of service as uniformed enlistment.

So I stayed in school and got a PhD in engineering. I started working as a contractor working hands-on with some very cool stuff way back when Reagan was still president and star wars was a thing. I was given a lot of responsibility and got to do some interesting work. I'm government now. Since then I've worked on some very amazing systems and seen things that few people have seen. I never did make it on a sub, but I have a few adventures and at times had a front-row seat to some very neat things.

Having said that, I have some very mixed feeling about being a DoD civilian. The friction is enormous, and as someone who likes to make things happen, it's very frustrating. Some jobs suck your soul. People talk about the benefits and stability, which is true, but I could make more money on the outside that would likely offset that. I'm 22 months from being eligible for retirement, and I dream of a tech job in a completely different field, but at this point I may be too worn out to give it a go.

[Stephanie B]

We just got back from the recruiters and were told my son can't enlist because he takes a daily medication for his hypothyroidism. Not sure if it's worth trying a different branch, the guy said it's the same for all military service.
Does that sound right? He's pretty bummed but we kind of knew this might be the case, that's why we went while he is still young. Now we are exploring other ways to serve. Perhaps law enforcement, game Warden, FBI, DOD ect.

I’d check with a recruiter for another service. I have a shirttail nephew who is a CWO helo driver in the Army who was medically unqualified for Uncle Sam’s Mischievous Children.