Im a little mixed up?

Question

Ever since I can remember, if wanted to be apart of the armed forces. Up until now i've just played around with the Idea, but now that I'm 17 its starting to come clear that i need to make up my mind. I've already started talking to a National Guard (my cousin kind of tricked me in to it) recruiter and took the absvad, all I need to do is go to MEPs and get all that c**p done. Right now, Im not sure if I want to join the Guard, I've been thinking about backing out of the Guard and switching to the Marines. Here's my main reason, IF I join the Guard, I would want to 11B (infantry)..but im worried I wont be doing what i want to be doing...which is fighting. I dont know if Guard infantrymen are taken as seriously as say a Marine would be.

And if I do end up staying with the Guard, I told my recruiter that I wanted to do active duty and he said he would put me in "Active First"..which from my understanding is that they just put you in the Regular Army for 2 to 4 years and then you just come back and drill with guard after those 2 or 4 years is up. Which I wouldnt mind doing cause I want to try and get in Special Forces (If i dont switch to the marines) and you have to have infantry experience and that would be perfect.

this question isnt really a question, i just want some advice....what would you do if you in my shoes?

Answer 1

First off when I joined I knew I wanted to be a Marine but i still spoke to every branch before i signed my contract. When you do speak to a Army recruiter make sure he is an active duty recruiter. The decision is yours don't let a pushy recruiter convince you to make a decision that you don't want. As a Marine i of course favor my branch as the best but we are a different breed. If Special Forces are were you want to go then the army has the rangers and the airborne. were as a Marine you would only be guaranteed a job as an 03xx until approximately your 14th training day of SOI. at that point you would be designated as one of the following:

0311 Infantryman, 0331 Machinegunner, 0341 Mortarman,  0351 Assaultman and 0352 Anti-Tank Guided Missleman. and continue your training as one of those. As for special forces the Marine Corps has MARSOC and Force Recon but both of those are after you have served for a certain amount of time.

Whatever you chose its what you make it to be.

Good Luck

Answer 2

You should go to college and after that ,request OCS. That way you are a step ahead of other soldiers. I was enlisted for 12 years ,then i became a Commissioned Warrant Officer. It was the best move that i could have made within my military career. Being a Commissioned Officer will put you in responsible leadership positions that will be challenging.  There is a big difference in officer pay compared to enlisted pay. Go to Military.com and check out the pay charts. There is a saying in the army: Be All You Can Be!  

Answer 3

If you want to be active, go to a Regular Army recruiter.

They should be able to guarantee you 11X (infantry recruit) with Airborne and Ranger school in your contract.  That is about as hard core as you can get as a 17 year old.

Answer 4

Trust me- you are going to be fighting whether you join the Marines or the Army. Even in the guard you deploy to Afghanistan and Iraq very frequently. If you go active duty you will sign a 2 year, 4 year, or 6 year contract and be on active duty for that amount of time. Then- because you are a guy- when you get out you will have to serve 2-4 years on the guard. Either way you will get to have your chance to deploy and fight. Honestly, I have nothing against the Marine Corps but I think you should go Army. The Marines is a whole different breed and you would know for sure right now if you wanted to join that branch. Hope this helps! :)

Answer 5

I would say that if u want to be 11B, then don't join the guard at all, especially if u want to be a Special Forces candidate afterwards. the Guard is good but not necessarily for Special Forces.  But if you want to Fight, do Active Army as 11B for a while until u feel you are ready for special forces, cause i believe u need to be either E4(Specialist) or E5(Sergeant) before u can become a SF Candidate.

Also, if u decide to be an Officer of some kind, that's cool, but if u want to fight and u become an officer in the 11B field then u wont have much experience in the field... You'll train as a 2nd Lt. and when your put on the field you'll having training but no real experience. So, no experience, plus being in the field, fighting, then having others under your command might be a little to much. So i suggest being an NCO for a while before trying as an officer.

Answer 6

Stay away from the Guards...Either go full Army, or go Marines. I went Marines....the downfall is, if you go Marines, you can only choose your occupation field, not your exact MOS....If you go Army, you can choose your exact job...

Best Wishes!

Answer 7

dont join the Marines!!!