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-   -   Army reserve prospect... UPDATE: I made it!!!! (https://www.calguns.net/calgunforum/showthread.php?t=826515)

AregularGuy 09-20-2013 9:05 PM

Army reserve prospect... UPDATE: I made it!!!!
 
Hi all. I have been seriously considering a visit to a recruiter to discuss my prospects. 20 years ago I took the asvab and did the Army physical only to be told I have a red-green color deficiency. That meant I was qualified for about 5 jobs in the military. I was not interested at the time. Flash forward 20 years and I've still got the itch to serve. My circumstances are thankfully different now. I work in the healthcare field. I'm still very fit, no tats, drugs, or record. I'm mainly interested in joining the Army reserves. I'd appreciate any thoughts, ideas, guidance. If I did sign up, what should I expect during training, weekends, work, etc? If you need more details about my training or field of work send me a PM. Thanks in advance for your thoughtful comments.

brando 09-20-2013 11:28 PM

The Reserves without being prior service (ie having at least a few years of active duty) is pretty lame. You will never get the full "Army experience" and you'll probably never be tactically and technically proficient in your MOS. Still, the degree to which it's pretty lame depends mostly on what unit you pick (yes, you do that in the Reserves) and your MOS.

Since the post-Cold War Reserve/National Guard realignment, all of the combat arms units (for the most part) have been moved over to the NG. Reserves is primarily support so my guess is you'd have the best time in some kind of medivac unit doing flight medicine, which would be more exciting that being part of a combat support hospital, I would suspect. Don't write off the Air Force either, but ultimately the selection of units in your locale is what's likely to be your main limitation.

I would suggest talking to a recruiter at a minimum, but it pays to do your homework before you walk in the door.

PS. the minimum advice I always give everyone interested in joining the Army is make sure you have Airborne school in your contract. You can thank me later.

CBRN 09-20-2013 11:31 PM

It depends, how old are you? The age limit is 34 at the moment. Honestly, I would recommend you go Active Duty or Army National Guard. I'm currently a reservist, and I hate it. The Army Reserves is the lowest on the military totem pole, we get the oldest beat up gear, and the least funding. If I could do it all over, I would be active duty.

That aside, if you go through with either the NG or AR, you'll go to Basic and AIT which will range anywhere between 4 months to 1 year depending on your MOS. You'll be working one weekend a month, typically saturday and sunday, although some drills depending on your unit, may include a friday. You also have the yearly 2-3 week Annual Training.

During Basic Training expect a lot of yelling, physical activity, lack of sleep, buddy f**ckers, and no privacy.

Generally when you get back to your unit everything, it will be very relaxed, , random details, pretty much doing nothing.

Across the board in the Army, expect Death by PowerPoint, APFT every 90-180 days, Weapons Qual twice a year, lazy sh*tbags, overly motivated soldiers, LTs that don't know what they are doing, police calls, waking up early, and a host of other things.

DannyInSoCal 09-20-2013 11:35 PM

Check the thread about the CSMR - http://www.calguns.net/calgunforum/s...highlight=CSMR


Let me know if you have any questions.

I signed up at 46 - Similar eye issues kept me out if the Navy Nuke program when I was 19.....

brando 09-20-2013 11:47 PM

Last I heard, the age limit is 34 for first time enlistment and 42 for prior service.

baz152 09-21-2013 1:20 AM

Unless you took the ASVAB when you were fourteen, you are already timed out and that ship has set sail.

AregularGuy 09-21-2013 7:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by baz152 (Post 12366788)
Unless you took the ASVAB when you were fourteen, you are already timed out and that ship has set sail.

Thanks for all of the replies. From the literature I was sent it reads that 39 is the cut off or an age that would allow at least 20 years of service by age 60 With waivers possible. It also looks like allied health professionals are commissioned as officers. Again, this is according to the Army brochure. Not really looking for a good time, although i do have a bit of a wander lust. Just looking to do my patriotic duty. Any thoughts?

xhy 09-21-2013 8:34 AM

Army is now 35 (as of 1 Apr 11), Navy Reserve takes enlistments up to age 39. If you are a licensed physician and wish to join as an officer, you can be up to 46 years old.

Once you're past those age cutoffs, you will need to get a waiver.

Snoopy47 09-23-2013 6:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by xhy (Post 12367965)
Army is now 35 (as of 1 Apr 11), Navy Reserve takes enlistments up to age 39. If you are a licensed physician and wish to join as an officer, you can be up to 46 years old.

Once you're past those age cutoffs, you will need to get a waiver.


Yes, I signed at 38 on March 28, 2011. The age was changed as I was in the middle of my MEPS process, and my recruiter rushed to find me a slot "ANYWHERE".

I think it's a crap shoot regarding your experience in the service. I'm reserve, and have been on orders nearly every day since I got out of training. So I've nearly been active since I left for basic. With this deployment coming up I'll have locked in my time to get 100% of the Post 9/11 GI bill. I'm on my 3rd DD214 release form active ending this fiscal year.

Though it's sounding like I'll be on one of the last deployments available.

Sounds like you are too old unless you are a Chaplin, Doctor, or Lawyer.

Only recruiter can give you an accurate assessment. Ask other services, but be prepared to take anything you can get, and take it fast.

19K 09-23-2013 6:21 AM

theres even a chance you wont even be sent to your school for your job, or even bootcamp for that matter. 2 of my friends were reserve and it was at least 12 months before they went off to bootcamp AFTER they had started drilling with their units. their time consisted of sitting around in a stripped down uniform doing lower level tasks.

the red green color blind will still be an issue too.

AregularGuy 12-13-2013 7:36 PM

Ok. I am resurrecting this tread to mention I am meeting with a recruiter this weekend. Any suggested questions to ask? No offense to anyone here but most of the replies are regarding enlistment and basic traing, etc. The position I am looking at is very specific - physical therapist. I would be commissioned as an officer. Looks like it starts with approximately 6 weeks of classes about military protocol and role of the physical therapist in the military. That's as much as I have heard so far. Hopefully you good folks can give me some talking points to bring up during the discussion. Thanks.

Blitz 12-13-2013 8:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AregularGuy (Post 12979779)
Ok. I am resurrecting this tread to mention I am meeting with a recruiter this weekend. Any suggested questions to ask? No offense to anyone here but most of the replies are regarding enlistment and basic traing, etc. The position I am looking at is very specific - physical therapist. I would be commissioned as an officer. Looks like it starts with approximately 6 weeks of classes about military protocol and role of the physical therapist in the military. That's as much as I have heard so far. Hopefully you good folks can give me some talking points to bring up during the discussion. Thanks.

If you want to go officer make sure you go to an officer recruiter. enlisted recruiters will do everything they can to enlist you so make sure you like what you are signing for. I assume you have a bachelor's degree and you have a decent gpa. start preparing mentally and physically. the officer route is very competitive specially the reserves. prepare all your questions before meeting the recruiter and bring all your documents, passports birth certificate, marriage contracts etc... good luck!

AregularGuy 12-13-2013 8:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Blitz (Post 12979976)
If you want to go officer make sure you go to an officer recruiter. enlisted recruiters will do everything they can to enlist you so make sure you like what you are signing for. I assume you have a bachelor's degree and you have a decent gpa. start preparing mentally and physically. the officer route is very competitive specially the reserves. prepare all your questions before meeting the recruiter and bring all your documents, passports birth certificate, marriage contracts etc... good luck!

Thanks for the tips. I have the necessary qualifications for an Army PT. I am meeting with an amedd recruiter. Any specific questions you recommend?

Snoopy47 12-16-2013 3:45 PM

You will need to speak to a medical recruiter. Lawyers, Doctors, and Chaplains are handled differently.

I'll bet the recruiter you meet will pass you onto a specialist.

The reality is, your local generic recruiters are experts at enlisting recent high school grads with no criminal history, and can get through medical without a hitch. Anything outside of that challenges them.

AregularGuy 12-29-2013 4:38 PM

Well, I met with a medical recruiter. The meeting did not go well in my opinion. The person I met with was not prepared, less than professional, and did not really have much info for me. I would be happy to give more details in a pm if someone wants. Perhaps there are recruiters on here who can help.

catmman 12-29-2013 5:43 PM

I would really consider the Air Force Reserves. I did 20 and finished out in the Reserves. Air Force is the way to go especially for those in medical fields. I was never in the medical side but was always jealous I didn't.

LMTluvr 12-29-2013 6:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CBRN (Post 12366482)
It depends, how old are you? The age limit is 34 at the moment. Honestly, I would recommend you go Active Duty or Army National Guard. I'm currently a reservist, and I hate it. The Army Reserves is the lowest on the military totem pole, we get the oldest beat up gear, and the least funding. If I could do it all over, I would be active duty.

That aside, if you go through with either the NG or AR, you'll go to Basic and AIT which will range anywhere between 4 months to 1 year depending on your MOS. You'll be working one weekend a month, typically saturday and sunday, although some drills depending on your unit, may include a friday. You also have the yearly 2-3 week Annual Training.

During Basic Training expect a lot of yelling, physical activity, lack of sleep, buddy f**ckers, and no privacy.

Generally when you get back to your unit everything, it will be very relaxed, , random details, pretty much doing nothing.

Across the board in the Army, expect Death by PowerPoint, APFT every 90-180 days, Weapons Qual twice a year, lazy sh*tbags, overly motivated soldiers, LTs that don't know what they are doing, police calls, waking up early, and a host of other things.

Nailed it. Bravo sir. :)
That's the most accurate summary I've ever read lol

AregularGuy 12-29-2013 7:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by catmman (Post 13087841)
I would really consider the Air Force Reserves. I did 20 and finished out in the Reserves. Air Force is the way to go especially for those in medical fields. I was never in the medical side but was always jealous I didn't.

Thanks for the suggestion. I contacted them last week and will also contact Navy.

AregularGuy 01-11-2014 1:41 PM

For what it's worth I haven't heard from any of the recruiters I left messages for. That includes army, navy, air force. I guess they don't need any very well educated/qualified physical therapists. Even the army recruiter noted they had only filled 1/4 of the needed positions for the year. If anyone knows a professional recruiter with their stuff together that would like to talk please pm me. Thanks.

Cpl. Haas 01-11-2014 2:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AregularGuy (Post 13181882)
For what it's worth I haven't heard from any of the recruiters I left messages for. That includes army, navy, air force. I guess they don't need any very well educated/qualified physical therapists. Even the army recruiter noted they had only filled 1/4 of the needed positions for the year. If anyone knows a professional recruiter with their stuff together that would like to talk please pm me. Thanks.

Have you walked into the office yet? Phone calls generally don't get you anywhere...

AregularGuy 01-11-2014 2:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cpl. Haas (Post 13182196)
Have you walked into the office yet? Phone calls generally don't get you anywhere...

I did meet with the army recruiter. Drove from Oakland to San Mateo on a Sunday morning. I was ready. He was not. Very disappointing. And he was regular army, not reserve. I expected a more professional interaction. I have not heard from him since despite his promise to contact me to progress the process, background check, etc. I will take your suggestion and try offices for the other branches. It's hard for me to get there during the week so I was hoping to talk to someone and setup an appointment. I'll give it a shot. Thanks!

Cpl. Haas 01-11-2014 3:08 PM

There are Army, Air Force, Marine Corps, and Navy recruiting offices in the same building in Alameda... that's where I shipped from and the Navy recruiters were all stand-up guys.

Bobby Ricigliano 01-11-2014 4:17 PM

Good luck to the OP and I hope he enlists. I served 6 years in the Army Reserve with about 1.5 of that accumulated on AD. I had a great time.

I hope this thread doesn't turn out like the one from the guy who kept his 'I want to enlist' thread going for like 2 years and got endless amounts of advice from vets, recruiters, etc but then never followed through with it and just wasted everyone's time.

I was in my 20's and just walked into a USAR recruiter out of the blue and told him to sign me up. It was very easy. I got a good job that came with a signing bonus and went to a unit that went overseas for training every year. We traveled a lot and went to Korea, Germany, Thailand, and deployed to GTMO for a year.

The only 'demand' I had when I enlisted was to sign me up quick and ship me out to BCT quickly before I wussed out. I think from cold-calling the recruiter until ship date was about 3-4 weeks or so.

SuperSet 01-11-2014 5:24 PM

I don't think it's a good idea. War time operational tempo is over meaning welcome to garrison life. It's a bad time to join up, especially as all the branches are looking to cut personnel.
There are other ways to serve.
Best of luck.

pterrell 01-11-2014 5:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SuperSet (Post 13183242)
I don't think it's a good idea. War time operational tempo is over meaning welcome to garrison life. It's a bad time to join up, especially as all the branches are looking to cut personnel.
There are other ways to serve.
Best of luck.

This. If there is anything wrong with you, drugs, dui, excessive tattoos, whatever, you won't get in. All of the branches are looking for reasons to cut people out and not let others in. I remember when they stopped taking GEDs without college credit. Last I heard you can't enlist with a highschool diploma without college credit. It's getting tougher and tougher.

If you can get in then more power to you. I would go active rather than reserves. More chances to travel and get the true experience but your situation may dictate otherwise. Best of luck!

AregularGuy 01-11-2014 5:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bobby Ricigliano (Post 13182785)
Good luck to the OP and I hope he enlists. I served 6 years in the Army Reserve with about 1.5 of that accumulated on AD. I had a great time.

I hope this thread doesn't turn out like the one from the guy who kept his 'I want to enlist' thread going for like 2 years and got endless amounts of advice from vets, recruiters, etc but then never followed through with it and just wasted everyone's time.

I was in my 20's and just walked into a USAR recruiter out of the blue and told him to sign me up. It was very easy. I got a good job that came with a signing bonus and went to a unit that went overseas for training every year. We traveled a lot and went to Korea, Germany, Thailand, and deployed to GTMO for a year.

The only 'demand' I had when I enlisted was to sign me up quick and ship me out to BCT quickly before I wussed out. I think from cold-calling the recruiter until ship date was about 3-4 weeks or so.

I appreciate your sentiments. I was ready to commit last month but my meeting did not go well. Hopefully I will have better news in the coming weeks or I will not update. You are correct, I have all of the advice I need right here: go into a recruiting office. I think there is a distinction between standard and medical recruiters. At least that's the impression I got from the army AMEDD folks. I could be wrong but I'll give the various offices a shot. Thanks everyone for your input.

Cpl. Haas 01-12-2014 8:09 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SuperSet (Post 13183242)
I don't think it's a good idea. War time operational tempo is over meaning welcome to garrison life. It's a bad time to join up, especially as all the branches are looking to cut personnel.
There are other ways to serve.
Best of luck.

This is where branch and job becomes important... look into technical fields; not door-kicking fields. You're older, so life experience and maturity really aren't qualities you need to pursue... technical training and benefits are higher priorities for you right now. My rate is still very active and pays a lot of money in per diem to deploy... only effect of budget cuts to hit us is that it's damn near impossible for me to get a new flightsuit when I need it because supply is out of $.

JGalt 01-12-2014 5:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pterrell (Post 13183294)
...If there is anything wrong with you, drugs, dui, excessive tattoos, whatever, you won't get in. All of the branches are looking for reasons to cut people out and not let others in. I remember when they stopped taking GEDs without college credit. Last I heard you can't enlist with a highschool diploma without college credit. It's getting tougher and tougher.

I had this problem a few years ago, and wasn't able to go active duty. I am sure it is much harder now, even for part time.

There are a couple other options though, including the State Military Reserve, and the State Militia's. It's all volunteer though, which some people complain about. I guess it depends on your desire to serve. The plus side of it is there are no 4 year contracts to sign :)

AregularGuy 01-12-2014 6:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pterrell (Post 13183294)
This. If there is anything wrong with you, drugs, dui, excessive tattoos, whatever, you won't get in. All of the branches are looking for reasons to cut people out and not let others in. I remember when they stopped taking GEDs without college credit. Last I heard you can't enlist with a highschool diploma without college credit. It's getting tougher and tougher.

If you can get in then more power to you. I would go active rather than reserves. More chances to travel and get the true experience but your situation may dictate otherwise. Best of luck!


Thanks for the info. I remember when I was 18 they hounded me to join, now I can't even get them on the phone! I'm definitely clean, no tats, get up early and exercise every day. I'm well educated in my field. Not sure what more they'd be looking for.

AregularGuy 09-09-2014 7:30 PM

UPDATE: This is for anyone in the medical field, particularly physical therapists, contemplating "applying".

Hi all. I'm reviving this necropost to say that my application is in the works. I finally got back on track with a medical recruiter. What an ordeal! When I started out the application process I couldn't find any PT's in the military to guide me in the process. First off, they have to have an opening. The AF only has maybe 1 opening every 4-5 years according to the recruiter. So Army it is. They only go through recruiting/application review process once a year, at least for PT's. You submit a C.V., all of your transcripts, copies of degrees, certifications, con ed, birth certificate, passport, PT license. That gets review by a panel of your peers to see if you qualify. All of this before the physical and all of the rest.
My application materials are in and next step is peer review. I believe the final closing of recruiting happens in February. Now i wait to hear from them.

Gawernator 09-11-2014 6:39 AM

Did you fail the lantern color test, or the book? I failed the book but passed two the bulb lantern test with the minimum score (you can only miss one) and kept my job.

AregularGuy 09-11-2014 7:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gawernator (Post 14853045)
Did you fail the lantern color test, or the book? I failed the book but passed two the bulb lantern test with the minimum score (you can only miss one) and kept my job.

Hmm, I only remember the book (colored swirled dots that you're supposed to be able to discern numbers from) I don't remember the bulb test. That was 22 years ago. I have not yet taken the current physical, they have to decide if my resume is acceptable. For what it's worth I am not enlisting I will be commissioned if they "hire" me. I'm not sure if the physical requirements are different between the two.

ARgomez 09-11-2014 8:00 AM

Excuse my grammar.

When I went to take my IST for The Marines. There was a seprate group that were going for OCS they had to take the actual PFT to qualify.

AregularGuy 09-11-2014 8:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ARgomez (Post 14853477)
Excuse my grammar.

When I went to take my IST for The Marines. There was a seprate group that were going for OCS they had to take the actual PFT to qualify.

Sorry, I'm new to the lingo. Not sure about the above acronyms, ist, pft, etc.

ARgomez 09-11-2014 9:12 AM

Initial strength test
Physical fitness test.

AregularGuy 09-11-2014 9:28 AM

Got it. Thanks. I should be able to manage. I'm 40 but still in good shape!

Gawernator 09-11-2014 11:59 AM

I wouldn't be worried, the physical standards become increasingly low after 30+....

The "lantern" is really old school, it's two bulbs in a box that light up either red, green or white. You just say what color the bulbs are. You can miss one out of 20 and pass. I really got lucky with them letting me take the alternate test, it's probably because it was at basic where I had to do it. Somehow I barely passed the book at MEPS.

Mr.Caketown 09-17-2014 1:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gawernator (Post 14854837)
I wouldn't be worried, the physical standards become increasingly low after 30+....

The "lantern" is really old school, it's two bulbs in a box that light up either red, green or white. You just say what color the bulbs are. You can miss one out of 20 and pass. I really got lucky with them letting me take the alternate test, it's probably because it was at basic where I had to do it. Somehow I barely passed the book at MEPS.

lol yeah they do ... you basically get a 17:00 minute 2 mile time which is a cakewalk for anyone heatlhy

AregularGuy 11-29-2014 3:08 PM

Hi all. Time for an update. I'm keeping this thread alive in case anyone else needs the info. I had no reference when I started this process and there is little to nil info on the web on the extent of the process for physical therapists. As it turns out the panel that reviews physical therapist applicants meets once a year in February. The recruiter and I have been working on getting my records together. My CV has been reviewed, next step is my medical record review. My experience will place me as a captain if I am accepted. I'm eager to be done with the application process. Hopefully there will be good news from the panel in February.

anthonyca 11-29-2014 3:25 PM

Good luck. It's amazing how many **** bags we had and some good people can't get in.


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