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Calgunners in Service This forum is a place for our active duty and deployed members to share, request and have a bit of home where ever they are.

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  #1  
Old 07-16-2017, 6:31 AM
JMercer JMercer is offline
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Default Transferring branches

Any one have experience or advice on transferring from enlisted active duty in one branch to enlisted active duty in another branch? More specifically USMC to USCG.
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Old 07-16-2017, 9:04 AM
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Any one have experience or advice on transferring from enlisted active duty in one branch to enlisted active duty in another branch? More specifically USMC to USCG.
I was going to go to army officer candidate school. Had to be discharged from navy first. Ended up not going that route. This was back in 91. Doubt the rules have not changed since then.
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Old 07-17-2017, 9:04 AM
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Originally Posted by JMercer View Post
Any one have experience or advice on transferring from enlisted active duty in one branch to enlisted active duty in another branch? More specifically USMC to USCG.
Can't help your specific route, but generally going from any other service to the Army is pretty easy assuming you finish your original obligation and MOS's line up.

I've only seen it done at E5 and below without any problems with having to take a hit on pay grade.
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Old 07-17-2017, 11:02 AM
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Thanks for the help so far
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Old 07-18-2017, 1:34 PM
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I went from the USMC to the Army back in the 90's. Though I was out for about 15 months before I re-upped. You will have to go though the whole process to enter the CG after you EAS from the USMC.

Go speak with the USCG recruiter. You won't be the first re-tread they see. They will be able to tell you exactly what they can do.

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Old 07-18-2017, 2:25 PM
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Thanks jasheb. I've emailed him but have yet to get a response. Nearest on is San Diego so I plan on making a quick trip down there as soon as I can to see them in person.
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Old 07-18-2017, 2:52 PM
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Long out with no experience transferring branches (let alone departments), just wanted to wish you the best in the USCG!

Semper Paratus
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Old 07-18-2017, 5:23 PM
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Any one have experience or advice on transferring from enlisted active duty in one branch to enlisted active duty in another branch? More specifically USMC to USCG.
It will not be a problem. I went from USMC to CA Army National Guard. My active duty time was up but technically I was still in the Marine Reserves but that was no problem.

Any reason to Coast Guard?
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Old 07-19-2017, 12:50 AM
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Originally Posted by JMercer View Post
Any one have experience or advice on transferring from enlisted active duty in one branch to enlisted active duty in another branch? More specifically USMC to USCG.
Just goto your local CG recruiter with your DD214 from the USMC. Talk to them. It shouldn't be that difficult aside from high enough ASVAB scores. We had a lot of Navy and Marine folks in the CG. I worked with a couple. They said it was very easy to switch. You will lose a stripe coming over though. Keep that in mind.
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Old 07-19-2017, 7:44 AM
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Make sure you know all the regs and rules. They're different in every branch, and the CG has some very specific requirements. One of my sergeants was planning on going to the Coast Guard after he got off of active duty (top notch soldier, Airborne Infantryman with several combat tours... even went to the Combat Divers Qualification Course and wanted to be a rescue swimmer in the Coast Guard... right before he ETSed and transferred over, they shot him down because of his tattoos. He had more or less full sleeves, but everything was fine by Army standards... not so much in the Coast Guard. The recruiter wouldn't even talk about a waiver or anything else. Just said "Sorry man..." and cut him off.

All that said, my cousin is a Coastie and loves it. He just pinned on Chief and is stationed in Key West. Lots of cool drug interdiction missions.
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Old 07-19-2017, 9:46 AM
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Originally Posted by Che762x39 View Post

Any reason to Coast Guard?
Couple of reasons. Currently I work on satcom gear but would like to transition to maritime communications if I stay in this field. Would also like to be way more involved in law enforcement, humanitarian aid or search and rescue. CG seems like it could be the best opportunity to expand my experience while still working towards a possibility of retirement. 4 years in and 1 left to go and I've never left Cali. CG has a lot more possibilities of stations. As well as closer to home which is Michigan.

Last edited by JMercer; 07-19-2017 at 9:51 AM..
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Old 07-19-2017, 9:50 AM
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We had a lot of Navy and Marine folks in the CG. I worked with a couple. They said it was very easy to switch. You will lose a stripe coming over though. Keep that in mind.
Thanks for that. Been wondering about that but it's nice to confirm. Figured the rank loss won't matter if it means I stay in for more years in the long run. Wife's a bit apprehensive though. Gonna go talk to the recruiter together.
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Old 07-19-2017, 11:41 AM
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I served with quite a few ex-Marines who upgraded to Coast Guard service during my years in the guard. They were all top notch folks and served well.

You have to keep in mind that each service is quite different, and the Marine Corps and Coast Guard are kinda at opposite ends of the scale. Make sure that you know what you're getting into, and once you make the change, make sure you accomplish the cultural change. "Oorah" has got to leave your vocabulary. Replace it with "Cool".

The ability to transition will vary based on your MOS and the needs of the Coast Guard. You'll need a recruiter to guide you through the process. CG recruiters are quite different from the other services. They simply don't "recruit." They "gatekeep." For the entire time that I was in, they always had many more candidates than openings. To a CG recruiter a "quota" was a limit on how many people they could bring in. My first challenge with my recruiter was to convince him that I was serious and worth his time. I didn't have to do that when I spoke with the Navy and Marine recruiters.

Most of the other service folks had to give up at least one pay grade to make the transition. That's not entirely a bad thing. Your learning mistakes are more easily forgiven in lower grades, and you'll have more time before you have to deal with high year tenure retention issues.

Choose your rating well. It's hard to change, and CG advancement is very dependent on rating. Some move up fast, others you almost need to assassinate an E-7 in order to make E-6.

Good Luck, Semper Paratus...
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Old 07-23-2017, 3:48 AM
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Originally Posted by JMercer View Post
Thanks for that. Been wondering about that but it's nice to confirm. Figured the rank loss won't matter if it means I stay in for more years in the long run. Wife's a bit apprehensive though. Gonna go talk to the recruiter together.
You may lose a stripe but with needs of the service I saw some E5s come over as E5s from the Navy and advanced quickly. But most of the time they lost a stripe.

My last duty station I had a Marine that used to work on tanks. He lateraled over to a damage control man or engineer on a ship. He could have went MK as well.

Just keep in mind when I retired they started up the higher tenure again.. so keep this in mind.
https://www.uscg.mil/announcements/a...15_ALCOAST.txt


Rick is correct about some rates. Aviation rate advancements are very slow. Sometimes they make 3-10 E7s in a year. Plus once you hit E6 you can only test once a year for 7, 8 and 9. E4-E6 you get two shots a year. I remember a buddy of mine that was an E8 that wrote number 1 for E9 and didn't advance for 3 years. Each year he took the SWE and was number 1 of 19 but did not advance. When he finally advanced he retired after 1 year as a 9. He came in after 1980 and was on the high 3 and should have done 2 more at 9 but he was ready to leave so his retirement pay will be his years of service plus an average of 2 years at 8 and one at 9.

My last bit of advice is once you hit 15 years of service do not take the redux. It's just not worth it unless you are staying for 30 and making 9 or CWO.

Last edited by Endless; 07-23-2017 at 3:59 AM..
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Old 07-23-2017, 7:42 AM
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Choose your rating well. It's hard to change, and CG advancement is very dependent on rating.
Is this pretty similar to how one would choose an MOS in the Marines? Or is it a different process all together?

I'm a digital wideband repairer(satcom tech) so I was looking at the electronics technician rating. Though I'd prefer gunners mate.

Last edited by JMercer; 07-23-2017 at 8:38 AM..
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Old 07-23-2017, 8:44 AM
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Just keep in mind when I retired they started up the higher tenure again.
https://www.uscg.mil/announcements/a...15_ALCOAST.txt
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My last bit of advice is once you hit 15 years of service do not take the redux. It's just not worth it unless you are staying for 30 and making 9 or CWO.
Any idea on how the new blended retirement system will affect this if I opt in now? Is the CG even part of this?
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Old 07-23-2017, 2:51 PM
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Is this pretty similar to how one would choose an MOS in the Marines? Or is it a different process all together?

I'm a digital wideband repairer(satcom tech) so I was looking at the electronics technician rating. Though I'd prefer gunners mate.
MOS is pretty much the same as rating in the CG. You can go ET or GM. GM wait is much shorter. It was like 12-14 months last time I was in. Not long at all.

Sounds like IT may be the rate to go. They have office jobs and do a lot of communications upgrades with network upgrades and computer updates. They also work on our Secret and Top Secret databases.

Last edited by Endless; 07-23-2017 at 2:55 PM..
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Old 07-23-2017, 2:54 PM
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Any idea on how the new blended retirement system will affect this if I opt in now? Is the CG even part of this?
Blended retirement starts 01JAN18 for the CG. Yes they are part of it. So if you go now then you should have the option of the 401K type plan (still need to confirm with CG recruiter because things change monthly in the CG) or what I left with is the pay you every month plan. You have the choice of either but I heard that the new blended will primarily affect folks entering the service from boot as E1 or E2s or Academy grads 01s. Folks already in will have the choice to choose at their 20 year mark. One of my good friends is a CWO3 and is at 26 years and he has the choice at 30. He is going for CWO4 and 30 years which will give him 75% at that point. He wont have to work again. Granted he will be 47 years old but he can sit back and relax and not worry about anything.

Keep in mind, and its no big deal to me, that if we goto war and you're retired they can reactivate you as per needs of the service if you are under the age of 60 and can still work. I saw it happen after 911. For some folks its a huge deal. I saw CHP officers get reactivated and they could not refuse, even as a detective. They didnt like that but tough ****. They are still part of the CG even if they retired at 20 years and Uncle Sam needs them in time of war. Thats how it goes.

Last edited by Endless; 07-23-2017 at 3:01 PM..
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  #19  
Old 07-23-2017, 7:55 PM
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Originally Posted by jmsenk View Post
Make sure you know all the regs and rules. They're different in every branch, and the CG has some very specific requirements. One of my sergeants was planning on going to the Coast Guard after he got off of active duty (top notch soldier, Airborne Infantryman with several combat tours... even went to the Combat Divers Qualification Course and wanted to be a rescue swimmer in the Coast Guard... right before he ETSed and transferred over, they shot him down because of his tattoos. He had more or less full sleeves, but everything was fine by Army standards... not so much in the Coast Guard. The recruiter wouldn't even talk about a waiver or anything else. Just said "Sorry man..." and cut him off.

All that said, my cousin is a Coastie and loves it. He just pinned on Chief and is stationed in Key West. Lots of cool drug interdiction missions.
How long ago was this? The only tattoo restrictions are for hands, neck, and face. Full sleeves above the wrist is g2g.
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Old 07-29-2017, 5:28 PM
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How long ago was this? The only tattoo restrictions are for hands, neck, and face. Full sleeves above the wrist is g2g.
This was the end of 2009. All of his tats were good by Army standards (no Nazi stuff or anything like that) and while he was pretty much covered in tattoos, anything on hands neck or face would have caused issues in the Army too.

All of this is also coming second hand - I didn't go talk to the recruiter, but I know he was dead set on it coming out of the Army, and all of a sudden, nothing. Tattoos was the reason he told me, and I took him at his word. Stellar record, so I don't know what else it would have been.
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Old 07-31-2017, 8:54 AM
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This was the end of 2009. All of his tats were good by Army standards (no Nazi stuff or anything like that) and while he was pretty much covered in tattoos, anything on hands neck or face would have caused issues in the Army too.

All of this is also coming second hand - I didn't go talk to the recruiter, but I know he was dead set on it coming out of the Army, and all of a sudden, nothing. Tattoos was the reason he told me, and I took him at his word. Stellar record, so I don't know what else it would have been.
The CG is a tough branch to get into. All recruiters have a maximum amount of recruits they are allow to bring in each year. Some regions the cap is set to 1 recruit per year. Too much time in service could have been a factor as well. There are a lot of hard and fast disqualifiers but even then the recruiter can turn someone down based on very subjective reasonings that they do not have to divulge. It really comes down to if the recruiter wants to push it through.
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Old 10-13-2017, 8:52 PM
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Definitely right about how hard it is to get into the CG. It's almost like a job application rather than volunteering.
I assume it's because the coasties are part of homeland security and you will be required at some point to get a secret clearance from them (different than the ones issued by DoD.)
Which brings me to my other point...you're a maritime law enforcement officer on an enlisted pay scale....I mean I'd rather get paid on the civilian pay scale for doing the same work.
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