Is Marine Corps Infantry Right For Me?

[M16A1]

Hello, my name is Braden and I am currently a 17 year old senior in HS.
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I have decided that I do not wish to continue onto college, at least not yet anyway, and I have decided that I'm going to pursue a career in the military and do so on the enlisted side. I have weighed the pro's and con's of each branch and have narrowed it down to the Marine Corps & the Army. I have also done a lot of research on different MOS's and decided that infantry is probably the best fit for me. Now, what is the point in my question you are probably asking? Well, what I'm asking is for some input on:
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1. Is Infantry a good path?
2. How long could I feasibly sustain a career on the enlisted side, especially infantry?
3. If I do decide that a college degree is something that I want, what would my chances of getting accepted into OCS be?
4. What are the promotion possibilities past E-3 when it gets highly competitive?
5. I'm sure you hear day in and day out about these wanna be MARSOC/Ranger/PJ/Navy SEALs, but if after a few years I decided that Force Recon is something that I wish to pursue, what are my chances of even getting a chance to try out?
6. I live in Kansas and fall to the left of the Mississippi, so I would be sent to San Diego for Boot Camp correct?
7. What would be some incentives to not just go Army Infantry w/ Airborne School in my contract, than to go the Marine Corps route?
8. For whatever reason I am pretty set on Marine Corps, but I think that there may be better opportunities available to me in the Army path.
9. I scored an 87 on my ASVAB, and after some quick calculating I think I'm above a 110 GT Score, so that opens up basically every MOS I could want correct?
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I apologize if these are just regurgitated questions that have been answered before, and I know for a fact that pretty much every single one of these questions is available online as I have looked them up. But I also would like to hear some of your answers, as every time I look up these questions I find something that contradicts the information I just read.
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Thank You In Advance.

[Tennessee Top]

Won't be much help to you. Did not have an infantry MOS, and never served in the Army (can't compare opportunities in the Army with the USMC). Can't comment on your chances to try out for Force Recon at some point. I do know infantry Marines can try out for Recon (you can also get Recon in your contract).

Opportunities for acceptance to OCS later will be highly competitive and extremely limited. There are possibilities with the Marine Enlisted Commissioning Program (MECEP). There also is the Warrant Officer Program for enlisted Marines.

Promotions are different for each MOS field. So, your promotion potential after E3 will depend on what MOS you have. Some fields historically promote faster than others. Infantry has a reputation for slow promotion. There are things one can do to add to their promotion potential (raise their rifle score, physical/combat fitness score, off duty education, etc). Embassy Marines automatically have points added to their composite score for promotion (as an incentive).

Yes. You would be sent to MCRD San Diego for bootcamp. This policy is to cut down on transportation costs.

Yes. GT above 110 is a high score. Officer programs require a minimum GT of 110 to be eligible. Your recruiter can tell you what MOS's you qualify for. Besides the ASVAB score, some MOS's require a higher security clearance.

[03GyRene]

I decided inHigh School that I wanted to be a Marine, but was thinking about becoming anofficer. I had a full ride NROTC scholarship (which I passed up because I wasyoung and really dumb). So I enlisted, thinking I would eventually get into the MECEPprogram. I just didn’t feel ready for college yet. Well, to make a long storyshort, I enlisted for infantry, got my MOS (0311), and loved my job as arifleman (and grenadier, and AR man, and fire-team leader, squad leader etc.)so much I didn’t want to leave, so the officer thing never happened. I likedthe infantry. My only regret is not staying in for 20. My advice is, if youhave any intention of going to college, do it FIRST…it gets a lot morecomplicated after you enlist. As far as whether to go into the Marines or intothe Army? That’s a no-brainer!
Semper Fi.

[M16A1]

Thank You both for the information. Regarding the straight into Recon training after basic, I dont know if it something I want to do yet and don't think I'll know until I've been in for a while and done some growing up. So I dont think I'm going to try and get it into my contract.

[M16A1]

Also have no desire to go, fail, and then get cast into the "needs of the force" and be stuck in an MOS I hate...

[Tennessee Top]

FYI. Marines don't go to basic training - they go to bootcamp. Soldiers (Army) go to basic training.

[Erich08]

Don't they offer Marines at SOI the chance to go recon when they have spots they need to fill? I know a couple of Marines in the air wing that shipped with recon contracts and were dropped for various reasons and then ended up with Ordnance contracts.

[Tennessee Top]

Don't know about SOI. Once one is dropped from Recon training, they are automatically classified as open contract and will be reclassified based on the needs of the Marine Corps. Don't know if their enlistment contract states that, but their recruiter should make sure they understand that and are good with it before signing on the dotted line. As we all know, Recon training has a high attrition rate for myriad reasons.

[M16A1]

Apologizes on the Boot Camp/Basic Training slip up. And yes, that is why I don't want to get it in my contract and end up with an open contract if I was to fail.

[03Mike]

For what it's worth - whenever I talk with someone who is interested in Recon/MARSOC/etc, my advice is always: Get your MOS training and experience first - then seek to get into Recon or whatever once you've proven yourself in your MOS.

This also allows you to determine I you're really interested in recon/MARSOC once you get a taste of the real Marine Corps and not just he appearance that you get from the outside

[crazymjb]

I never was highspeed, but I loved my time as a grunt. Also, stereotypes about grunts being dumb are incorrect... just in case you catch flak from people for that based on your ASVAB score and so fourth. Some of the most motivated dudes in the military, both army and Marines, are going in with the exclusive goal of being infantrymen.

As far as recon, I'd encourage you to wait until you've been in at least a little while and then try to make an indoc work. You also may decide you want to do something else, whether it is just stay with your company or try for STA (scout snipers), etc.

Mike

[03GyRene]

As far as recon, I'd encourage you to wait until you've been in at least a little while and then try to make an indoc work. You also may decide you want to do something else, whether it is just stay with your company or try for STA (scout snipers), etc.

Mike

I agree. I ended up in STA platoon but had never heard of them when I first enlisted. I'm not sure why everyone these days wants to be special ops, but 0311 infantry is the best job you'll ever have.

[madinfidel]

I started 0311 and loved it, and had no idea how bad I would miss it once I became 2336. Now I loved EOD and all the guys I was with but nothing is better than being a young 0311. I was able to work with a lot of guys through deployments and some were MARSOC from time to time. Great group of guys, but you give me a bunch of doors to go through with standard issue 0311s and you're in for a good time. The bottom line with all Marines whether MARSOC or not is that we NEVER quit. MARSOC prides themselves in this but I never served with any Marines that laid down. EVER

[crazymjb]

I'm partial to being an 0331 in a weapons company. Why walk when you can ride?

Mike

[Mongoose]

I was an 0331 walking gunner. The only time we ever rode was into combat.

[LordViper]

I was 0311. Went to Camp Geiger ITS (Infantry Training School) is what it was called back in the 80's. My unit was the first to be assigned the SAW M249. Infantry is hardest work you'll ever do. We worked 100 hours per week minimum. Humped everywhere, always trained in the rain and mud Lejune. Came back to the barracks covered in chiggers, ticks and leaches. Smelled like a sewer, looked like sh!t and hated and loved every minute of it. I was so f**king strong, so proud and I felt so lethal. I was deployed to Europe and trained with Delta Force, CIA, Navy Seals, British Royals Marines, French Foreign Legionnaires and did some fantastic stuff that only an infantry Marine will ever do. The heart of the Marines is in the infantry. The infantry is not for every Marine. Are you infantry material? If you hit yourself with a hammer because it feels good when you stop, maybe your are. If you thrive on pain and discomfort, then the infantry has plenty of it. When I got out I spent 6 months living in the woods just to decompress before I went back home to Michigan. I would not trade it for anything in the world. Life is so much easier after the infantry. Nearly 30 years later I still have the huge calf muscles that I got from carrying that 45 lbs ALICE pack and PRC 77 Radio through the mountains of Europe and the swamps of Lejune. 0311 Go Devil Dogs!!!

[DaShadow]

I was 0311. I was deployed to Europe and trained with Delta Force, CIA, Navy Seals, British Royals Marines, French Foreign Legionnaires and did some fantastic stuff that only an infantry Marine will ever do. 0311 Go Devil Dogs!!!

Well, I'd guess you take the "High Speed - Low Drag" award for this year.....LOL

[LordViper]

Well, it was a lot fun - but it was also a safer time, not like today. I suppose it is nothing compared to what Marines have been doing for the last decade and half. For me it was a rush. For the Marines of today, perhaps it would be a snooze by comparison. My point is that the infantry allowed me to do things that I would not have been able to do in another MOS.

SF

[M Ali]

At SOI West at the moment so maybe I can offer better insight to your recon questions, I can also ask my SoG as he was a combat instructor and other combat instructors around me. I'm 03XX, I saw the guys that were contract 0321's from my company in bootcamp, they separated the recons from the general 03's upon arrival at ITB and by the end of their reception week we had people returning to us. To the best of my knowledge the way it works is the first 4 weeks are MCT that 03XX's and 0321's do. After the 4 weeks 03XX's continue with their respective training in regards to what specific MOS they have. Whereas the 0321's do not continue "Infantry" training so to speak like the 03XX's, they instead continue more advanced "Recon" training. If a 0321 drops out of during their "Recon" training, they are reclassified into a non 03 mos because they didnt complete "Infantry" training. If they drop out before "Recon" training, during the 4 weeks of MCT training, their chances are high that they would be reclassified into an 03 mos provided a training company is available to pick them up. At the moment training companies are backed up and Marine's are waiting in reception to pick up with a training company.