Open Beds w/ Desired Designation

[SabreJack]

Good evening all,

My wife is pregnant, and I am looking to leave to MCRDSD asafp. My ship date is scheduled for the 16th of Nov, about 3 weeks before the baby is due. I would like to be gone and graduated from Boot Camp before the baby is born. Ideally, I would like to have all of my individual schooling completed before the baby is born but that is definitely out of the question. I have been talking with my recruiter, he said that he could try to get me out of here by the end of July, but he would have to switch my slot with a kid/poolee from a different station and keep the MOS that I selected at MEPS (02XX). However, my recruiter is on leave, and the recruiter from the other station is filling in currently. He said that there is virtually no way for me to leave until the end of the fiscal year (Oct 1st) and keep my job designation. But my recruiter told me that since everything is so full right now, that they are looking to disenroll poolees who do not meet minimum physical standards (specifically the ability to do 5+ pullups). He said that after this goes into effect, there will be spots open left and right. On the one hand, I have no doubt that there is some degree of truth to this, on the other hand, im not sure how much is being passed down the grapevine and how much is official. QUESTION #1: How much faith can I put in this, if any, how soon will this go into effect? The "substitute" recruiter from the other region said that they could put me at the top of the standby list and ship me out "tomorrow, if the conditions are right." He said that if i shipped under these circumstances, it would be virtually impossible for me to get any combat arms, and any intel job designation (unless i went reserve-which is not an option). QUESTION #2: If you could assign a number, if i elected to go onto the standby list, what are the chances that i would ship under my job designation? I was told that all of the individual school slots are at capacity (but sounded like they might be able to make some magic happen) for the 02XX designation until the end of the fiscal year. QUESTION #3: If i jump to the top of the standby list, is there any way of waiting to go to individual training (by maybe doing recruiter's assistant) until they have an open spot; my uncle is a Staff Sergeant and recently completed a tour as a recruiter. I do not get to talk to him much but he told me to do everything in my power to avoid RA. QUESTION #4: Why should I avoid RA (our conversation was cut short so I never got to ask)?

Im really at a loss, I hate my job, Im in debt, and I have a baby on the way. Im trying to get everything taken care of by leaving to Boot Camp and getting back as soon as possible. I am a military brat, so I don't want to get the run-around on this whole MOS designation--I want to join the Marine Corps under my terms (more or less) and i feel like i will not be doing that by getting an MOS code as a supply clerk or something similar. Can anyone offer any kind of insight/advice?

[marine95]

SabreJack, <br />
I'll try to hit what I can. I was a Recruiter from Aug 04-Oct 06. That Recruiting Station will not discharge poolees just because they can't do 5+ pull-ups. The min that you need to do is...

[Sergeant M]

Join the Army and get a bonus.

[Marine84]

Im really at a loss, I hate my job, Im in debt, and I have a baby on the way. Im trying to get everything taken care of by leaving to Boot Camp and getting back as soon as possible. I am a military brat, so I don't want to get the run-around on this whole MOS designation--I want to join the Marine Corps under my terms (more or less) and i feel like i will not be doing that by getting an MOS code as a supply clerk or something similar. Can anyone offer any kind of insight/advice?

And you think you'll get out of debt by joining the Corps? And join under your terms? Are you kidding?

You're trying to do this for ALL the wrong reasons.

[NoRemorse]

Then get another job. Get a side job. Apply for federal aid for vocational training. Work on your education.

You're a military brat so you should know that the Corps doesn't need you, but you will be subjected to the needs of the Corps.

Close your eyes, spin around, open them back up and reorient yourself, your priorities are plumb off, period. You're about to have your own honest to God family, are in a crappy financial situation and you hate your job. Welcome to life as an adult. Learn to cope or break down.

Your current situation does not indicate that you need to enlist, it indicates you need to get your mind right. If you think honorable service in any capacity is diminished by your inability to get the MOS you want then you're an idiot. If you're looking for job training, go elsewhere; join the rest of the 10%ers in another branch.

You can get all that in the Corps but you'll earn so much more and give back more as well. You need to understand that before you sign any other enlistment contracts.

[TJR1070]

Priorities.... you probably should have been honest with yourself about your priorities. If your priority is to be there when your wife gives birth than maybe this isn't the time you should be enlisting in the Marine Corps. The Marine Corps priorities are mission accomplishment and if they do match your priorities than that is purely coincidental.

[SabreJack]

Since I have being blasted by all but one Marine in this response, and after talking to several Marines in chat, I have pulled together some additional information on other OccFld's. I have been doing this since the time i originally posted this thread, and I have many more questions for my recruiter in order to try to get me to San Diego by the end of the month.

I realize that I do not need to earn any participant on this site's favor, but I do want to apologize if I came across as whiny, crying, and immature. Furthermore, it would not be right to make excuses, but it has not been easy lately with my wife in and out of the hospital due to pregnancy complications. Thank you for all the "support" and advice. It is good to see another perspective and an attitude readjustment was definitely in order. Thank you for the eloquently worded perspective you have all given me. This is not a subtle shot at sarcasm, but genuine honesty. Thank you.

As for alternate MOS choices, I am looking into 26XX OccFld. I have also found lots of information on 05XX field as well, and I believe that with the information I have found, that I would like to do that way more than anything (with exception of CounterIntel Specialist) in the 02XX OccFld.

My standing question:

My uncle told me that those who do not make it as a MAGTF Planner, get rolled into the 065X field. However, he has not been a recruiter and does not have access to the most recent data anymore. I have found nothing to verify this statement with, and was wondering why the Marine Corps would pick that MOS specifically as opposed to say...just about anything else.

If any of you have any information regarding this, it would be greatly appreciated.

[Old Marine]

You say that you have a lot of debt. The Marine Corps does not need you nor do you need the Corps. The Corps really frowns on Marines who get in over their head and the letters start coming in from credit companies. Maybe you should find another job or see a credit doctor.

[Zulu 36]

You aren't really being "blasted." I've seen much worse for less. What you are getting is a dose of reality and a dose of the attitude of Marines towards people who join for the wrong reasons and can't/won't meet their Marine Corps obligations.

Do you realize how little a private or PFC really makes? Sure, you'll get BAH (or quarters) and BAS, but you also have required expenses from your base pay (along with tax and FICA withholding). You have to pay for uniform cleaning (Alpha's don't get thrown in the washing machine). Other expenses for YOUR general upkeep (haircuts, etc).

It isn't cheap to be a squared-away Marine. It gets even more expensive to look like a soup-sandwich after the Skipper gets through with you in office hours.

Whatever is left over is for the family and your debts. Off-base housing is expensive and BAH does not cover it all. Your wife will have to work and that means child care expenses. If you go on a deployment and rations-in-kind are provided, you will lose the BAS cash since that money is for feeding you, not the family. You're wife will be on food stamps and/or WIC most likely.

Here is what happens if your command starts getting letters of indebtedness: Promotion opportunities just dropped to zilch point sh*t and you will be required to take out an allotment payable to your debtors. No, the Corps won't take all your money, but enough so as to leave even a single Marine sucking wind for expense money.

The only thing the Corps might, MIGHT, do for you is get a JAG officer to work out reasonable payments that your allotments can cover. Get a new letter of indebtedness after that and you are on your way back to the civilian unemployment line.

If you were going into this totally debt free, I would still think it a bad idea to join the Marine Corps as a newly wed with a PG wife. Unless you were independently wealthy that is, in which case you wouldn't have debts.

And good thing you don't want counterintelligence as you have to be a sergeant to get in that MOS and letters of indebtedness will be a disqualifier. In fact, your debts may be a disqualifier for any 02xx job (depending on how bad they really are). LOI afterward could get you booted from any 02xx slot and you'll be burning crappers for an MOS.

Not blasting, just telling you how it is.

[hbarcus]

...Do you realize how little a private or PFC really makes? Sure, you'll get BAH (or quarters) and BAS, but you also have required expenses from your base pay (along with tax and FICA withholding). You have to pay for uniform cleaning (Alpha's don't get thrown in the washing machine). Other expenses for YOUR general upkeep (haircuts, etc)...

For example I'm currently an E-2 (Well I rate E-3 as of the 1st of this month just have to check in to get pinned =]) but with just me and my wife it's rough trying to keep up with bills and such. If it wasn't for my bonus and her mom and dads help I think we'd be screwed. Really you can't rely on military pay to pay for you, your wife, and your kid.

And remember, when you get to your duty station, your wife is going to have to get a job and you guys are going to have to get daycare for your kid while she is working. It's not cheap. I make about 1250 a paycheck. So that gives me about 2500 a month. I pay 800 in rent for my 2 bedroom apartment, and 150 for utilities. I spend about 150 for groceries every 2 weeks. So that alone leaves me 1250.

Then I have my payments of past debts, and this is whats going to kill you too. We have my wifes car payment (we needed it so she could get a job in Yuma) which is 320. That leaves 930 minus my car payment and our past bills (which we pay together) which is 200 a month (we got a loan from her parents). Inusrance on 2 cars and our renters insurance is 160 a month. That puts us at 570. Gas money we set aside, about 100 a paycheck. That puts us at 370. We also have our cell phones, which are the cheapest plans we can get for 50 a month. That means no unnecessary phone calls. So we have left over 320 a month. Then I have to pay for all my tailoring, haircuts, and drycleaning, and believe me that adds up. At $7 for a haircut (every week and before any inspection or anytime you wear your dress uniform), $28 to get a blouse tailored, and usually around $5-6 for each item you're drycleaning it adds up quickly.

All this and we just have bare minimums to get by... and we don't have a kid.

No add in your new kids food, diapers, etc etc and you definately won't be making enough to get by.