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AlexJH
01-03-10, 08:31 PM
Hello Marines, I have a couple questions about the Corps.

I don't have any major medical problems, however I have mild astigmatism. Glasses are not required for me to drive, I'm riding the line however and they are encouraged. I'm lacking some flexibility in my feet and ankles, I can't point my toes all the way, I'd say 165-155 degrees approx. I'm also by Marine Corps standards 5 pounds underweight, however I'm a swimmer so that's just how I'm built.

Would any of those factors disqualify me for service in the Marine Corps?

Also regarding an Infantry MOS, I heard that I'd be in the DEP for up to a year for a slot. Is there any truth to that? If I picked a different field than Infantry what are my odds of seeing combat? I know each and every Marine is a rifleman first. But say I went 06XX communications and was a field radio operator, would that just mean I'm basically a grunt with a radio? What I'm trying to understand is are there strictly communication units or strictly admin units, etc, etc? Or are you just billeted with an Infantry unit?

I plan on going Infantry, but when I start to look at other jobs I may change my mind, and that's why i'd like to know.

Lastly, I always hear about the people saying that they want to be Recon Marines or Scout/Snipers. What are the actual odds of a person making it into one of those units? I'm assuming a very low percentage of people make it past selection. When a recruiter came to my school there were several people asking about it and he just shrugged them off.

SGT7477
01-03-10, 08:45 PM
He would shrug them off, they haven't earned our title.

Smitty Puffs
01-03-10, 11:10 PM
Exactly how much do you weigh, Alex? When I joined I was very skinny, still am for the most part, but it never hurt me. Like I have said in other threads, the strongest muscle in the human body is the heart (well, it's actually the tongue but you get what I'm saying haha).

ANwyays, one of my closest friends from high school joined the Marines right after me and he is currently a Field Radio Operator. I know it sounds like an infantry type job but you will probably never go out with a grunt team on patrol. A Fire team will probably just tell you to teach them how to load the Freq's and use the radios then they'll tell you to **** off. Grunts don't want POG's going out on Patrol with them, for the most part. Basically what my friend does is operate the COC's where he monitors the radios when the grunts and other units are out running missions. He really doesn't enjoy it for the most part.

As far as Recon and Scout/Snipers are concerned, I am in a Scout/Sniper Platoon currently (also called a STA Platoon, Surveillance and Target Acquisition). Were the eyes, ears, and trigger fingers of our battalion commander. And yes, to put it bluntly, it is VERY VERY hard to make it into Recon or a Scout/Sniper Platoon. The selection process differs from unit to unit, some STA Plt's don't want guys that have no combat experience, others are really short on guys and will basically take anyone with a solid record, perfect fitness scores, and high test scores. Being a scout/sniper or a recon Marine is a path of continous learning. It a profession that you must dedicate much of your free time to. I study more then some college students do just so I MIGHT be capable of passing Scout/Sniper School when I get a slot, which is never a gaurantee.

Don't Worry about being Recon or S/S's. To be honest, it's not as glamorous as you or those high school kids think it is. If there's one thing I could tell kids like that who want to be Mr. Ricky Ticky Recon Ranger its this: If you have any ounce of ***** in your body, It will show.

AlexJH
01-04-10, 02:06 AM
No, I have no aspirations as of now to become a Recon Marine. Never really worried about it, just curious.

And my understanding from Smitty's post is basically you're a grunt or you're POG and there's not much middle ground correct?

I weigh in at 135 lbs. and I'm just shy of 6 foot by fractions of an inch. The standard for 72 inches tall is 140 lbs.