Infantry contracts few and far between?

[Condor]

Hello Marines,

I believe my profile is sufficient. If not, please let me know and I will fix any issues.

Quick overview of myself and my situation: I graduate from high school this weekend, get my tonsils taken out in two weeks, and am planning on attending Washington State University in the fall.

I went to my local recruiter a couple months ago and told him that I was hoping to join the Marine Corps to become an infantryman. I wanted to leave after graduation, not attend college and also not get the tonsil surgery. I wanted to leave home ASAP. The recruiter gave me a no BS assessment that Infantry was off the table. He said that he could send me to MEPs that following week, but that if I was dead-set on infantry that I wasn't going to get it and that he didn't want to go through the whole process if I wasn't going to ship with anything other than Infantry.

A few weeks later I talked to a former Marine infantryman who was rejoining with a Recon contract and was working with the MARSOC recruiters who were supposedly getting him a spot at Assessment and Selection after he completed BRC. He told me my recruiter was wrong. A week later a close friend of mine went to a recruiting station outside of my district and they told him and his dad that getting Infantry wouldn't be a problem for him (he is planning on joining this time next year).

In the last two years, three people from my school have joined the USMC. Two of them I know personally, and they both wanted Infantry. One went in Open Contract. Other just shipped out as Admin. I don't know what the third Marine originally wanted, however I believe he is in Aviation support now.

I want to join the USMC. However being an Infantryman is important to me, I wouldn't sign a contract without it. Right now I have about six months before I could join now due to the surgery I have to get in a couple weeks. I am going to college in the meantime, however that was my backup choice and if given the chance I would join in a heartbeat if an Infantry contract was available.

My question is this: Do I have any reasonable chance of getting into the USMC with an Infantry contract anytime within the next couple years?

Thank you Marines, and sorry if this is too lengthy. I wanted to ensure I worded this correctly and that I properly conveyed my intent.

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[Zulu 36]

Infantry contracts have been tough to get for years. Even during the hardest fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan, people have been grabbing up all the infantry slots almost as soon as the fiscal year starts, and new slots are allocated. You went to the recruiter well after the FY13 start and I'm not surprised there were no more grunt slots available.

What someone has been promised for next year has no bearing on what exists now. Nor, some prior service Marine going into Recon/MARSOC, which is a whole different ballgame than regular infantry. Your recruiter was completely honest with you.

Also, remember that each recruiting station is only given a certain number of infantry slots. For instance, your recruiter may only be able to enlist two or three infantrymen, or his RS only 20 or 30. I don't know what the real numbers are and they are going down as the Corps downsizes.

If you are set on infantry, you need to work with your recruiter on a ship date for boot camp that allows you to contract as an infantryman, which means leaving sometime after October 1st when the new FY starts.

[Tennessee Top]

Because so many want one, there are only so many infantry slots to go around (not enough in other words) and, as mentioned, that number is steadily shrinking. Some infantry units will disappear if they have not already. Everyone who wants an infantry contract cannot get one and that may include you. Using someone else's situation is a poor analogy; just because the stars aligned for them has no bearing on if they'll align for you (every situation is unique and luck is involved as well).

In the case of your friend joining next year with an infantry contract, that will be after the new fiscal year (Oct 1st) when the new MOS allocations are released. You should talk to your recruiter about waiting till the new FY if you haven't already.

As for the former infantryman rejoining for RECON, that sounds like a reenlistment incentive to me. Reenlisting and enlisting are different worlds with separate rules (reenlisting has to do with retention and enlisting has to do with acquisition). There is no way that Marine can know the rules your recruiter is operating under so to say your recruiter is wrong is simply BS and unfounded. Let that Marine become a recruiter and then he can pass judgement on what another recruiter says.

Normally, I would say you have a reasonable chance of getting an infantry contract within the next two years. However, the current/future downsizing of the Corps (including infantry units) changes the picture. As hard as it is now to obtain an infantry slot, it is only going to get that much harder. Your only recourse is to continue working with your recruiter and have faith in what you're being told (ignore what others say because it's irrelevant to your particular situation; and in most cases they don't know what they're talking about anyway). In the meantime, in case it doesn't work out for you, continue with your plan B (many don't have a plan B so consider yourself lucky there).

[Condor]

Thank you both for your quick response! The issue I had with my recruiter was that I told him I was willing to wait until the next fiscal year and that I would be willing to wait for up to a year after that as well. He told me he didn't want to put me in DEP if he thought I couldn't get infantry. Also, I was curious about the availability of MP/Corrections contracts, is it pretty much the same as Infantry? I have researched it but I have heard it both ways. Also, any suggestions of Infantry-like enlistment fields would be greatly appreciated!

Thank you Marines.

[Tennessee Top]

You can only be in the DEP for 365 days. You are willing to wait longer than that but I believe your recruiter is concerned you will spend a year in the DEP, still not get the contract you want, and be discharged from the DEP. That is an entire year basically wasted. Depending on how long he has been a recruiter, he may have seen that happen to other poolees and not want to see it happen to you. Also, there is an amount of work/responsibility each poolee brings to a recruiter. If he doesn't have faith that you're going to ship within the 365 days, he may not be willing to add you to his workload with no payoff at some point.

As for the new FY infantry allocations; remember, you are not the only one waiting. Throughout the country, there could be hundreds just like you. When the list is published Oct 1st, there may be only 100 slots (I have no idea what the actual numbers will be; just throwing something out there but you can be assured it will not be enough to satisfy the need). Unlike you now, most of those waiting are poolees and some of those will be nearing the end of their 365 days. Will they get a slot ahead of you? Seems fair to me. How would you feel if you've been waiting for almost a year, attending all of the poolee functions, and find out someone else who just DEP'd-in got a slot over you?

Only a recruiter can tell you about the availability of other MOS's. The numbers change constantly. Obviously, anything in the combat arms fields will be the closest to an infantry job (tanks, artillary, etc.).

The more rigid you are with your MOS, the less likely you are to get a contract (of any kind). Recruiters can only do so much (perform miracles and give everyone everything they want are not on the list). THE most important fact you must keep in the front of your brain is contracts come down to what is in the best interest of the USMC; NOT what is in your best interest. Right now, you obviously have it backwards. That may be another reason your recruiter is reluctant to work with you; you are tieing his hands. If you want to earn the title, you're going to have to expect to sacrafice some and give your recruiter something to work with.

[Condor]

Thank you for the insight! I will go meet with my recruiter after graduation and see if we can work something out.

Thank you Marines!

[Tennessee Top]

Bingo! That's the correct attitude!! May not be exactly what you want but we cannot always have our cake and eat it too. Good luck and be sure to let us know how it works out. Enjoy your graduation; only happens once.

[usmcrro]

Getting into security forces is another option to ask your recruiter about. Your primary MOS will still be 03xx but you'll be performing security and anti terrorism operations and training.

[Rocky C]

Congtrats on your graduation.
Get those tonsils out before they become a problem down the road...
Keep us posted on your progress.

Best of luck next week.

[JoeMyst]

I may be late here, and I'm not here to read lengthy posts but rather share my experience. When I went in, after months of waiting for any job to open I was given options of mechanic, motor T, or cook. No; I didn't want to be a cook, I didn't want to drive trucks all day, and I didn't want to be a mechanic. I wanted to follow where my Ranger brother went. When my recruiter said those were my only options I was devistated and told him to wait and let me think about my options. My brother agreed that was pretty rediculous.

Now don't let me give you false hopes, job selections in general in the Marine Corps today are pretty tight and I was lucky at that point to have any option. But I went back in with everything the recruiting station gave me and told my recruiter that if infantry wasn't on the table I wasn't interested and would rather go elsewhere at that point. I ended up waiting about 4 more solid months. At that time I wanted a recon contract but was glad to hear an 03XX contract was open.

I waited months for just a chance at what I really wanted, and then fulfilled the requirements. Even when it sucked, I remembered that on my own part I signed the contract, nobody made me sign it except myself. It just depends how much you really want it and how long you're willing to wait. Remember there are always more stations nearby you can ask.

[Tennessee Top]

I may be late here, and I'm not here to read lengthy posts but rather share my experience. When I went in, after months of waiting for any job to open I was given options of mechanic, motor T, or cook. No; I didn't want to be a cook, I didn't want to drive trucks all day, and I didn't want to be a mechanic. I wanted to follow where my Ranger brother went. When my recruiter said those were my only options I was devistated and told him to wait and let me think about my options. My brother agreed that was pretty rediculous.

Now don't let me give you false hopes, job selections in general in the Marine Corps today are pretty tight and I was lucky at that point to have any option. But I went back in with everything the recruiting station gave me and told my recruiter that if infantry wasn't on the table I wasn't interested and would rather go elsewhere at that point. I ended up waiting about 4 more solid months. At that time I wanted a recon contract but was glad to hear an 03XX contract was open.

I waited months for just a chance at what I really wanted, and then fulfilled the requirements. Even when it sucked, I remembered that on my own part I signed the contract, nobody made me sign it except myself. It just depends how much you really want it and how long you're willing to wait. Remember there are always more stations nearby you can ask.

Good for you! It's always good to be reminded there are success stories out there.