It's never too late??

[proudpatriot1]

I am 31, family, wife, 3 kids and a 4th on the way. Still strong sense of burden to join the military and serve. Eligibility requirements say I am too old to enlist or even too late for an officer for the Marines. That deeply saddens me, but can someone out there tell me if it is time to cut this dream loose. Waiver a realistic possibility. Another branch a better more realistic option given my circumstance? I am thankful for all feedback. Respect!

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[irpat54]

to be honest, as for the Marine Corps,, you are to late and a wavier is not even close to a possibility... The Army on the other hand, you could have a foot in the door at least,, their age requirements are different then the Marines, or used to be, Air Force is anther possibility, but go and check out each recruiters office, for their exact requirements..

[Rocky C]

By federal law (10 U.S.C., 505), the minimum age for enlistment in the United States Military is 17 (with parental consent) and 18 (without parental consent). The maximum age is 35. However, DOD policy allows the individual services to specify the maximum age of enlistment based upon their own unique requirements.


The individual services have set the following maximum ages for non-prior service enlistment:

Active Duty None-Prior Service

• Army - 35 (must ship to basic training prior to 35th birthday. The Army experimented with raising the age limit to age 42 for a brief period of time, but effective April 1st, 2011, the Army has reverted to the lower age limit.
• Air Force - 27
• Navy - 34
• Marines - 28
• Coast Guard - Age 27. Note: up to age 32 for those selected to attend A-school directly upon enlistment (this is mostly for prior service).

Reserve Non-Prior Service

• Army Reserves - 35 (must ship to basic training prior to 35th birthday)
• Army National Guard - 35 (changed from 42 in 2009)
• Air Force Reserve - 34
• Air National Guard - 40 (Changed from 34 in Aug 2009)
• Naval Reserves - 39
• Marine Corps Reserve - 29
• Coast Guard Reserves - Age 39

Age Waivers


Age waivers for non-prior service enlistments are very rare. The few I've seen approved involved those who started the enlistment process within the required age limits, but were unable to complete the process and ship to basic training before their birthday. In these cases, only a couple of months of age was waived.


Prior Service Enlistments


The age limit for prior service enlistment for most of the branches is the same as above, except that an individual's total previous military time can be subtracted from their current age. For example, let's say that an individual has four years of credible military service in the Marine Corps and wants to join the Air Force. The Air Force could waive the individual's maximum enlistment age to age 31 (Maximum age of 27 for the Air Force, plus four years credible service in the Marines).


For the Marine Corps and the Marine Corps Reserve, the maximum age of enlistment for prior service is 32, after computing the prior-service age adjustment.


For the Army and Air National National Guard, the maximum age for prior service enlistment is 59, as long as the member has enough years of prior service to be able to complete 20 years of creditable service for retirement by age 60.

[Huklebuk]

Good post Rocky. However, the prior service is not applicable when entering the Marine Corps. For example, if a 30 yo tried to enlist in the Corps and did 4 yrs prior service with the army, he/she would be an age waiver and not be treated a 26yo. This is due to the requirements for bootcamp. Just wanted to clarify.