Does it really matter where you go to college or how you get your commission?

[DAVIDB1220]

So I've been reading a lot on the web and speaking with many Active and former Marines and Military personnel on this subject. As a future officer in the Marine Corps, I understand that it is required to obtain a bachelors degree from an accredited 4 year university.

Currently I'm an Engineering student at a local community college with a great GPA. From what i have heard in person and have read on the web, The Marines don't care where you went to college. But someone also told me that for those who want to make the Marine Corps a career,the path you take and the college you attend (Especially Naval Academy graduates( i'm currently applying for the class of 2020))plays a big factor for promotions and rank.

Honestly IMO a great officer is not determined by his/her college or there path to commission, rather its by there leadership skills and how they conduct themselves as a Marine

So that brings me to my question. Does it really matter where you go to college if you're going officer? Does it really matter how you get commissioned?

Thank you for taking the time to answer my question, i really appreciate it. I feel like this will help out other Marine Officer Candidates who are wondering the same question. so all answers are appreciated.

Have a great day

P.s. I'm looking to become a Naval Aviator, in case the job plays a factor towards the commissioning program and college.

I have right now a plan B in place: to graduate CC and continue my last 2 years at a 4 year university in either ROTC or PLC

This is for if i do not get appointed to the USNA(4 th time applying, call me tenacious )

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[USMC 2571]

In my opinion, and it's only one of many, I don't think it makes any difference where you went to college, EXCEPT that I think the Naval Academy would raise eyebrows (in a positive way) wherever you went in the military----but PM djj34 and ask him to view this thread. He's a Marine Corps officer currently in pilot training, and is very knowledgeable and helpful.

[USMC 2571]

(And, I noticed in your P.S. that you mentioned pilot training. Recently, djj34 made a long post about that on another thread. I figured it might come up again so I asked him if I could save it and perhaps post it if someone else wanted that info, and he said yes. So let me know if you want that lengthy pilot training program info post and I'll post it here.)

[DAVIDB1220]

I believe I saw it Somewhere but I never got to read it... and yes sir I will drop him a message. I also wanted to state that I wanted to get into naval astronaut as well... executing different spaceflight missions ...I know they definitely look at colleges and commission heavily for that probably but let's take it one step at a time lol... thanks 2571 for your replies... and you could post that. Message about aviation training as well... thanks again sir.

[USMC 2571]

OK. Coming up in a minute.

[USMC 2571]

POSTED BY DJJ34 CIRCA 4-24-15:

Long answer - a Marine is a Marine, no one really cares what you do before you earn any credibility. With respect to getting into flight school, your commissioning source doesn't really matter. The criteria you mention definitely helps getting that commission, whether it be from OCS, USNA or NROTC. By the time you've commissioned (with few exceptions) you will already have that "guarantee" to go to Pensacola. First, you will receive orders to The Basic School which is almost analogous to MCT for enlisted guys/gals. You'll go through six months of working on strengthening your leadership skills. You will qualify on the M16 and M9, read and write more orders than essays you wrote in college. You'll go over doctrine ad-nauseum, as well as tactics, techniques and procedures (TTPs) ranging from the fireteam up to leading a company sized element. That's really it in a nutshell. I'm sure this is that "other assigned position" you mentioned.

Flash forward six months and you're checking in to MATSG-21 at NAS Pensacola. If you do not already possess an FAA private pilot certificate, you'll get a class date for a screener called IFS - Introductory Flight Screening. You'll get civilian ground school shoved down your throat in a matter of 2-3 weeks, and then you'll fly 12 flights in a small single engine airplane with a civilian certified flight instructor. You'll take a checkride and complete a pattern solo in as little as 11 days. It's a good time.

The next step is to begin Aviation Preflight Indoctrination, or API. This is the beginning of your professional aviation training. It has changed since I went through in May 2013, but its mostly the same firehose course of aerodynamics, meteorology, turbine engines, basic aircraft systems, navigation, flight rules & regulations, as well as completing a mile swim for time, and doing various land and water survival requirements. Fail two tests and you can kiss aviation goodbye. It does happen, I have plenty of friends in logistics, finance, admin, comms, and maintenance... Stay in the books and give a damn, and you'll be OK.

After API you will receive orders for primary. Here there are two options. You could go up I-10 to scenic Milton, FL and fly the T-6B Texan II with VT-2, 3 or 6 out of NAS Whiting Field. Or... you can take a 750 mile drive and burn dead dinosaurs around South Texas with VT-27 or 28 at NAS Corpus Christi. You'll go through a ground school syllabus with 5 exams in 3 weeks as well as preparatory simulation rides before going to the real plane. Everything comes hot and heavy, very quickly, and you are expected to be an adult officer and know your sh*t from day one. You'll learn to fly the plane during the day. You'll learn to manhandle it up to 5g's, as well as fine tune it, through some aerobatics. You'll spend quite a bit of time doing this awesome thing called radio instrument navigation, and you'll do a few formation flights with another student 10 feet off your wing at 270mph. All in all, you'll fly about 75 hours, solo 3 times, and learn more than you thought you could. Your confidence as a professional should skyrocket. It's a good time.

At the end of primary you will put our four advanced pipelines in an order of preference. I requested Multiengine, Tiltrotor, Rotary, Strike, in that order. I got Tiltrotor. I won't go into super detail on the advanced phases because that's so far away, and some things are changing soon.

Tiltrotor - you'll go to South Whiting and get some helicopter action. Once again, quick, hot and heavy. Then you'll go to Corpus Christi and learn how to fly a bigger plane with two engines and more complicated systems. You'll learn to fly it, land it, and be safe with an engine out. You'll get really good at using a co pilot. Then you'll move on to the MV-22B Osprey with duty locations at MCAS Miramar, Camp Pendleton, MCAS New River and MCAS Futenma.

Maritime - you'll pack your bags (or stay) and head to Corpus Christi and do the exact same stuff I said above, just without the sexy helicopter stuff, and a smaller, less-powered aircraft. Mission is the same. You'll move on to the KC-130J Hercules with duty locations at MCAS Miramar, MCAS Cherry Point and MCAS Iwakuni. These are very rare and very coveted.

Rotary - helicopter action at South Whiting! Lots of it. Lots of emergencies. Lots of navigation. Lots of studying. Flying a very fun aircraft for 6-8 months and moving on to the AH-1W/Z, UH-1Y, or CH-53E is a hardly a bad deal. Locations include MCAS Kaneohe, MCAS Miramar, Camp Pendleton, MCAS New River and MCAS Cherry Point.

Strike - not really sure what these guys do much of other than look pretty. Joking aside, they go through a very long, very intense syllabus which has you landing on an aircraft carrier as its pinnacle. Over 100 flights and many of them are solo. My two best friends are in this track and they're working their butts off. They describe it as having an instructor in the plane only to make sure the plane doesn't dig nose first into the dirt. Very single pilot minded, jet pilots have to be self reliant. They can select the F/A-18A/C/D, the AV-8B and beginning this summer, the F-35B. Locations include MCAS Iwakuni, MCAS Miramar, MCAS Yuma, MCAS Cherry Point and MCAS Beaufort.

I know that was WAY more than you asked for, but I figure I could put the info down on here since pilot training info is severely lacking on here, and what is on here, is pretty outdated. Maybe now it can be a reference.

[USMC 2571]

That is an amazing reference post for anyone interested in Navy/Marine Corps flight training, which is why I saved it the day djj34 posted it.

[MunkyVsRobot]

id say probably not till you make it to the colnel ranks would it matter where you got your degree from. Kind of like where they talk about which presidents never went to princeton harvard or yale if you arent in the BOG (good ol boys) club then you get passed over for a lot. but then again I have limited experience in this field. and when i say limited i mean none.

[josephd]

No it does not matter....

that said, the Officer Corps is VERY small and hard to "fly under the radar" as an officer...especially once you make Capt's board and/or career board(as Senior 1st Lt or Capt.). If you're a turd officer everyone will know it, if you're great though...everyone will know it. The Officer Corps is kinda a good ol boys club and where you went to school can(probably will) play a role in where you can get stationed, b-billet availability, special duty assignments, billet/job availability, etc...eg. if you're a $hit hot 1st Lt and went to school the same place as some Maj, LtCol, Col, etc. they will select you to come work under them(in their Company, Battalion, what have you)

[LCPL1341]

No it doesn't matter. You just need to:

1) Get a bachelors degree from a 4 year college
2) It has to be an accredited school
3) Maintain over a 2.0 GPA (Although over 3.5 is preferable for selection to OCS)

Your major doesn't matter and your school doesn't matter (as long as its a 4 year school and is accredited). The Marine Corps puts less emphasis on your civilian education and more on your overall appearance. This means that you need to have a high GPA, be involved on extracurricular activities, seek out leadership positions in and around your school, workplace, internship, etc and be physically fit (prefferable 285ish or higher on the PFT). Doing the above will give you considerable advantage for selection.

As far as the Naval Academy goes; I wouldn't do it to be honest (assuming you're hell bent on being a Marine officer). Marine contracts at USNA are VERY competitive and very few and by the time you know which contract you ended up with, its almost too late to leave the school. You might very well end up as a Naval officer. SO my advice: Go to college, enjoy it, better yourself physically, academically and leadership wise, then apply for the PLC program.

[djj34]

As far as the Naval Academy goes; I wouldn't do it to be honest (assuming you're hell bent on being a Marine officer). Marine contracts at USNA are VERY competitive and very few and by the time you know which contract you ended up with, its almost too late to leave the school. You might very well end up as a Naval officer. SO my advice: Go to college, enjoy it, better yourself physically, academically and leadership wise, then apply for the PLC program.

Sole deciding factor for not accepting an appointment. PLC is the way to go! If I was a Navy ensign, there isn't much I would like to do outside of aviation. On the greenside, there really aren't any "bad" MOS to get outside of aviation. There are those ones that are less desirable, of course.

[DAVIDB1220]

lcpl1341 and djj34 ( Glad you found my thread, was going to send you a message like USMC2571 had suggested) thanks for telling me about USNA..Honesty i thought that you could select to go Marines over there but if what you're telling me is correct, then i'll definitely take a little bit of a closer eye on the OCS/PLC/NROTC route. Mind you, i'm not going to stop my application for the USNA, but i'll definitely be doing the best i can if i do get an appointment( It's something i've been trying to achieve for years, and let me tell you what, if i do get it, i'm for sure going to bust my a** off getting straight As and maintaining a high PFT.

Right now, as my first year of college is drawing to a close, i can say that it has been a quite successful year. I'm leaving this semester with straight As in all four of my core classes( Bringing my GPA up to about a 3.5~3.6 range), and with an improved numbers on the PFT(it's currently at a 243, still trying to max out my pull-ups(12 out of 20), Sit ups can do 100, run time based on my last PFT was 20:43(3-miles). definitely continuing to push it strong on those numbers.


thanks guys for all the information, it really helped me out, as this question has been bothering me for quite a while and i've come to realize that i've been stressing myself for nothing...Thanks again guys and have a good one


if anyone still has any other information regarding this question or any of its contents, i'd be more than happy and appreciative to have it posted it in here

[LCPL1341]

You can "select" to go Marine option at the USNA; but once you select that, you go to Quantico to be evaluated in a 4 week program called Leatherneck during the summer. Even if you pass the evaluation, there is a chance that you wont get selected to commission as a Marine 2ndLt since there is only a certain number of spots available.

Here is the info from the USNA website:

http://www.usna.edu/USMC/Selection.php

http://www.usna.edu/USMC/Leatherneck.php

[DAVIDB1220]

LCPL1341, Thanks again for sending me very helpful information. It's good to know what exactly i'm getting myself into( or at least grasp an idea of what to expect if i do attend USNA). I will continue to prepare myself as on my journey towards the coveted title of Marine and the honorable position of Marine Officer, I know that it can take many turns and nothing is guaranteed, but I know i'm going to have to work at it, if I want it that bad. Thanks again for that valuable information.

If anyone has anything else, please do post on here,I appreciate all your responses. Thank you again and have a good day.