Look Here For MOS Answers!!

[Kiri]

Google CAN be your friend. I found this right after signing my open contract and now I feel like a complete idiot, on the pure basis that I was. Now I'm stuck fixing my mistake and hoping to get into my MOS. Listen to the good Mr Richards. This will answer 99.99999% of your MOS questions.

~ Enjoy

Lance Corporal D.A. Richards - USMC Active Duty MOS - 0311 1/3 Bravo Company 3rd Platoon MCRD Parris Island August 11th, 2008 - Kilo Company Plt. 3103

WHAT JOB SHOULD I CHOOSE?

What job should I sign up for is an all to familiar question when enlisting into the military.

Depending on how you view life, this decision will be different from person to person. There is no correct answer to this question. Only you, the individual must make this decision based on your own character and how you view your future and how you prioritize your life.

When someone tells another person to, "choose a job he or she will benefit from after their military service is over", this statement is neither a correct or incorrect one. Many times choosing a job that will benefit you afterwords means choosing a job you do not care for or will not enjoy doing day in and day out. You must be happy in your decision and you must want to do the job you choose. You must never allow for your recruiter to choose your job for you. And if your recruiter tells you that your job selection is not available, then you must wait for it to become available or DO NOT enlist at that time. To choose another job because you can leave sooner is stupid because you will be doing a job that you did not choose from day one.

PATIENCE IS KEY HERE

But if you are the type of person who just wants to enlist ASAP and let the chips fall where they may, then this writing may not apply to you. To each his own. How you go about choosing your job is your business and in the end it will be you who has to perform those duties. Just don't ***** and whine once you realize what a HUGE mistake you may of have made.

BEFORE YOU EVEN SEE A RECRUITER

You should have some basic idea of what you want to do and what types of jobs are offered in the USMC. If you do not, then you are setting yourself up for unnecessary heartache. You must be stern and stick to your choice and do not allow for anyone to make you change your mind.

Lets say you have made the choice of job (X), and jobs (XX), (XXX) as a back ups. Well when you take the ASVAB test, if you qualify for job (X) then you should get that job if that is what you want. If you do not qualify for job (X) then you move to your next choice and so on. It is all about you at this point. If you are told the job is closed or filled then why not wait until it is open, or why not enlist when it is open?<<<< Think about that. After all, it is the job you were seeking, right? Bottom line here is do not choose a job just for the fact that 1) your recruiter recommends it, 2) it will get you enlisted sooner then later, 3) you felt pressured to choose it, or 4) offers a cash bonus.

If you want a job that will help you directly once you get out of the Corps, then that is your prerogative. Just remember this: All jobs will help you once you get out no matter what job you apply for in the civilian world.

There are many jobs out there, you just have to look for them. I understand for many of you, you want to be infantry. That again is your choice, just understand this.

Many infantryman will tell you that once they got into their units and served some time, the job was nothing like what they thought it was gonna be like. And also, infantry will not help you directly in most jobs after you get out.

Infantry work is 99 percent boredom and 1 percent excitement that can kill or maim you. Serving in the infantry is not gonna change you into a hero or make you into John Wayne. Believe it or not there are many serving in the infantry today who regret their decision. Like I said, once you are there you will see it is not anything like what you thought it was gonna be like and when you do realize this, there is nothing you can do about it.Once enlisted and once you have shipped off to boot camp you can not change jobs until after your first enlistment,if allowed to do so then. You are free to try to change your job after serving two years or so, but 99 percent of the time they will deny your request.

OPEN CONTRACTS ARE NOT RECOMMENDED

This type of contract is you allowing the USMC to pick a job for you. If an open contract is your only hope to get in, then you have no choice. Can you imagine graduating HS and getting ready to work in the civilian world as an "open contract." This would mean someone other then you would select your job for you. Not a good choice in my opinion, but I do understand at times it is your only way to get into the Marine Corps.

IMPORTANT NOTE:Do not confuse an "open contract" with being forced to sign an open contract just to get you enlisted. You can actually pick OPEN CONTRACT as your job. That is not the same as having an open contract while you wait for your desired job to become available.The trick is to NOT ship out with the open contract in this case. So sign for your desired job as soon as possible. Remember, do not confuse picking an open contract as your actual job choice with being enlisted into the DEP under an open contract until you get your job at a later date.

NEVER ASSUME A RECRUITER IS LOOKING OUT FOR YOUR BEST INTEREST

They look out for themselves first, after all they are doing their job and if they fail at it they can get into trouble or they can receive negative reviews. Of course not all recruiters are this way, but remember this; their job is to get you to enlist by any means necessary. A recruiter can make any job sound great to you if he wants to sell you that job. A recruiter has only served in one MOS himself, maybe two; so how can he have great knowledge of what all these other jobs do day in day out? Answer is, he does not, but they will try to sell you any job they need filled.

Many times there are certain jobs that need to be filled because no one wants them. So they will steer you into them and in a way you are forced to pick it because of the pressure they place on you and because you are naive. Always remember that you are in charge and not them. It is perfectly ok to stop a recruiter in mid sentence and tell him you are not interested in what he is selling you. If the recruiter starts talking about a cool job such as a cook and this is not one of your choices, then raise your palm or stop him and let him know it is not for you. If you do not stop him he will eventually have you convinced that that job is a perfect fit for you.

REMEMBER THIS

If you show weakness a recruiter will play you all day long. Do not think that because he is a Marine recruiter that he is some sort of Saint, because he will burn you very quickly if allowed to. A good plan is simply to have your job choices well before you ever see a recruiter. And never let the recruiter tell you any job you have chosen is a bad job for you. When they do this, it is to steer you into a job they need filled. This is why you must stick to your job choice.

Once you convince the recruiter that you are not a pushover, or gullible and that you are dead serious about your job choice, he will see this and move forward with your requests. And once again, not all recruiters are this way.

AN EXAMPLE OF HOW CHOOSING A JOB SHOULD GO

Lets say as a teenager you loved to work with vehicles. And lets say while in HS you worked at a gas station and or worked on cars. Well it would be wise to choose a job like mechanic or driver since that is a proven good road for you. You are comfortable there already. This ensures you will enjoy it somewhat. Of course if you wanted a change of pace, or just a new adventure then you can pick any job you like.

BE REALISTIC WHEN PICKING YOUR JOB

Do not kidd yourself, just be honest about what you love to do and what you hate to do. Don't toy with the notion of being a military police if you hate law enforcement. Don't pretend you have an interest in clerical work if you hate to do paperwork. If you are bothered by sleeping outdoors and in the elements, then you might not look at the infantry MOS's. Do you see my point here?

A QUESTION FOR YOU

Does it make sense to pick a job you think you will use once you get out if you don't have a clue as to what you want to do once you get out? Does it?

So just remember to choose your job wisely and always ask for a bonus to see if it's available. YES, the USMC gives out some bonuses.

No matter how you choose your job you are not wrong, but some methods are better then others. It really is common sense folks. If your passion is photography, then do that, if you are great at clerical work, then choose that, if you are a tank fan then why not choose that, if you love riding in helicopters then try for that, if you love heavy machinery then pick it, if you love and understand infantry life then go for it.

Do not pick a job such as infantry because it is "cool" or you think you will be given more respect then the other jobs. Infantry life is not for everyone.ALL JOBS ARE RESPECTED AND IT IS YOU WHO EARNS IT AND NOT THE JOB ITSELF. Do not buy into the bull**** that if you are not infantry, you are not ****. Many infantrymen say this because they made the bad choice and now feel they have to justify their choice. Infantry life is very fun, only if you accept what you get into. Failure to prepare is preparing to fail.

IMPORTANT NOTES ABOUT YOUR CONTRACT
Please understand there are many variables/factors that come into play when dealing with picking a job. So some of what you read here may not apply to you. How the process of enlistment goes for one person does NOT mean this is how it will go for you!!!

Because of the USMC being so popular these days (2010), the lines to get in are very very long. Most jobs are filled well in advance and you need to realize that some recruiters will use this against you.They sort of have you by the balls. You either learn to play the recruiting game and learn to be patient, or you get ****ed over.

You may need to bluff your way into your job. Many times when they tell you something is not available or open, then all you have to do is to threaten them that you are not gonna ship out on your date or even enlist, and you will see jobs magically appear and open up. It can become a cruel game of who can out bluff who, so prepare for this. You'd be surprised what a recruiter can do for you when he sees that you are not ****ing around.

By them having many people to pick from, you are not that important to them. So be careful in how you act with them. Infantry is the most popular job in the USMC, so if you want it, you're gonna have to wait for it. When a recruiter tells you a job is full, then you must wait for it to open up again, or do not enlist until it is available.

NO JOB will remain full/closed for a long time. ALL JOBS eventually open back up. The problem is that you guys can't wait, or are easily persuaded into picking a job you don't want because you don't know any better. DON'T BE A SUCKER. And once again, picking any job just so you can ship out quicker is a very very stupid thing to do.

---I understand that today (2010) many of you are made to sign an open contract just to get your asses into the system with the promise that you will sign a new contract later on with all your correct information on it.
This is ok, but you need to be very prepared to back out of your contract on that final day if they attempt to **** you over. If this is how the USMC is doing things today, then you must understand your rights as a Marine Poolee.
You have every right to exit/quit the DEP at any time before you ship out to boot camp if you are not pleased with your contract/job WITHOUT any penalty. Never let anyone tell you any different---.

SIGN YOUR CONTRACT ASAP AND NOT THE DAY YOU LEAVE TO MEPS THAT FINAL TIME. (or at least try to)

If you go to MEPS that final time and if this is when you are actually signing for your actual job for the first time, then you are taking a huge risk. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED.

EXAMPLE:
If you go to MEPS that final day before you ship to boot camp and when you see your contract it has a job on it that you did not want to do, would you have the balls to back out right then and there? The answer 99.9% of the time is HELL NO. You are under so much pressure and they will make it seem as if you have no choice. Once again, you have been warned. When you go to MEPS that final time, you are supposed to be signing a contract that you have already signed or looked at. That is how it is supposed to work. Trusting your recruiter and MEPS is a very very stupid thing to do.

EXAMPLE II:
You enlisted as an open contract and you wanted infantry. Infantry was full when you enlisted. So your recruiter tells you that you will pick infantry when you go to MEPS that final time before you ship out, because by then it will be available/open. So if you go to MEPS and your contract says MOTOR TRANSPORT on it, are you gonna sign it? Yes you are because of the pressure. Let me say this again. IT IS IN YOUR BEST INTEREST TO SIGN YOUR ACTUAL CONTRACT WELL BEFORE YOU LEAVE TO BOOT CAMP. IF NOT THEN YOU CAN GET ****ED OVER AND MANY DO EACH AND EVERY WEEK. If you are told that you will get your job in a month or two from when you first enlist, then it is up to you to pressure them to follow through with this promise.

--I am sure many of you have heard how many Marines end up doing jobs they did not ask for. Well this happens because they allow for themselves to be played like a sucker. It is all their fault and not the USMC's. It is very very rare that the USMC changes your job if it is in your contract, remember that.

--Once again, the reason people get stuck in jobs they did not ask for is because they let this happen. To prevent this you need to know that you don't have to ship out with a contract you do not want, and you need to know that you should sign your actual contract BEFORE you leave to MEPS that final time. EVEN WHEN AT MEPS YOU HAVE EVERY RIGHT TO SAY "HELL NO I DON'T WANT THAT JOB. <<< That is your right. DON'T BE A SUCKER!!

Trust me on this

Just because a recruiter or anyone else tells you it will be taken care of at MEPS, this does not mean it will happen. When you fall for this trap, you are taking a huge risk and when you get a job you do not want, you have no one to blame but yourself.

It doesn’t matter what any officer promises you; it doesn’t matter what you were told by your recruiter; it doesn’t matter what you have heard; and it doesn’t matter what this or any other website states. What matters is what is typed onto your actual contract that final day.

SPECIAL NOTE

Let me repeat myself.
It is important you understand that you can back out of your contract at any moment for any reason and you must tell your recruiter that you know this and are fully prepared to do it if you don't get the job you were promised.

The sooner your recruiter sees you as a person who knows what is going on will be the sooner he gets things done for you.
If you are a flake or a soft person who lets others push them around, then guess what? A recruiter is gonna play you and use you as he pleases.

INFANTRY/RADIO OPERATOR MOS's

USMC MOS's can be very misleading. I will use myself as an example. Just remember there are some variations to my explanations and things can always change without notice, especially in today's Marine Corps.

Both my brother and I had identical MOS's. But our Marine Corps experiences were totally different despite serving in the same era. We did not even use the same equipment most times, despite both of us being radio operators. How can that be you ask?

Well it all depends on what type of unit you are assigned to. A radio operator can be sent to any unit from infantry to artillery, radiomen man the radios. From tanks to amphibious vehicles, radiomen are needed to ensure communication gear is installed and operated properly.
My brother was assigned to an engineer battalion and I was assigned to an infantry unit. His communication duties were not at a lower level as were mine. He operated with larger radios and was more of a headquarters element in the sense of how the USMC operates. They had more vehicle mounted radios and they did not operate in front line infantry tactics. They were more stationary than our unit was.
My infantry unit was mainly walking around with a radio on my back and I had to maintain communications via wire, field antennas or by any means necessary. And we also conducted air ops, amphibious assaults and did communications from ship to shore and from the air to the ground. We were also involved in calling in close air support, artillery, tanks and some Naval guns. My brother never saw any of this type of action as frequently as we did and at the level that we did. We used smaller radios and had less vehicles. Our operations were simple. We were a front line infantry and communicated with our battalion and from there the other radio operators continued the transmission to the higher echelon.

This is why it is difficult to explain to someone when they ask, "what was your job like.?" When I tell them, I always warn them that my experience is only for a radio operator in an infantry line company who actually went out with a line company. Someone might think my job was fun and exciting and they may choose it, but they need to realize that if they get sent to a unit that is non-infantry, then they will never experience what I went through. There are entire communication companies at the higher level that never get down and dirty. And it is not up to us to choose where we get sent to.

I will show you how an infantry battalion is made up. You can see that certain MOS's can end up in the infantry or any other level of the USMC. I will use my battalion as an example. Most infantry battalions are the same, but not all. Some contain light armored vehicles(LAV). Ours did not.


-1st Battalion 3rd Marines 3rd Marine Regiment 3rd Marine Division (1/3 AKA The Lava Dogs)

(A Co.) Alpha Company- Made up of riflemen, assault men, machine gunners, 60 mm mortars

(B Co.) Bravo Company- Made up of riflemen, assault men, machine gunners, 60 mm mortars

(C Co.) Charlie Company- Made up of riflemen, assault men, machine gunners, 60 mm mortars

(WPN Co.) Weapons Company- Made up of Heavy machine gunners(50 cal, 40 cal, 7.56) , Tow gunners, mortar men (81mm), assault men(dragons, smaw)

(H & S Co.) Headquarters and Service Company- Made up of Communications (radio operators, wiremen, radio techs, computer techs, data), supply, cooks, administrative, NBC, intel, corpsmen(Navy), chaplain(Navy), motor transport, legal, scout snipers. armors, and other headquarter elements.

Heavy gunners get assigned to each line company as needed. Same with tow missile gunners and the 81 mm mortar platoon provides support for the entire battalion as needed. They remain behind the front lines, but as the line companies advance, so do the mortars. 60 mm mortars stay with each individual company. A radio operator also stays with each company and as they do so will he. Several corpsmen are assigned to each company. Snipers can also get assigned to a company. Remember, any Marine can be used in any fashion when needed.

The H&S and Wpns companies are to support the three line companies. So there is often many variations of who goes where, so keep an open mind. My examples are not exact, but will give you an example of how it works.

If you notice at the battalion level we have NO Recon, tanks, artillery, air support, MP's, or engineers. Those are all higher level commands and will come into play in the bigger picture. As needed they will get assigned to our battalion. Infantry battalions are the lowest level and only contain the MOS's mentioned above/below.

So you can be in an infantry battalion and not be an infantryman. Your MAIN job will be what you went to school for,but if **** hits the fan you bet you ass you would jump into the mix. And often the entire battalion trains in various different environments and this includes EVERY SWINGING DICK. So even though you might be an admin Marine, you can still get down and dirty if you get sent to an infantry unit.

Cooks are the only MOS with great leeway as they have long hours. And once again, you WILL NOT be removed from your MOS to be in the infantry. This would only happen if hundreds of infantry Marines were being killed daily, or if asked to. If your MOS is admin and your assigned to the infantry, then that is what you will be doing..Even when deployed to a combat zone you will still be doing your assigned MOS, unless you volunteer for some other duty, or are sent to another unit to fill a needed role.

So when choosing your MOS be well aware that even though it might not be "infantry-03XX", you can very well get assigned to an infantry unit. And you can train in such things as cold weather training, jungle warfare training, rappelling of towers, helo's, and many other infantry type stuff.

Remember, infantry units love to deploy. In your first four years you will be guaranteed two deployments if you are in an infantry unit. And infantry units will PT/hump alot more than non-infantry units. So you have been warned.

Aviation MOS's will never get you in the infantry side of things unless you are a crew chief. A crew chief mans the rear of the helo's as they transport the infantry and also mans the weapon assigned to him.

NOTE: there might be several MOS's that I forgot about or am not aware of. There are infantry battalions that are slightly different, but the main concept still applies..

JOBS FOUND IN AN INFANTRY BATTALION

-all infantry MOS's
-communications (wireman, techs, radio operators)
-supply/logistics
-cooks
-legal
-admin.
-NBC (gas man)
-sniper
-corpsmen (Navy)
-chaplain (Navy)
-intel
-motor transport
-armors

Although not infantry the following MOS's get you plenty of field time.

-artillery, tanks, aav's, and engineers

Just because you choose one of these MOS's does not mean you will end up in a infantry unit. And by the same token you might end up in a infantry unit. Just make sure you choose an MOS you're going to like. If you love desk work then intel, or admin is for you. If you love vehicles or mechanic type stuff then join motor t. If you love keeping track of lots of gear in large quantities then choose supply. But just be aware that the unit you get assigned to will dictate things such as deployments, PT, free time, and overall quality of life.

All jobs suck and all jobs are the best ones equally in the USMC. You will have many days you like, and just as many that you hate.

There are no bad jobs in the USMC, only bad Marines who fill them.

SPECIAL NOTE

It is very important we are all on the same page here. So I will repeat myself once again.
Just because you end up in an infantry battalion in a non-infantry job, this does not mean you are an infantryman, or that when deployed you will be made to fight in combat. Please understand that.
Your chances to see combat are obviously higher since you are in an infantry unit, but you wont be killing anyone unless you volunteer or are forced to do a job that is not one you went to school for.

JOB LIST
JOB DESCRIPTIONS AND REQUIREMENTS (PDF)

IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS, EMAIL THEM TO futurejarheads@yahoo.com

[ScarSniper]

People need to READ this first! I've seen literally about 3 or 4 freaking posts today from different poolees asking the SAME question about their MOS. In one day!!!! The creator of this thread should've titled this..."NEW POOLEES, ALL QUESTIONS ABOUT YOUR MOS ANSWERED IN THIS THREAD! DO NOT ASK A MARINE, BECAUSE ANOTHER POOLEE JUST DID 3 SECONDS AGO!"

Great post, in my opinion. Good Information, too.

[Kiri]

Yeah. It was starting to **** me off to. Just because we're nasty recruits doesn't mean we have to flaunt it. Damn.

[wilsontc11]

We arent recruits yet, still even nastier poolees lol

[lake9]

We arent recruits yet, still even nastier poolees lol

haha

[Steve018]

Thats a great website, I wish I had found it before I enlisted lol

[ADRobold]

In my opinion the most important point in the authors advice is to accept that there will be good days and bad days. Stay motivated, watch commercials, PT your heart out and look forward to serving proud as a United States Marine, but do not assume every day will be like what you see in the commercials.

Stay realistic, and stay motivated!

[Rough Hands]

Bump for relevant thread.

[bartone]

Hey Kiri I accidentally copied you and my post turned into a great big waste of time, so thanks for getting this info up even before I could maybe this can actually turn into the post I wanted mine to be lol


BUMP this needs to be spread

Great Info!

[joey513]

Great post! Definitely helped

[Kiri]

Hey Kiri I accidentally copied you and my post turned into a great big waste of time, so thanks for getting this info up even before I could maybe this can actually turn into the post I wanted mine to be lol


BUMP this needs to be spread

Great Info!

No problem at all Bartone. Neither of us made a big deal so it really isn't.

Great Minds Think Alike