Question about OCS Selection
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  1. #1

    Question about OCS Selection

    Hello all!

    I have read on this sub as well as other online forums about the difficulty of getting into OCS. A lot of questions I had pertaining to tattoos, GPA etc. have been answered (thank you!). Before I start talking to an OSO, I want to clarify some questions I have regarding my past.

    I was an opiate addict in my early 20s. I have no arrests, good work history, and plenty of people that would give good letters of recommendation including a US Congressman with good standing with the military. I have been sober for about 4 years after a couple stints in rehab (currently 28 years old), and currently work in a drug treatment facility as a bookkeeper and group facilitator. I have a 3.3 GPA in Psychology and will require a waiver for tattoos (all in reg).
    Do I have a chance in hell in getting selected? I see a lot of disqualifications for drug use and addiction, but some of them refer to active addiction (meaning currently addicted.) I know for a TS clearance I should be forthcoming with everything (which I would be more comfortable with anyway).
    Thanks in advance for the help!

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  2. #2
    Doubt it. Your GPA is too low and don't see your waiver being approved (officers tattoo policy is stricter than for enlisteds). But, go see what the OSO says and good luck. I've been wrong about waivers before. Never hurts to ask.

    Why do you need a waiver if all your tattoos are within regulation? Doesn't make sense.


  3. #3
    Thank you for your reply Master Sergeant.
    I probably should have said "waiverable" instead of in regs, I apologize.
    From what I understand tattoos can't be on the neck, hand, fingers, face, must two inches above the wrist, not in the pit of your elbow , and must be able to be covered up by a hand. Only 4 tattoos can be visible in PT gear. I might have be wrong on the exact details.


  4. #4
    Quote Originally Posted by possiblelost2lt View Post
    Hello all!

    I have read on this sub as well as other online forums about the difficulty of getting into OCS. A lot of questions I had pertaining to tattoos, GPA etc. have been answered (thank you!). Before I start talking to an OSO, I want to clarify some questions I have regarding my past.

    I was an opiate addict in my early 20s. I have no arrests, good work history, and plenty of people that would give good letters of recommendation including a US Congressman with good standing with the military. I have been sober for about 4 years after a couple stints in rehab (currently 28 years old), and currently work in a drug treatment facility as a bookkeeper and group facilitator. I have a 3.3 GPA in Psychology and will require a waiver for tattoos (all in reg).
    Do I have a chance in hell in getting selected? I see a lot of disqualifications for drug use and addiction, but some of them refer to active addiction (meaning currently addicted.) I know for a TS clearance I should be forthcoming with everything (which I would be more comfortable with anyway).
    Thanks in advance for the help!
    Let's see if I understand what you have posted

    -You are an opiate addict
    -You've done a couple of stints in a rehab facility
    -You have doubts about your tat's
    -You have a low GPA
    -You are a little old for boot camp

    ...and you want to be a Marine Officer? As a Marine, I hope not!

    ORDO AD CHAO

  5. #5
    I got to go with you on this one Hammer. I too hate to crush anybody's dreams but most people in the civilian world truly have no idea what a bunch of up tight gentleman our officers are. I served under some I consider the best, but they are just a different breed and thank God as they need to be. It's not just what the enlisted Marines would think if it ever came to light, but the acceptance of fellow officers that would make this man's life pure hell. The bottom line as we all know is that a weakness in the civilian world will not go away under the stress laden conditions of Marine Corps life but instead show itself. I know this sounds harsh and it may be, but there is a reason for these regs.

    Last edited by madinfidel; 11-19-16 at 08:10 AM. Reason: grammar

  6. #6
    Sounds to me, you're citing the tattoo regs for enlisted personnel. Officers have stricter rules (as do Special Duty Assignments DI, recruiter, embassy guard). Your OSO can explain the difference.


  7. #7
    I haven't used drugs or alcohol for 4 years. I got addicted after using them for the first time after getting my wisdom teeth pulled. Before that I never even got a detention in school and smoked weed maybe twice. I was a good kid with a genetic disposition to addiction(father grand father and a lot of cousins have addiction). As for my GPA my freshman year was bad, but since that year I got dean's list three times and got at least a 3.5 the rest of my college career. Am I a perfect candidate? Hell no. I've been thru my own hell and made it out the other side. I understand why the USMC is the best and understand why the standards are so high. If I'm not good enough I get that, but now that I'm in a position in life to try what I wanted to since I was a kid, I'm not going to just wonder "what if?" til I die. Thank you for your reply!


  8. #8
    Just giving you our opinions - like you asked for. What matters is what the OSO tells you.

    Good luck.


  9. #9
    I hate to say it, but if you really want to be an officer, your chances are going to be in the Army. OSOs are flooded with applicants who don't need waivers, have high GPAs and are younger. My OSO was turning away people monthly who had nothing wrong with them on paper... they just happened to be the bottom feeders in the candidate pool.

    That said, definitely speak with an OSO and see what they have to say. I wouldn't put much expectation forward though.


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