Any military Officers out there?

[Elijah B]

Hey everyone, I am a college senior getting ready for graduation in May. I am currently looking in to joining the service when I get out of school. I have contacted every branch, and have decided to join either the Marine Corps or the Coast Guard. I have a girlfriend that is not too fond of the Marine Corps idea, but the Marine Officer recruiter was very convincing, compared to any other of the branches. I am mainly looking an intelligence as my MOS. I am interested to hear opinions from any former service members, officers or enlisted. Thanks!
-Elijah

[YoungMan]

I would mention that Intel in the Corps is going to be very difficult. Only the very best officers from each class at The Basic School will have an opportunity to choose 02. If you want Human Source Intelligence you'll have to be top 3.

I don't have particular info for the other branches, but the gouge I've received is that you're allowed to choose an MOS before joining. There's a lot of room between definitely and maybe.

Finally, the spectrum of military culture that exists between the Coast Guard and the Marine Corps is vast. Those branches have the most lax and the most rigid physical guidelines respectively. Make sure you know exactly what you are getting into either way. If you go Corps it is almost a certainty you'll be in A-stan not long after you hit the Fleet. If you go Coast Guard it's likely you will have to spend some period of time each year away on a boat.

[KD Burke]

Hey everyone, I am a college senior getting ready for graduation in May. I am currently looking in to joining the service when I get out of school. I have contacted every branch, and have decided to join either the Marine Corps or the Coast Guard. I have a girlfriend that is not too fond of the Marine Corps idea, but the Marine Officer recruiter was very convincing, compared to any other of the branches. I am mainly looking an intelligence as my MOS. I am interested to hear opinions from any former service members, officers or enlisted. Thanks!
-Elijah

I was a Surface Warfare Officer in the US Navy. I don't regret accepting a commisision. It was a good experience for me. I didn't make a career of it, somewhat to my own surprise. So, advice:

I have nothing but respect for the Marine Corps. That being said, a great many of them, particularly the young ones, are a bit too confident for their own good. Remember that EVERY Marine is a rifleman first. Any other job you have, whether intel, artillery, or supply is secondary. Expect to be deployed. Often.

I have nothing but respect for the Coast Guard. When I served (mostly peacetime), they were the one brance of service that spent more time DOING their job than TRAINING for it. It has a lot of facets that you may not have thought of, navigational aids, search and rescue, maritime law enforcement. Any intel effort they have going is likely to be focused more on smuggling than anything else.

Either branch will give you a good career and teach you things about yourself. I suppose in your shoes I'd ask myself if I thoght of myself more as a "warrior" or as a "rescuer." These labels are certainly not true of ALL Marines or ALL Coasties; the Marine Corps has dedicated SAR people, just as the Coast Guard goes in harms way much more often than the public realizes. But in my opinion they do represent the overall culture of the respective services.

OK....Marines, Coasties...Proceed to roast the lowly Squid for the egregious errors and misstatements!

[BEEDEE]

Elijah - check this current thread as well http://www.xmarksthescot.com/forum/h...tml#post815349

Brian

[ccga3359]

I'm just a coxswain in the Canadian Coast Guard Auxiliary - SAR (Central & Arctic) but I'd still would like to say USCG. Perhaps the most undervalued of your five brances of service but every day they make the US a safer place. Whether search & rescue and the legendary Rescue Swimmers, drug smuggling intervention or homeland security. Each day you are making a difference in someone's life and their isn't a better feeling than that. All due respect to the US Marine Corps. Plus the USCG has a rocking tartan - Hamilton!

[MacBubba45]

the lowly Squid

Did someone call me (sir)? (Former SM3 on a tin can)

[Cavebear58]

12345

[KD Burke]

Did someone call me (sir)? (Former SM3 on a tin can)

I've got you beat. First Lieutenant on a (very) old ocean-going minesweeper!

[haxtonhouse]

Navy is offering large bonuses for intelligence, my son is in training right now doing just that.

[MacMillan of Rathdown]

Are you really sure you want to be in the military? I only ask because the comparison of the USMC and the USCG is really like comparing chalk and cheese. If you said "I want to be a sailor, so which is better, the Navy or the Coast Guard?" I'd understand that. Same as if you said "I want to be a soldier, so should I join the Corps or the Army?" Perhaps I am misinterpreting what you mean, but it almost sounds as if your girlfriend is making, or at least shaping, this decision.

The reason I raise this issue is that joining the armed forces is a serious commitment to your country, and shouldn't be something entered into in a half-hearted way. The first question anyone should ask themself is if they really want to serve their nation in its armed forces. The next question to ask is "would I join up if I was going to simply be another guy with a rifle, or would I only do it if I got to be in a cool unit?"

For what it's worth, you might want to re-examine your military aspirations.