Joining the ARMY any helpfull Tips!

[Jester909]

Im just wondering if there are any inlisted Army people on this forum or Army Vets, that could give me a heads up on what i should watch out for or helpfull advise on what jobs to choose and what steps to take in the Army to advance. Thanks in advance.

[WARPIG]

think about life after the army.. then pick a job. ( not too many infantry related civilian jobs unless you work for a guy named vinnie-da-fish)

if you are wondering what the army will do for you.. join the navy.. you should be thinking about what you will bring to the army.

put down that cowboys and indians mentality of what you thought the army was as a kid. find the technical jobs or the ones you could see yourself doing if you weren't in the army. then excel at it.

as for basic training.. throw away everything you think you are.. and start as a zero. make it your goal in life to prove yourself everyday. and remember.. your ears will get you in trouble much less than your mouth will. good luck my man. and congrats in advance.

[Jester909]

Hey thats one of the best responses ive heard in a while, as for cowboys and indians i dont plan on joining a combat unit. I am looking forward to picking a job that will benifit me after the service. I do have a question about rank. How does it work? Ive already gone through the processing part at Meps but i just heard that you can Rank before you join? Any truth to this?

[Seoulstriker]

if you were in the Navy, I would have said don't drop your soap in the shower. rofl

[BMF]

just take some time and think about what you'd like to do as a civilian, and find a job in the army that matches up. soldiers from certain branches (signal, for example) are literally recruited like NCAA football players when their contract period is coming to an end, to come work for private corporations. other then that, talk to a recruiter and see if you can take a few practice ADSVAB(or whatever that damned acronym is) tests, so you can see where you fall in the whole system

[shrek]

Good advice from BMF. I was intel originally which hasn't helped me much but I have a friend who just got a job with Lockheed for about 50k with no degree. He was a 96B! Look it up! Look on the web for how military jobs relate to civilian! I can say for sure that my military time has gotten me in many doors. I wouldn't have the job I have today if it weren't for my comma experience. I'm an engineer in the Aerospace field delaing with high level commo!! Hope this helped!!

Shrek

[96B]

Whatever job field you are interested in, do as much research into it as possible so you are not ignorant when enlisting. Show your recruiter you know what the hell you are talking about and he will be less apt to lie to you because he knows you will know about it as soon as it happens.

[WARPIG]

Good point. Don't get in a hurry to ship out. Research the jobs you qualify for, and choose your career that way. Don't sweat the MOS bonuses. Great for cash up front but you end up signing up for a job not to many people want. ( the army gives bonus money or incentives for people to sign up in critical jobs. ie .. jobs they don't have enough people for)
Not all bonuses or critical MOSs are bad.. just get the skinny on what your getting into.
The recruiter can get you promoted before you ship for bringing a buddy into the army, or for having a college degree. Not a bad way to make rank but it won't get you promoted to SGT any faster. You still have to pay your dues and probably have to deal with a lot of resentment from your peers that didn't get the "free" rank.
I was lucky enough to "fast track" in basic training and AIT. I highly recommend it. If you have a goal to focus on in training it will make things easier on you and make you a better Joe. (Could put you on top of a list for additional schools or duty station choices too!)

I train NG recruits prior to going to basic. So I am pretty qualified to prep you for a career in the Army. Keep askin questions Hero.... the more you know now .. the better prepared you are for what lies ahead.

[Jester909]

Ahhh thats what i was also wondering about, inlistment bonus. My recruiter didnt mention to much about that, but what you just said makes total sence. Well my plans are to inlist in the Army for 3yrs and re inlist for another 3yrs "Hopefully getting a re inlistment bonus" then swtich branches over to the Airforce and hopefully have my degree by then so i can become an officer rank. I havent heard of really anyone doing such a thing cause most of the people i know stay in 4 - 20 and never switch branches or just end up never wanting to get back in service. Well i plan on seeing my councler at Meps again on Nov.7 so all your comments and helpfull tips have really opened my mind up a bit.

My middle sisters husband is in the Marines and my other sisters husband is in the Army, my dad was in the Navy for 20yrs, and my ladys dad was in the Airforce for 23yrs so im destined to join the service :) . The thing about their advice is that its 4 to 23yrs old, so it really helps to hear from former service men, thanks alot guys.

[fng]

If you want to see the world become an Air Force Loadmaster. The Air Force has the most money so they have the best living quarters, the best hours, good food and the prettiest women. If I could do it all over again (I'm ex Army-Infantry), I would try to get into AF PJs or CCTs.
Before I signed up I wanted to be a Ranger but my recruiter said that there were no slots available at the time. I wished I had held out for one. A friend of mine wanted Navy SEAL and wouldn't accept anything less. He got it.
Lastly, if a recruiter gives you the run around, FIND ANOTHER ONE. Go to a different city if you have to.
Good luck.

[WARPIG]

Switching branches is harder than it looks. I tried to go USAF after I was Airborne and they couldn't take any one with prior service. If you wanna end up in the USAF then you should probably start there. Making rank is slow to start but after you make E-5 it picks up. (Generally)
Loadmaster is a great idea. My uncle was one and is now making big bucks working for Boeing.
Since when does the Navy give SEAL slots on enlistment contracts?? Ranger slots don't usually come in enlistment contracts either. If you can get Airborne in a contract or atleast get assigned at Ft. Benning or Bragg somehow.. RANGER slots and walk ups are common place.

[Zach R.]

I already know what I'm doing in the Army, blasting towelheads and sandmonkeys. rofl