I think combat arms can still be a good option if you gun for a SOF unit. I probably wouldn't recommend intentionally going line infantry, although you need to recognize that SOF units have low selection rates for a reason as as such you may end up there. Aviation is great too, other than that I'd go with something that teaches some sort of trade or hard skill, or possibly a language.
I think combat arms can still be a good option if you gun for a SOF unit. I probably wouldn't recommend intentionally going line infantry, although you need to recognize that SOF units have low selection rates for a reason as as such you may end up there. Aviation is great too, other than that I'd go with something that teaches some sort of trade or hard skill, or possibly a language.
Agree. I certainly don't think at this point in history every healthy American male has a moral obligation to serve, which I did as little as a few years ago, but it can still be a good option for a lot of people--you just need to view it from a transactional point of view, make a risk/reward calculus (yes, there's a chance you'll die for globalism but it's a low chance even in combat arms and can be mitigated to near-nonexistent; yes, you'll have to sit through a lot of diversity faggotry but it would be the same in a university or corporate America and at any rate being able to blend in is a valuable skill to have), and have a plan for what you want to get out of service.
One option I don't see recommended often enough IMO is the Coast Guard--same post-service benefits as the other services and smaller chance you'll be deployed overseas. (Not zero chance--I believe USCG ships were used to augment the Navy in combat zones in some past wars so it's not out of the question that could happen again, but it's smaller. I also met a Coast Guard dude in landlocked Afghanistan of all places, apparently he was there to help train the Afghan customs officers as that's part of their area of expertise--but I'm pretty sure he never left Bagram.)
Don't forget that Uncle Sam can change the terms and conditions anytime he wants.
The son of a guy I worked with was in the Navy. He and a group of new black shoe Navy were being sent to learn to drive trucks. This was during the time in Iraq when so many Brown and Root vehicles were being destroyed by IEDs.
My coworker, a Navy vet, told me he was yelling at his son over the phone demanding to know what he wasn't telling him (his father). His son claimed that he and everyone in his group were in the dark as to why they were being retasked to learn to drive trucks.
His son was never reassigned and deployed to drive trucks in Iraq but my coworker and his wife were very nervous for awhile.
The son of a guy I worked with was in the Navy. He and a group of new black shoe Navy were being sent to learn to drive trucks. This was during the time in Iraq when so many Brown and Root vehicles were being destroyed by IEDs.
My coworker, a Navy vet, told me he was yelling at his son over the phone demanding to know what he wasn't telling him (his father). His son claimed that he and everyone in his group were in the dark as to why they were being retasked to learn to drive trucks.
His son was never reassigned and deployed to drive trucks in Iraq but my coworker and his wife were very nervous for awhile.
I disagree. But understand your logic... heres why:
The complexity of expereinces I've had in a combat arms MOS gave me so many diverse skills and exposures that it's really hard to think a siloed role would have been more benefical. I know this is something many suggest, but In MY case I didnt find it to be true.
I got expereince with logistics (my current role) supply chain, operations, project management, budgeting, curriculum development, leadership, bereucratic organizational navitation, international relations, sales, strategic execution, intelligence and anyalsis, operational planning, tactical leadership, and instituting multiple policy reforms at local levels ect.
The leadership expereince alone in a combat arms mos is the biggest incalcualble that the military gives you. If you get this one down, you'll be successful in any endavor. Milage does very significantly based off individual aptitude and hugner for success.
Easy_C
Peacock
t's not me you need to convince. It's employers in your desired field and quite a few of them are going to always err in favor of "did the exact same job for 3 years at another employer".
And you're also forgetting another factor that impacts Mileage. It's one that benefitted us due to timing and will do almost nothing for anyone in service now: Politics.
While the GWOT was in it's prime we still had massive media efforts and propaganda efforts that had a lingering effect for years. Every military person was a "hero" and viewed as having amazing leadership and work abilities. Up until about 2015 or so everything you said was viewed as commonly true and every firm was putting in a huge effort to veteran outreach.
Now that's not the case. My acquiantances in that sphere (like the guy who ran the Wall Street Veterans Program) were reporting back around 2018-ish that doors were being shut, people were not answering their calls anymore, and everyone was just trying to hire more women.
Then BLM happened and now all the energy is focused on minorities. In the current climate most corporate employers will pick the black candidate over the non-black veteran candidate every time.
Not to mention that for anyone on the fence, idiots like Milley have done incredible damage to the "brand" of being military.
Ok... but if you know how to explain what your role in the military was into the role youre applying for its a moot point. Often times people dont understand the verbiage required to translate those skills into the correct frame of reference. But we need to consider the sort of job we are talking about. Are we talking about a "Job" or a "Position" a job that matters in. But for a Position its more flexible.
You're not wrong, its a hurdle, but not a deal breaker if you know how to position yourself as a candidate and how to leverage tangible expereince.
I'm not dismissing this... but you have to also consider the industry and firm you're looking to apply for. There are TONS and TONS of Junior military officer programs out there, and tons and tons of head hunters that specialize in recruitment for Veterans. I've used them when leaving the .mil in 2019.
The ESG element is not going away... and DEI is still a relevant factor... but its not going away for the time being... so you have to chose your industry and be strategic in what your goals are post .mil career.
I still posit that from building a competent leader in business, the combat arms mos's give you the biggest skillset to adapt to adversarial conditions and understand the big picture. It's been my expereince, and why I've had a lot of success post .mil in that I get things done at work. Most of that is how I am wired.... but the biggest external element en ENABLING that is the organizational skills and analytics I learned in the .mil.
Yes, if you just want to get a decent job, go be an air mechanic in the air force, work on planes and havea highly tehcnical skill. But if you want to make it big in corporate, learning how to navigate institutions and bureuacracy and leadership is key.
In the industries I've worked in (chemicals/oil and gas/industiral distrobtion) theres been nothing but admiration for service. AND on the job interviews I've had (and I am doing more interviews recently as I'm ready for a change from my current role into a different area in supply chain) the ability to convey the .mil skils in civilian terminology has not been a barrier to entry.
They may have been getting trained for a Provincial Reconstruction Team. Can't speak to Iraq (never went there) but in Afghanistan those were typically a Navy command augmented by a platoon or so of National Guard infantry.
Provincial Reconstruction Team - Wikipedia
I was under the impression the Navy guys had all volunteered for the deployment but I might be wrong on that.
It's been almost 15 years since I took the ASVAB but from what I remember the math is literally middle school level (no calculus or trigonometry, only very basic algebra and geometry--again IIRC). I took it with an absolutely skull-crushing hangover and got a 99.
Racist.
I liked the ASVAB because it's the most practical test I've ever seen. There's some basic spatial awareness questions on there that some people just can't figure out. Other tests are criticized for being far too theoretical, but you can't criticize the ASVAB in that regard. Everything in that test is things you should know. An example question would be as follows:
If the spur gear is moving counterclockwise when viewed from the top, in which direction is the rack moving (imagine the arrows aren't there)?
I could follow the gear motion up to the worm gear. I had to look up worm gears to see how they work.
To be fair the illustration doesn't make it too easy to see the angle the worm gear's tooth is at, but think of it like a spinning barber's pole
I've worked with systems like this before, so I could see that the turning screw ridges would move back, given the direction it was turning, pushing the round gear as indicated in the picture. However, I strongly suspect I wouldn't have known this when I was the age of a potential recruit.
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Handbags at dawn....
Ah yes, the sequel starring Ashton Kutcher. Dude, where's my F-35?
That's a more creative take on a remake than I would expect of Hollywood these days.