Military Question

[Stoney]

There is far too much BS in the military to put up with if you don't like the job you're doing.

Like getting turned into a greasy spot on the side of some road in Ass-crackistan from an IED...  Rey, do not join the military for the money, or the GI Bill, or whatever.  Expect no sleep, no chow, and no liberty.  Do it for service only--expect nothing else.  You graduate from boot camp and don't go blowing your money on chicks, girlfriends, or cars and your Spec 4 pay will go far.  Going for the Warrant Officer program in the Army will not get you into the cockpit any faster than going to school first.  If you have the opportunity, go to school, then go in the military as a Commissioned Officer, and fly what you want in the service of your choice.  If you don't have the opportunity to go straight to school, then enlist, do a hitch in a cool "blow stuff up" MOS, then go to school on your benefits, then go back in as a Commissioned Officer and fly what you want.  You have plenty of time to crawl into the cockpit, but you better know what you're getting yourself into.  People are getting shot at and killed on a daily basis right now.  If you find yourself in that place, you're going to want to be there for the right reasons.  I can't be more serious about this.

[Serenity]

Serenity, Im currently finishing my WO packet and I dont know if Im going to get accepted. Your going to want to make sure you get it before you start trying for bonuses and things of that nature.

The signing bonuses come when you sign.

More important than how much you get paid is what you do with what you do get paid.  Get married right away or buy a new car as soon as your paycheck covers the loan payment, and you'll be poor no matter how much they pay you.  Be smart and start saving a minimum of 15% of your salary from day one however, and you'll have plenty of scratch when you need it.

If all you want is money, you need to find the right career specialty.  But choosing a specialty based on bonus is dumb.  There is far too much BS in the military to put up with if you don't like the job you're doing.  Pick the specialty based on what you enjoy doing, and if they pay you more for it then yaaay, you win.  Do it the other way around and no amount of money will be worth the pain of staying in.

As far as my specialty, I know what I am aiming for. Regardless of what service I find myself in, I want to fly. I just know recruiters, well, avoid giving you info you don't specifically ask for, so I was wondering what bonuses to look into.

[Yenny]

Why not go to college get military to pay for it? get an easy degree like law and justice if you want to maintain high gpa to get accept into flight program? do this, get ur 2 years AA first, then TRANSFER to a 4 years school that has ROTC program. Reason for transfer is when you transfer your GPA reset back to 4.0 so if you screw it up in the 1st two years you can redeem yourself. Another note once you get into the 4 years w/ an easy major, load up the 3rd year w/ all the easier courses, then suck it up at the senior year.

For the army, your junior year in college is ur assession year. They count your GPA from that year to determine where you place in the national OML. W/ the GPA reset when transferred and easy junior year, you should maintain at least a 3.8 GPA np, which should put you on top 10-20% nationally. If you're in top 10% you get the job of your choice. Top 20% you get 90% chance of w/e you want. This is the trick around the system to get high GPA and get guarantee whatever job you want ( if you're physically fit of course ). This is the loop around the system that we have right now. It works in every branch of the military.

If you have any question just give me a PM.

[Serenity]

Why not go to college get military to pay for it? get an easy degree like law and justice if you want to maintain high gpa to get accept into flight program? do this, get ur 2 years AA first, then TRANSFER to a 4 years school that has ROTC program. Reason for transfer is when you transfer your GPA reset back to 4.0 so if you screw it up in the 1st two years you can redeem yourself. Another note once you get into the 4 years w/ an easy major, load up the 3rd year w/ all the easier courses, then suck it up at the senior year.

For the army, your junior year in college is ur assession year. They count your GPA from that year to determine where you place in the national OML. W/ the GPA reset when transferred and easy junior year, you should maintain at least a 3.8 GPA np, which should put you on top 10-20% nationally. If you're in top 10% you get the job of your choice. Top 20% you get 90% chance of w/e you want. This is the trick around the system to get high GPA and get guarantee whatever job you want ( if you're physically fit of course ). This is the loop around the system that we have right now. It works in every branch of the military.

If you have any question just give me a PM.

My reason for not going the ROTC route: I can fly as an Army WO without college. I really don't want to go through college if I have another option. I have never looked at college as some huge, growing experience. It is merely a tool to get me where I want to go, namely, a cockpit. If the Warrant Officer for some reason no longer becomes available, there is ROTC. Honestly, WO is a short-cut.

[GFShill]

And when you go back to civilian living and the job app asks for highest degree attained, you'll be in the mail room with all the other guys that didn't want to go to college.

If you're going to go mil, go long and go get the college that'll get you officer's pay and privies.

[Serenity]

And when you go back to civilian living and the job app asks for highest degree attained, you'll be in the mail room with all the other guys that didn't want to go to college.

If you're going to go mil, go long and go get the college that'll get you officer's pay and privies.

Maybe later on in my career I'll take the college option, but for now, I just want to fly. Whatever gets me there quickest and has me doing the most flying. Helos, jets, either way. Of course this is assuming I don't make the Academy, which I seem to have a REALLY good chance at based on the letters I have received from both Anapolis and USAFA.

[GFShill]

You won't be flying jets without college; combat or otherwise. May not even get into a helo; at least not a combat ship.  Hope you like sim flying because without college you have a career path for a UAV.  This isn't 1967, where the Army is grabbing every helicopter off the assembly line and sticking a WO in the right seat for Huey duty.

How were your MEPS scores? 

[eagl]

There is no USAF pilot bonus until the training comittment is fulfilled, 10 yrs after finishing pilot trng. USAF does give flight pay which has an increasing scale until about 15 yrs of aviation service, and that is nice, but it doesn't make up for the 12-14 hr days, deployments, and opportunity to bust your donut daily.
 
AF pilots are well paid but we aren't rich and the work hrs/conditions are not good.  And the post-separation or after retirement airline jobs are even worse now, with crappy conditions and terrible pay.

[Selino631]

My money is on that one.

Just for the record, I know I sound rather... greedy with this, but honestly, I am joining the military because I want to serve my country, because I feel it is the best thing I can do with my life. But, I won't be getting any financial support from my parents, when I leave the house I leave with only the money the military will give me, so a nice signing bonus will REALLY help.

I actualy just enlisted myself on June 6th. I am in the Delayed Entry Program (DEP) for a year since i am now a High School senior, i ship out right after graduation.

Honestly bonuses arn't looking too good right now, So if you want a larger one your gonna need to act fast because the military is getting flooded with people trying to join (with the economy and all, they want a stable job). so the standards are going up and the bonuses are going down. I enlisted 11X Infantrymen for 8 years and only got $7,000. and the GI Bill. But if you going to enlist as a Warrent Officer Cadet you might get a bonus up near $20,000. (the advertized $40k for active duty it no more.)

I am actualy planning one going Warrent Officer one day. Right now with my enlisted i am required to serve 3 years and 16 weeks Active Duty, then 4 years 36 weeks Reserve unless i request to go active. so i'll probably reclass then. any more questions?

[JunkyII]

The signing bonuses come when you sign.

As far as my specialty, I know what I am aiming for. Regardless of what service I find myself in, I want to fly. I just know recruiters, well, avoid giving you info you don't specifically ask for, so I was wondering what bonuses to look into.

You think I dont know this, In the 11series field some people got 20,000 some people got nothing. Bonuses can depend on which MEPS station your at, what your ASVAB scores are and if you had any waivers for criminal or physical conditions. Im sorry to say but you arent going to get WO right when you enter unless you got alot of college under your belt and from what you have said, you have none. If you want to fly in the military you either need college or score really high on the Army Aviation test after serving as an enlisted for a bit. I have a E-5 with a Ranger tab and college credits and he didnt get excepted into WO school because his reccomendation person was a jack upped helicopter pilot. Ill give you the site for all the information about Army WOs you need.

Edit: the site for WO recruiting http://www.usarec.army.mil/hq/warrant/

[Selino631]

You think I dont know this, In the 11series field some people got 20,000 some people got nothing. Bonuses can depend on which MEPS station your at, what your ASVAB scores are and if you had any waivers for criminal or physical conditions. Im sorry to say but you arent going to get WO right when you enter unless you got alot of college under your belt and from what you have said, you have none. If you want to fly in the military you either need college or score really high on the Army Aviation test after serving as an enlisted for a bit. I have a E-5 with a Ranger tab and college credits and he didnt get excepted into WO school because his reccomendation person was a jack upped helicopter pilot. Ill give you the site for all the information about Army WOs you need.

Edit: the site for WO recruiting http://www.usarec.army.mil/hq/warrant/

thats werid, i was told that I could actualy enlist for WOCS/WOFT. My recruiter said all i'd have to do is score high on the ASVAB then i'd have to go to MEPS and be flight tested (to see if my ears pop and other stuff like that), then after i finish BCT i'd go to WOCS instead of AIT then after that i'd go to WOFT.

[moot]

I DONT want to go to college if I don't have to.

Major handicap.

[Serenity]

You think I dont know this, In the 11series field some people got 20,000 some people got nothing. Bonuses can depend on which MEPS station your at, what your ASVAB scores are and if you had any waivers for criminal or physical conditions. Im sorry to say but you arent going to get WO right when you enter unless you got alot of college under your belt and from what you have said, you have none. If you want to fly in the military you either need college or score really high on the Army Aviation test after serving as an enlisted for a bit. I have a E-5 with a Ranger tab and college credits and he didnt get excepted into WO school because his reccomendation person was a jack upped helicopter pilot. Ill give you the site for all the information about Army WOs you need.

Edit: the site for WO recruiting http://www.usarec.army.mil/hq/warrant/

According to my girlfriend's father, Army WO2 who came up through the standard enlistment program, if you have a good ASVAB (Mine was a 93) and the required recomendations, you can go right to WO School from high-school (He had several who did that in his class) although you won't be well liked by the guys who came up the hard way.

[JunkyII]

According to my girlfriend's father, Army WO2 who came up through the standard enlistment program, if you have a good ASVAB (Mine was a 93) and the required recommendations, you can go right to WO School from school (He had several who did that in his class) although you won't be well liked by the guys who came up the hard way.

Yea, its alto harder to get it too, its a very competitive school. What were your other scores? GT scores and stuff like that, if you got 115s across the board you will have a good chance. For aviation you need a recommendation from a 3 to 5 WO or from an O-4(Maj) I'm trying to get one from an O-7(Brigadier General Perrin) but if not Ill have to get one of the WOs to write me one

[Serenity]

Yea, its alto harder to get it too, its a very competitive school. What were your other scores? GT scores and stuff like that, if you got 115s across the board you will have a good chance. For aviation you need a recommendation from a 3 to 5 WO or from an O-4(Maj) I'm trying to get one from an O-7(Brigadier General Perrin) but if not Ill have to get one of the WOs to write me one

I don't know many army, but I've got 2 USAF Brig Gens offering me recs, a USMC Maj, and two USN Rear Admirals (Upper half). I'm not sure what you mean by GT scores. My ASVAB was 93, my SAT was 1950 IIRC, my PLAN was 29 (ACT anticipated as 33+ IIRC) and my school only allows us juniors to take one AP class, APUSH, which I got a 4 on the test.