Join the reserves?

Any reservists out there? Any branch? I've been thinking about it for a while and I'm 34 so I think that knocks out the Marines. Would it be worth it? I have a 4 month old and want some extra money for him and possibly advance in the medical field or engineering. Should have done this when I was 18! Is it really a weekend a month and 2 weeks a year after basic? I know it could be more if something went down but would really appreciate some pro's/con's and experiances.

 

no opinions?

 

I did 13 years in Navy Reserves as Hospital Corpsman with 4th Marine Division. At the time I joined I was in college and the GI bill money was great. As I got older that 1 weekend always fell on the worst weekend. It got so that I could make more money working over at my regular job than I made on those reserve weekends. That being said, it was a great experience, I learned alot and was proud to have served my country in a small way. But if you are joining for the money I would discourage it. Also the probability of getting called into active duty is high. You also have to plan for bootcamp and A-school away from your job and family. Think long and hard, think about the sacrifices your family would have to make, not just you. Best of luck.

 

Air National Guard 18 years....I'm 38 Now. For me Its been about 3 days a month, and and additional 3-4 weeks for AT days a year. 9 months is the Stan in 2010, 6 months Iraq in 2003 and 4- 6 month non combat deployments since 2001. More time than expected.....YES, worth every second...Definitely.
I would try it..or get your Bachelors and go in as an officer....

 

That said...he is correct, my buddy was Reserves as well.....missed the birth of both of his children. Its MORE of a commitment than you realize. on the good side, your GI bill is transferable to your children for college and for 20 bucks a month you get 450k life insurance.

 

Army national guard has been good to me. Full time opportunities and you can stay in your state.

 

Yeah I know, at least I think I do, about the potential sacrifices. I did two years in Iraq, 6 months in Kuwait and 1 year in Afganistan as a DOA civilian. I really enjoyed my time there and found more respect for the people and procedures than I thought I already had. I really deep down feel I missed the boat on being a Marine and am fascinated with all I can learn about strategy. Don't get me wrong, I don't want to leave my son or wife, But maybe this could satisfy my needs and provide some extra security for my family? That's why I asked here, to get personal accounts with no bs from a recruiter.

 

How far can a reservist go? Don't know how to ask the question but my cousin is a Scout Sniper and he said I should have done it because I am better than he is in all areas. I also have a Seal friend that says to me I missed the boat. These are people that I highly respect and that have earned their places and opinions in my book. There's not anything I can't pick up and learn. I know it gets tossed around a lot but when I do something I do it all the way the first time(except for buying a PreRunner instead of a TRD! LOL!) I just can't do anything half ass.

 

Speaking from experience. If you are prior active service, dont do it. If you want to be high speed, dont do it. If you have 0 tolerance for bull shit and hate standing around doing NOTHING, dont do it. If you are not sure about your ability to stay in shape and maintain height and weight, dont do it. I have one year left on this miserable reserve contract and can not wait for it to be over. Drill is ALWAYS the weekend you have fun shit to do. The leadership (E6 and up, officers ect) are sometimes the best NCOs and officers you will come in contact with, however, some of them are shit bags from WAY back (Not unlike AD) but they have napoleon syndrom because they work some shit job M-F and then they get to put a uniform on and be the baddest son of a bitch alive and have minimal understanding of what is going on and have forgotten everything being an NCO is about. Typically budget restraints and poor planning trump actually accomplishing anything and no one knows what the hell is going on. I deployed to AFG with this reserve unit and you are essentially placed on AD orders 4 -5 months before your deployment and are re integrated to the AD lifestyle (Mainly you get excellent trainging and they slim down all the fat bodies and remedy the astonishing amount of PT failures) then you are shipped out and the deployment is the exact same as any AD units deployment. (Mind you there are no combat arms in the RESERVES) Combat engineers and field artillery (I have never actually laid eyes on a artillery unit but supposedly they are out there) are the closest you can get. There are however some high speed jobs that most over look. Civil affairs, psyops, linguist, combat field hospital (Pretty sweet, the unit is 90% O5 and up and they are civilian surgeons that are LOADED). If you are still interested, look at what units are around you, you are supposed to stay within a 50 mile radius but it is pretty typical for them to okay you out to 200 miles. Keep in mind gas and SOMETIMES hotel and food is out of your pocket. Alot of times you will get lodging and kind. Go to your local reserve recruiter and ask whats close, then have them take you to any unit you may be interested in. All units have 3 - 10 active duty members that are always there. Go talk to them, tell them your plans and how you see your career going. They will tell you the truth, they dont give a shit if you join so they have no reason to lie. The National guard has ALOT more options, MOS wise. I know 0 about the guard. The Reserves have a extremely high deployment rate. You can come back from a deployment, waive your rest period and deploy again in a matter of months. You will meet SEVERAL reserve soilders that have deployed 7 or 8 times since 9/11, not even joking. The only ones you see without deployment patches are E1-2s that just got to the unit. They will get pulled for a deployment before they forget to stop yelling yes DSGT every time you ask them to do something. Approach with caution and alway check your 6.
Jake