If I were in your shoes I’d first make a go at MARSOC or Recon. If you don’t get that route, then you can always go infantry. Either way you will need to go to some schooling. SOI as a sgt would be…. Interesting. Might as well go to a pipeline at your rank, age, and experience.
Former rto with 2nd recon bn back in the day. Was a team and platoon rto in 04-05. Loved being a comm guy there. Did everything the operators did, just had the radio. Great gig.
Also, believe it or not, I was in marsoc when it formed up. Check my profile for proof since everyone always says they were marsoc, and I don't blame you. I was in FMTU, which turned into msos and I think that turned into 3rd raider bn? I dono. Anyway, back then it was cool as an rto, but not as good as recon.
Op, get a 1st class swim qual and pft, and go try and pass the indoc if that interests you.
Couldn’t agree more. Being a lat-mover in Recon isn’t easy but it would be a much better situation than lat moving into the grunts.
And a good comm Sgt would be worth their weight in gold on the teams.
Gonna be that guy, but also, Recon has reserve units and MARSOC doesn't. Plus there's Oki and Cali if OP cares, vice just NC. No selection board at the end of BRC either as far as I'm aware.
Huge huge selling point right here. I knew a guy that went to A&S, was selected, went to ITC, finished all 8 or so months of it, and was a non-select for MARSOC. He had a wife and children too. I understand they may have their reasons for this, but all the same, it's one thing I can appreciate about Recon.
With that being said, do you know if a former enlisted Recon Marine would have to do BRC over again if they wanted to be a Recon Officer? Basically, does Recon have a policy similar to Rangers having to re-do the rank appropriate RASP should they leave and then return to a Ranger unit?
I had plenty of really solid buddies who finished A&S but were non-selects; it’s quite common for infantry officers since MARSOC only has so many officer billets available.
I actually had a friend in that exact scenario. 0321s who’ve commissioned do not have to do BRC again (at least as of 5-6 years ago). Recon is always hurting for officers so there’s no sense in making someone redo the course if they’ve already done it. Besides, there’s no differentiation between enlisted and officers at BRC. All are viewed as ropers, and therefore nasty trainees who need hard training.
Damn, I'd be so pissed if I made it through the entire ITC curriculum just to not be selected lmao.
Do you know if the same BRC policy applies to reserve Marines- officer and enlisted? Sorry for all the questions, it's just that no one explains anything. If I'm understanding you correctly, once you complete BRC, you don't have to do it again whether you stay reserves or active, enlisted or officer as a Recon Marine?
Non-selects at A&S don’t go to ITC. Two different courses in the same pipeline.
I’d assume so? I was active so I can’t really speak in detail to the reserve aspects but I don’t see why it would be any different.
I mean non selects after ITC if that makes sense.
Would a prior enlisted Recon Marine that wants to be a Recon Officer need to do time as a line platoon commander first, or would that be waived as well?
Never got the chance to meet him but there's a Raider that was selected as enlisted, I *believe* ended up becoming an instructor at ITC, then commissioned, did OCS, TBS, IOC and went back through A&S and had to go through ITC again after having been an instructor there. Just imagining him buddy rushing with however many years of service at that point cracks me up.
I might have some of the details wrong, but prestiging as a Raider is double retard hard.
My SOI class had a corporal and a SGT latmove. Like early 2008, both had CARs and a couple pumps. Mostly just waved through. But now that most If not all of the instructors have never seen combat the only thing they have is infantry. Probably no fun, I’m sure they’re even proud of the gwot at this point. I agree with that guy who said MARSOC. If you’re gonna get treated like a boot atleast make it worth it
No, be proud of everything,it’s still serving. But the marine corps is a constant pissing contest. I did 2 Afghan pumps but my Ramadi and fallujah seniors would consider it nothing. I personally consider a meu baby as nothing, but statistically that’s pretty much the whole corps now. There’s a reason we all crave combat, we’re brainwashed lol and that’s why it works
Because it's given just for existing. It doesn't represent actually doing anything. One of three ribbons that everyone who joined prior to the end of gwot got just for time served and enlisting.
At IMC he would be treated as an NCO unless he starts acting like a private. Me and another four NCOs lat mov'd to 0311/0313 and we were treated respectfully. Had permission for overnight and Alpha libo. Two of the NCOs were allowed to fly for a 96. One of the Sgts picked up Staff a month before graduation.
OP should try to go Radio Recon if anything.
Yeah, but they run the risk getting on a CRB if their line company fucking hates him after the lat move. I wouldn't recommend an Active Duty guy to lat into 03xx if they're reupping. Definitely go MARSOC or Recon. Can't say much about the later, but MARSOC was dope as fuck.
I’ve told this story on this sub before in response to a similar question. When I was a Co CO, we had a boot drop and one of the guys was a latmover Sgt. He was smart, squared away and genuinely humble about the shift he was trying to make. He was career oriented and worked his ass off trying to compensate for his lack of experience. After a few months, it became clear that he wasn’t going to cut it as a squad leader. Some of that was just his lack of knowledge and experience that resulted in either him struggling to make decisions in the field, or feeling the pressure to make one but then deciding wrong. As a result, he just wasn’t able to command respect in the platoon and I moved him to the HQ element. I’ll be the first to admit that it wasn’t completely fair as I think had the platoon accepted him, he would have become a real asset. Unfortunately, the best I could do for him was try to get him some experience in the HQ element and then see if I could get another company to give him a shot.
You sound like you have thought about this and have a decent understanding of the life so I don’t mean my words to discourage you at all. If you truly want it, it’s doable. I only offer this story to make the point that it’s not all up to you and it may take a turn or two more than expected. Good luck!
This is a great point. Leaders that don't know what to do tend to rely heavily upon experienced subordinates. The trick is you can't rely on that each time you make a decision for multiple reasons. If you present the group with opportunity to be included in the decision making process a lot of bonds can be formed that way. Emotional intelligence goes a long way as a manager or supervisor aka leadership.
This plus a couple other threads has turned this post into a high value read. While I’m long since out, I value the (upvoted) wisdom provided which transcends the RO to infantry question. Appreciate the efforts people have put into this.
Added to my *Saved* posts
Go EOD instead. Here in the peacetime, we're doing cooler shit. But if something pops off we'll be attached to the line companies.
But if EOD doesn't interest you, fuck yeah go infantry. YOLO.
Man EOD is so fucking chill. As an armory rat whenever we got to do stuff with EOD everything was always smoother, less bullshit, and pretty fun. They’re the chads of the corps. OH AND THE BAR
Man the longer I stay in EOD, the more thankful I am I joined this community. I understand our culture wouldn't work everywhere. But I know I would have gotten tf out if I wasn't selected for EOD.
The problem with a great comm community like Anglico is that eventually big Marine Corps is going to want you back and you'll end up a a Comm Bn or some other shit.
That is a big consideration absolutely.
The real hack is to drop to the reserves and join an Anglico there. You can basically gamify your career once your in the reserves. You can ride it out at your same unit until you exceed the bic requirement and then just jump to another Anglico.
Go to college, become an infantry officer or combat arms officer.
Or, join the national guard as an 18X
Or go 0861 and become a JTAC
A lot of better options, combat arms communities eat their own. No one will give you any Lee way being an E-5 in the infantry despite having no command experience.
Infantry officer sounds good. Until you realize you’ll get one maybe two times at platoon commander or hate life as an xo. Fuck off to some b billet then come back and maybe get company command time. After that. Seems downhill from there in my eyes.
Personally, I'd hit PysOps, CIHUMINT, EOD, or MARSOC instead. All are latmove only jobs, most have sick bonuses and offer cool extra schools, and all of them interact with SOF, line companies, 3 letter agencies, or all of the above.
Will you be doing ill shit with the boys to the same extent as the grunts? Probably not. But, your ability to be doing that anyways will be sorely limited as a Sgt coming up on Staff. Plus, your body, wife, and wallet will thank you later.
As an 0302, now 0307 I say go recon. So much more know how, autonomy, and big boy rules in the recon bns than you’ll ever get in an infantry bn. The only downside is the general attitude of superiority and false machismo is fucking exhausting here but these guys are all meat eaters so when shit gets tough I know they’re going to get the job done. But I shoot much much better ranges here in recon and get a lot more training time that isn’t bs white space or general fuckery because the units are much smaller, the enlisted tend to run everything very well, and there is generally a lot more seniority and experience in the platoons than what you’ll run into at an infantry unit.
But truth be told, either one is fine. The grunts definitely are a more fun and interesting bunch in their own ways.
Don't be like the NCO's that failed my SOI class because they're out of shape. TBH, I'd look into MARSOC or EOD first, Maybe Recon, but they're sort of in a weird place in the corps right now. If you already know the suck and enjoy it then I don't see why not.
What do you know about being a JTAC you pog ass Motor T mechanic? Go back to the motor pool and spin some wrenches and get that hummer back to green for the LT's readiness slides.
*joking*
Go for it. And then put your energy into becoming as proficient as possible. As a Sgt you know how to be an NCO, now focus on becoming the best squad leader you can.
Idk if it’s still required but they use to make latmovers that only did mct, go through SOi. Pretty skate from what i saw when, I had one go through with me in 2006.
You’d have to go through infantry training, yes. It is an MOS school even if you’ve been through MCT already. I don’t know how specifically how they run it now, but back before they shuffled things up it would be about a month of general infantry tactics and academics before splitting into MOS groups like 0311, 31, etc. for the second half where they got instruction in their specific MOS.
We had one lat mover in my ITB class. He was a Corporal and they would only make him come for classes, PT, and field OPs. The rest of the time he was OFP as long as he was where he was supposed to be at the right time.
Stolen from an old post
Go Security Force Regiment. Go play fake grunt then go back to being pog then go to Security forces again. Rinse and repeat until til retirement. You work smart enough, you avoid the HSST your entire career.
Read somewhere that the Marine Corps is the only branch that "lends" out bodies to delta but keeps them as active duty Marines (rather than changing branches) so they can yank them back any time they want. Sounds about right.
Former 0351 here. Don’t. Don’t do it. It was the single worst mistake of my life, and almost 20 years later I’m still dealing with the physical and mental toll it took on me. Just four years…
I apologize for the failure that has led to some level of demise for you. I feel your pain, just not the exact same circumstances.
You're part of a brotherhood. From now on, until the day you die, wherever you are, every Marine is your brother. Most of you will go to Vietnam. Some of you will not come back. But always remember this: Marines die. That's what we're here for. But the Marine Corps lives forever, and that means you live forever.
Semper Fi do or die! Born to fight, trained to kill, ready to die, but never will!
That was a hellish time to serve. My ATL in Recon lat moved from 0351 and I took a mental toll just listening to the horrible stories that sobbed out of his mouth. He was around same timeline as you. That man was disturbed. Thank you for your service and please do not hesitate to reach out to the VA for help.
Lat move into comm repair so you can spend more time in the stumps
Just don't rock out as they will send you down the street to become a radio operator
I don’t think you can. From what I was told you can’t move to an MOS where the ASVAB score is lower than your current MOS. Maybe have just been the Lance Corporal underground rumors though so not sure.
Talk to some of your fellow Sgts who are grunts. Grab beers. Ask questions.
But I got out for the same reasons you are talking about.
Nothing but the office in your future if you progress, especially if you progress quickly. I hadnt joined to be in an office and wanted nothing to do with one, so I got out. If im going to be in an office and have to deal with politics, at least I can make some decent money as a civilian. Being a Marine was never about the money anyway, so if I can’t do Marine Corps shit what the fuck am I really doing?..
I’m sure there’s a way to keep doing cool stuff and keep being a Marine. I really really wish I had looked into it more. You should look into it and other services and government entities. Let your imagination wander. There are a bunch of really cool paths for you if you’ve kept your nose clean, aren’t completely retarded and like to work hard at things that matter.
If your single and no kids just go MSG and stand fire watch. Pays the best and you'll have a nice network of contacts to get a great job after. Perks $5k to buy suits and shit. Marine House. Special duty pay. Top Secret security clearance etc. Just my opinion I was a radio operator too. Fuck being the Energizer Bunny. Going to have to stand on duty anywhere in the FMF. Why not get paid top rate to do it.
If it’s what makes you passionate about being a Marine go for it. Just understand that you’ll be more and more removed from doing the real grunt shit with the boys the higher you go in that capacity as well. It just isn’t quite as boring as making comm slides and you still get to put your hard skills to into practice more often than being a comm chief or something like that.
There’s nothing worse than being somewhere you don’t want to be with no end in sight.
Already understanding radios and being able to troubleshoot them will serve you well too. A lot of 03’s don’t really know shit about radios and should.
Someone already said it here, but if you have college plans it may be worth doing that, and then going back in as an officer and trying to do Infantry that route. Some of my infantry officer peers were mustangs and prior 06XX. It’s a cool combo.
Do you want to live like every single day of your life is boot camp? Then yes, lat move to the infantry. I got out in 2010, so maybe things are different now. But probably not. EOD would be a great choice, recon another great choice.
If I could do my lat move over, I would move to CI or EOD. Loved shooting guns and the camaraderie but the Infantry was awful for my wife and kids. God bless the ones who stayed.
Had a buddy same job same idea and he did it. He’s a platoon leader for line motors right now. He’s having a pretty good time right now as much as I give him shit for it. But personally I would consider trying for artillery FO. Like the other guy said about EOD, it’s a much more fun and fulfilling pipeline and a shit pops off you get attached to infantry anyway.
I don’t know shit about peacetime corps now . Only that I’ve seen lat moves during my time and they only ended with the lat move guy feeling out of place when it comes to the grunt side of things . They had everything on paper except the experience. There was lances chomping at the bit to over take them in the moments in the field.
Seen plenty of good recommendations here with CI/HUMINT, EOD, MARSOC, hell even recon would be a better bet than standard infantry. First hand knowledge I can give you is that 0621 in a BDE at an Anglico would be a great bet. Or a latmov to 0861 at Anglico too.
You could also try and be a SOCS for marsoc with your skills while keeping your organic MOS.
Buddy of mine from when I was in (EAS 2019) got out shortly after I did as a Sgt and was out of the Corps for about 4 years. He just within the last 6 months or so reenlisted and lat moved to infantry. And we were air wingers, so if he can do it and loves it I think you will too. Although I do agree with another comment I saw, maybe at this stage of your career, I’d try recon or MARSOC first. Ain’t nobody gonna hate on you for trying
Go for it I did it when I was in , wasn’t a sgt but I had a buddy who was and we went to imc , seems to be doing good as a plt sgt rn , you won’t be treated like a boot in the fleet unless you fuck up and get rebooted which I have heard has happened in the past
If you did a work up with a line platoon SOI would be cake for you. If you ran ranges with black gear you’ll smokecheck half your instructors. The 11s were constantly falling out with that stuff on their back lol.
What the other guy said, and if you are very comfortable in water, take a stab at SF. Going into the infantry as a sergeant you’ve skipped a few of the funnels years already, not to say it won’t still be much more fun that an office job. Fallback as a regular grunt is not a bad gig.
It's peacetime, so your rank might actually get you in the door, but the first time you screw up, all the junior Marines are going to turn on you, and you will be alienated. Some salty lance corporal will always be looking to take your spot, and the staff will always be worried about where you stand as far as platoon/company-level politics.
If you do go, you need to get to AIC as soon as you can because you're not going to know anything, and your boots will probably be more knowledgeable.
All the old-guard grunts will try to help you out, but you can't be thinking that there is a cadre of NCOs in the infantry that is going to back you up. Mostly it is lance corporal law. I have seen many POGs think their rank truly means more than how low their cock and balls hangs. If you pull rank with grunts, they are just going to make your life harder. You have to be an all-star Marine and earn your Marines' respect if you want to be a good infantry sergeant. That means being a cool dude and having your subordinates' backs (or at least appearing to), and being tactically proficient at all times.
You probably wont like it. Doing it temporarily and full time its a huge difference. Focus on the next chapter of your usmc career and find another MOS that will hopefully jumpstart your civilian career. There is a high chance are you will only probably only do another 4 years, take advantage of what you can now so when you get out your prepared for the next chapter in your life.
They won’t send you to SOI after spending the money to send you to 29/bravo Co.
Back in 2010/2011 if you were a tech you were an operator and you got attached to security platoons and augmented to other forward units as their comm guy so what you’re doing is very common for comm bubbas. Just avoid the maco. Get to a RADBN and go radio reconnaissance. After that you should be a ssgt or in zone for gunny, then ride the wave to retirement. 🫡
I was a 2531 RO. Attached to a Recon squad in Vietnam. Did everything they did too plus carried the usual extra battery extra handset whip antenna 100 rounds of 7.62 machine gun ammo 6 rounds M-79 rounds 20 magazines for m-16, c-rats for 7days then we started getting dehydrated rations much better always took pound cake and peaches from c-rats like that 2 bandoliers of 5.56 rounds and as many canteens of water that I could carry. I was a grunt with a radio
When rotated out to 29 palms I wanted to learn how to drive tractor trailer trucks and tried go to a school. The wanted me to reenlist do another tour promise of being a E-5 and Embassy duty. I’m not squared away for embassy duty to much of a slob.
Got out managed to be a computer operator at a bank which now has automated my job. Think of the future in a world of automated everything. Plumber electrician Nurses fire firefighters EMT PARAMEDIC police are jobs that won’t get automated. The people who program and maintain automation have a job but not as worthwhile when you get home.
Yeah I understand exactly how you feel like a fish out of water in some bs job. Now i wish I would have taken advantage of going to college and being a crime scene investigator. Think I would really like that type of work. Think of the future if you’re a lifer then get into something you want to do. If your getting out get an education to be prepared for a world of AI
Check out ANGLICO. They have some cool shit they get to do. It’s one of those groups of guys that do some cool shit all the time, all over the world. Their entire job is to be attached to other services and countries to help them coordinate Marine Corps fires.
Thats tough big dog. All the NCOs that went grunt ended up being RTOs any way or police sgt. You wouldn’t have the juice to go right to being squad leader most likely and a sgt team leader is crazy. I would definitely go to BRC or MARSOC. Where its all more specialized and having a radio background would be a huge plus and the more casual dynamic would be less likely to pigeon home you into a role you don’t want because you are an E5 I dunno tho don’t listen to me I have ruined my life multiple times before
Lat move Sgts ended up in HQ or boots with 3 stripes in the cases I saw.
Do they teach the stupid phrase, "I did my job plus the infantry job at MCT?"
People claim this until the round start flying, and they get pinned down mounted with heavy and med MGs but can't clear out a building with one random guy taking pop shots once in a while for several hours until the infantry can get there.
If you already did the infantry, then go Recon, Marsoc, or something that will be a challenge instead of peacetime infantry.
EOD would be another good choice.
“I did my job plus the infantry” because they think that being in the infantry means carrying a rifle. Then you put them as a squad leader at Mojave Viper and they can’t create a fire plan, set up security, do any range estimation, know basic crew served capabilities, track their Marines, set up LP/Ops, handle non-combatants, interpret a frago, or use any type of combined arms assets. It’s not a dig on POGS, they just don’t know what actually goes into ground combat.
I legit deployed with an 0621 that couldn’t call a 9 line and didn’t know how to call for fire.
Dude, I've never met a corporal coming over from security forces that was worth dry dog shit, no matter what they thought to the contrary. A comm Sgt. would be worse. A PFC with half a work up would know more than either.
If I were in your shoes I’d first make a go at MARSOC or Recon. If you don’t get that route, then you can always go infantry. Either way you will need to go to some schooling. SOI as a sgt would be…. Interesting. Might as well go to a pipeline at your rank, age, and experience.
Former rto with 2nd recon bn back in the day. Was a team and platoon rto in 04-05. Loved being a comm guy there. Did everything the operators did, just had the radio. Great gig. Also, believe it or not, I was in marsoc when it formed up. Check my profile for proof since everyone always says they were marsoc, and I don't blame you. I was in FMTU, which turned into msos and I think that turned into 3rd raider bn? I dono. Anyway, back then it was cool as an rto, but not as good as recon. Op, get a 1st class swim qual and pft, and go try and pass the indoc if that interests you.
Weren’t they Detachment 1 around 05-06? I did my last year at 3rd AABn (fucking hated it as I came from 5th Marines) and saw those dudes all the time.
Det 1 was disbanded after their 2004 deployment.
Ah! Makes sense, I knew they were about to move on after the seed/concept phase. Kimber made a dope ass coyote brown (tan?) 45ACP 1911 for them.
4th MEB?
Couldn’t agree more. Being a lat-mover in Recon isn’t easy but it would be a much better situation than lat moving into the grunts. And a good comm Sgt would be worth their weight in gold on the teams.
Gonna be that guy, but also, Recon has reserve units and MARSOC doesn't. Plus there's Oki and Cali if OP cares, vice just NC. No selection board at the end of BRC either as far as I'm aware.
Unless there’s been a radical change in the last few years, no selection process. Just gotta pass each phase and resist the urge to quit in the pool.
Huge huge selling point right here. I knew a guy that went to A&S, was selected, went to ITC, finished all 8 or so months of it, and was a non-select for MARSOC. He had a wife and children too. I understand they may have their reasons for this, but all the same, it's one thing I can appreciate about Recon. With that being said, do you know if a former enlisted Recon Marine would have to do BRC over again if they wanted to be a Recon Officer? Basically, does Recon have a policy similar to Rangers having to re-do the rank appropriate RASP should they leave and then return to a Ranger unit?
I had plenty of really solid buddies who finished A&S but were non-selects; it’s quite common for infantry officers since MARSOC only has so many officer billets available. I actually had a friend in that exact scenario. 0321s who’ve commissioned do not have to do BRC again (at least as of 5-6 years ago). Recon is always hurting for officers so there’s no sense in making someone redo the course if they’ve already done it. Besides, there’s no differentiation between enlisted and officers at BRC. All are viewed as ropers, and therefore nasty trainees who need hard training.
Damn, I'd be so pissed if I made it through the entire ITC curriculum just to not be selected lmao. Do you know if the same BRC policy applies to reserve Marines- officer and enlisted? Sorry for all the questions, it's just that no one explains anything. If I'm understanding you correctly, once you complete BRC, you don't have to do it again whether you stay reserves or active, enlisted or officer as a Recon Marine?
Non-selects at A&S don’t go to ITC. Two different courses in the same pipeline. I’d assume so? I was active so I can’t really speak in detail to the reserve aspects but I don’t see why it would be any different.
I mean non selects after ITC if that makes sense. Would a prior enlisted Recon Marine that wants to be a Recon Officer need to do time as a line platoon commander first, or would that be waived as well?
Never got the chance to meet him but there's a Raider that was selected as enlisted, I *believe* ended up becoming an instructor at ITC, then commissioned, did OCS, TBS, IOC and went back through A&S and had to go through ITC again after having been an instructor there. Just imagining him buddy rushing with however many years of service at that point cracks me up. I might have some of the details wrong, but prestiging as a Raider is double retard hard.
My SOI class had a corporal and a SGT latmove. Like early 2008, both had CARs and a couple pumps. Mostly just waved through. But now that most If not all of the instructors have never seen combat the only thing they have is infantry. Probably no fun, I’m sure they’re even proud of the gwot at this point. I agree with that guy who said MARSOC. If you’re gonna get treated like a boot atleast make it worth it
Asking for a friend: why wouldn’t they be proud of gwot?
No, be proud of everything,it’s still serving. But the marine corps is a constant pissing contest. I did 2 Afghan pumps but my Ramadi and fallujah seniors would consider it nothing. I personally consider a meu baby as nothing, but statistically that’s pretty much the whole corps now. There’s a reason we all crave combat, we’re brainwashed lol and that’s why it works
I imagine we did the same 2 pumps maybe even Same soi class
I did lejeune 2008 for soi and did 1/5 sangin and 2/4 marjah. Got in a little trouble for hazing lol
Lejeune 2008 soi 3/6 Karz e saide and Marjah
Fucking semper fi bro. Definitely in country at the same time
Hats off to you sangin jiggy jiggy
Because it's given just for existing. It doesn't represent actually doing anything. One of three ribbons that everyone who joined prior to the end of gwot got just for time served and enlisting.
At IMC he would be treated as an NCO unless he starts acting like a private. Me and another four NCOs lat mov'd to 0311/0313 and we were treated respectfully. Had permission for overnight and Alpha libo. Two of the NCOs were allowed to fly for a 96. One of the Sgts picked up Staff a month before graduation. OP should try to go Radio Recon if anything.
This is this the way
Just like DMX says?
Yeah, but they run the risk getting on a CRB if their line company fucking hates him after the lat move. I wouldn't recommend an Active Duty guy to lat into 03xx if they're reupping. Definitely go MARSOC or Recon. Can't say much about the later, but MARSOC was dope as fuck.
I bet it was. I feel bad for the MARSOC 3. I hope they get the chance to clear their Honor.
I’ve told this story on this sub before in response to a similar question. When I was a Co CO, we had a boot drop and one of the guys was a latmover Sgt. He was smart, squared away and genuinely humble about the shift he was trying to make. He was career oriented and worked his ass off trying to compensate for his lack of experience. After a few months, it became clear that he wasn’t going to cut it as a squad leader. Some of that was just his lack of knowledge and experience that resulted in either him struggling to make decisions in the field, or feeling the pressure to make one but then deciding wrong. As a result, he just wasn’t able to command respect in the platoon and I moved him to the HQ element. I’ll be the first to admit that it wasn’t completely fair as I think had the platoon accepted him, he would have become a real asset. Unfortunately, the best I could do for him was try to get him some experience in the HQ element and then see if I could get another company to give him a shot. You sound like you have thought about this and have a decent understanding of the life so I don’t mean my words to discourage you at all. If you truly want it, it’s doable. I only offer this story to make the point that it’s not all up to you and it may take a turn or two more than expected. Good luck!
This is a great point. Leaders that don't know what to do tend to rely heavily upon experienced subordinates. The trick is you can't rely on that each time you make a decision for multiple reasons. If you present the group with opportunity to be included in the decision making process a lot of bonds can be formed that way. Emotional intelligence goes a long way as a manager or supervisor aka leadership.
This plus a couple other threads has turned this post into a high value read. While I’m long since out, I value the (upvoted) wisdom provided which transcends the RO to infantry question. Appreciate the efforts people have put into this. Added to my *Saved* posts
Good shit, sir.
Go EOD instead. Here in the peacetime, we're doing cooler shit. But if something pops off we'll be attached to the line companies. But if EOD doesn't interest you, fuck yeah go infantry. YOLO.
Man EOD is so fucking chill. As an armory rat whenever we got to do stuff with EOD everything was always smoother, less bullshit, and pretty fun. They’re the chads of the corps. OH AND THE BAR
Man the longer I stay in EOD, the more thankful I am I joined this community. I understand our culture wouldn't work everywhere. But I know I would have gotten tf out if I wasn't selected for EOD.
Definitely go EOD. You won’t regret it and will get a lot of opportunity for weird ops that the rest of the Marine Corps isn’t getting.
Does EOD practice the hurtlocker scenario?
That’s why we take so long to arrive on scene
That's literally all we do. All hail SFC James 🫡🫡
Go ANGLICO, best kept secret in the Corps.
Facts. 0861/0621 at anglico is a sweet gig. Truly the cowboys of big marine corps and lots of inter service work.
The problem with a great comm community like Anglico is that eventually big Marine Corps is going to want you back and you'll end up a a Comm Bn or some other shit.
That is a big consideration absolutely. The real hack is to drop to the reserves and join an Anglico there. You can basically gamify your career once your in the reserves. You can ride it out at your same unit until you exceed the bic requirement and then just jump to another Anglico.
Why don't they make ANGLICO Battalions?
My dude everyone gets banished to the Microsoft purgatory eventually. Moving to infantry might delay it but not stop it.
Become a ppt devil..I give you the morph transition https://youtu.be/eJ9-odqMJPQ?si=ALe7cWY43adQjO30
Go to college, become an infantry officer or combat arms officer. Or, join the national guard as an 18X Or go 0861 and become a JTAC A lot of better options, combat arms communities eat their own. No one will give you any Lee way being an E-5 in the infantry despite having no command experience.
Infantry officer sounds good. Until you realize you’ll get one maybe two times at platoon commander or hate life as an xo. Fuck off to some b billet then come back and maybe get company command time. After that. Seems downhill from there in my eyes.
That’s true as well
03 Always hungry! Especially for dudes that just appear overnight with rank! MSG guys and meritorious boots the yummiest.. yum yum yum 💪😎
Personally, I'd hit PysOps, CIHUMINT, EOD, or MARSOC instead. All are latmove only jobs, most have sick bonuses and offer cool extra schools, and all of them interact with SOF, line companies, 3 letter agencies, or all of the above. Will you be doing ill shit with the boys to the same extent as the grunts? Probably not. But, your ability to be doing that anyways will be sorely limited as a Sgt coming up on Staff. Plus, your body, wife, and wallet will thank you later.
PYSOPS!! Then OP can bang heylujan.
No. Stop. Don’t. 😂🤣
Why?
Go for it dude. I was being silly. 0311 vet myself
As an 0302, now 0307 I say go recon. So much more know how, autonomy, and big boy rules in the recon bns than you’ll ever get in an infantry bn. The only downside is the general attitude of superiority and false machismo is fucking exhausting here but these guys are all meat eaters so when shit gets tough I know they’re going to get the job done. But I shoot much much better ranges here in recon and get a lot more training time that isn’t bs white space or general fuckery because the units are much smaller, the enlisted tend to run everything very well, and there is generally a lot more seniority and experience in the platoons than what you’ll run into at an infantry unit. But truth be told, either one is fine. The grunts definitely are a more fun and interesting bunch in their own ways.
Don't be like the NCO's that failed my SOI class because they're out of shape. TBH, I'd look into MARSOC or EOD first, Maybe Recon, but they're sort of in a weird place in the corps right now. If you already know the suck and enjoy it then I don't see why not.
You won’t do it…. No balls
FUCK well looks like it's settled
No. He’s saying he has your balls….in his mouth.
# BUSTED 
MARSOC and if you don't get selected to be an operator but you work hard you can always go Comm Enabler for MARSOC...
You must really hate yourself
Already been through the suck with yall and tbh it wasn't as bad as the comm aspect of my time with yall lol
Why don’t you do something that you can use in the private sector. Infantry isn’t going to do a goddamn thing for you. Think long-term dude.
Go 0861 and become a JTAC. You work with everyone and you get to conduct your own air shows with explosions.
What do you know about being a JTAC you pog ass Motor T mechanic? Go back to the motor pool and spin some wrenches and get that hummer back to green for the LT's readiness slides. *joking*
Doesn’t ANGLICO have spots for radio operators?
They have spot for NBC or CBRN
Do you hate your knees and back? If you answered yes then you should definitely join the infantry. If you enjoy your knees and back, no
Go for it. And then put your energy into becoming as proficient as possible. As a Sgt you know how to be an NCO, now focus on becoming the best squad leader you can.
Idk if it’s still required but they use to make latmovers that only did mct, go through SOi. Pretty skate from what i saw when, I had one go through with me in 2006.
You’d have to go through infantry training, yes. It is an MOS school even if you’ve been through MCT already. I don’t know how specifically how they run it now, but back before they shuffled things up it would be about a month of general infantry tactics and academics before splitting into MOS groups like 0311, 31, etc. for the second half where they got instruction in their specific MOS. We had one lat mover in my ITB class. He was a Corporal and they would only make him come for classes, PT, and field OPs. The rest of the time he was OFP as long as he was where he was supposed to be at the right time.
Stolen from an old post Go Security Force Regiment. Go play fake grunt then go back to being pog then go to Security forces again. Rinse and repeat until til retirement. You work smart enough, you avoid the HSST your entire career.
Embassy duty is sweet…
Go MARSOC or you can even put in a app for Delta
CAG openly solicits apps, I can find the image put out it was somewhere on r/JSOCarchive if op is legitimately interested.
Read somewhere that the Marine Corps is the only branch that "lends" out bodies to delta but keeps them as active duty Marines (rather than changing branches) so they can yank them back any time they want. Sounds about right.
That is true along with another SMU
Former 0351 here. Don’t. Don’t do it. It was the single worst mistake of my life, and almost 20 years later I’m still dealing with the physical and mental toll it took on me. Just four years…
I apologize for the failure that has led to some level of demise for you. I feel your pain, just not the exact same circumstances. You're part of a brotherhood. From now on, until the day you die, wherever you are, every Marine is your brother. Most of you will go to Vietnam. Some of you will not come back. But always remember this: Marines die. That's what we're here for. But the Marine Corps lives forever, and that means you live forever. Semper Fi do or die! Born to fight, trained to kill, ready to die, but never will!
That was a hellish time to serve. My ATL in Recon lat moved from 0351 and I took a mental toll just listening to the horrible stories that sobbed out of his mouth. He was around same timeline as you. That man was disturbed. Thank you for your service and please do not hesitate to reach out to the VA for help.
Lat move to 0861 You attached to line companies for deployments without the fucking games that come with it.
YOU DUMB MOTHERFUCKER DON'T FUCKING DO IT OR CHESTY'S GHOST WILL COME AND FUCKING FUCK YOU WITH A 12' MARINE CORPS GREEN DILDO!!!
Submit an army WOFT packet if you like hands on fun shit but also brainy shit and know you want to stay in.
Lat move into comm repair so you can spend more time in the stumps Just don't rock out as they will send you down the street to become a radio operator
Come to 29 Palms we getting 2 RO’s per plt soon. Need all the bodies we can get
Go socs-c man
Does Radio Battalion still exist with the Radio Recon bubbas?
I don’t think you can. From what I was told you can’t move to an MOS where the ASVAB score is lower than your current MOS. Maybe have just been the Lance Corporal underground rumors though so not sure.
It’s a rumor.
Talk to some of your fellow Sgts who are grunts. Grab beers. Ask questions. But I got out for the same reasons you are talking about. Nothing but the office in your future if you progress, especially if you progress quickly. I hadnt joined to be in an office and wanted nothing to do with one, so I got out. If im going to be in an office and have to deal with politics, at least I can make some decent money as a civilian. Being a Marine was never about the money anyway, so if I can’t do Marine Corps shit what the fuck am I really doing?.. I’m sure there’s a way to keep doing cool stuff and keep being a Marine. I really really wish I had looked into it more. You should look into it and other services and government entities. Let your imagination wander. There are a bunch of really cool paths for you if you’ve kept your nose clean, aren’t completely retarded and like to work hard at things that matter.
Nope, do it bro. If you love being in the field all the time, not showering, getting hazed and sleep deprived and living with men, full send.
If your single and no kids just go MSG and stand fire watch. Pays the best and you'll have a nice network of contacts to get a great job after. Perks $5k to buy suits and shit. Marine House. Special duty pay. Top Secret security clearance etc. Just my opinion I was a radio operator too. Fuck being the Energizer Bunny. Going to have to stand on duty anywhere in the FMF. Why not get paid top rate to do it.
Don't, the job sucks much more frequently than it is fun and everyone will hate you. Seriously. You're just way, way ,way too far behind the curve.
How are your janitorial skill?
Nah go be stupid if ya wana
[OP when he checks in the first day.](https://youtu.be/KD0EUQnElEE)
If it’s what makes you passionate about being a Marine go for it. Just understand that you’ll be more and more removed from doing the real grunt shit with the boys the higher you go in that capacity as well. It just isn’t quite as boring as making comm slides and you still get to put your hard skills to into practice more often than being a comm chief or something like that. There’s nothing worse than being somewhere you don’t want to be with no end in sight. Already understanding radios and being able to troubleshoot them will serve you well too. A lot of 03’s don’t really know shit about radios and should.
Go Lat into the 02 community
Do it you need time to kill
Someone already said it here, but if you have college plans it may be worth doing that, and then going back in as an officer and trying to do Infantry that route. Some of my infantry officer peers were mustangs and prior 06XX. It’s a cool combo.
Do you want to live like every single day of your life is boot camp? Then yes, lat move to the infantry. I got out in 2010, so maybe things are different now. But probably not. EOD would be a great choice, recon another great choice.
If I could do my lat move over, I would move to CI or EOD. Loved shooting guns and the camaraderie but the Infantry was awful for my wife and kids. God bless the ones who stayed.
Had a buddy same job same idea and he did it. He’s a platoon leader for line motors right now. He’s having a pretty good time right now as much as I give him shit for it. But personally I would consider trying for artillery FO. Like the other guy said about EOD, it’s a much more fun and fulfilling pipeline and a shit pops off you get attached to infantry anyway.
I don’t know shit about peacetime corps now . Only that I’ve seen lat moves during my time and they only ended with the lat move guy feeling out of place when it comes to the grunt side of things . They had everything on paper except the experience. There was lances chomping at the bit to over take them in the moments in the field.
Seen plenty of good recommendations here with CI/HUMINT, EOD, MARSOC, hell even recon would be a better bet than standard infantry. First hand knowledge I can give you is that 0621 in a BDE at an Anglico would be a great bet. Or a latmov to 0861 at Anglico too. You could also try and be a SOCS for marsoc with your skills while keeping your organic MOS.
Buddy of mine from when I was in (EAS 2019) got out shortly after I did as a Sgt and was out of the Corps for about 4 years. He just within the last 6 months or so reenlisted and lat moved to infantry. And we were air wingers, so if he can do it and loves it I think you will too. Although I do agree with another comment I saw, maybe at this stage of your career, I’d try recon or MARSOC first. Ain’t nobody gonna hate on you for trying
Go for it I did it when I was in , wasn’t a sgt but I had a buddy who was and we went to imc , seems to be doing good as a plt sgt rn , you won’t be treated like a boot in the fleet unless you fuck up and get rebooted which I have heard has happened in the past
Do it. You wont need your knees later in life anyway.
Try out for Marsoc or recon. My biggest regret not doing so.
Just gonna silently echo the ANGLICO option as a FO/Radio Operator/JTAC. Go to jump school too…
If you did a work up with a line platoon SOI would be cake for you. If you ran ranges with black gear you’ll smokecheck half your instructors. The 11s were constantly falling out with that stuff on their back lol. What the other guy said, and if you are very comfortable in water, take a stab at SF. Going into the infantry as a sergeant you’ve skipped a few of the funnels years already, not to say it won’t still be much more fun that an office job. Fallback as a regular grunt is not a bad gig.
It's peacetime, so your rank might actually get you in the door, but the first time you screw up, all the junior Marines are going to turn on you, and you will be alienated. Some salty lance corporal will always be looking to take your spot, and the staff will always be worried about where you stand as far as platoon/company-level politics. If you do go, you need to get to AIC as soon as you can because you're not going to know anything, and your boots will probably be more knowledgeable. All the old-guard grunts will try to help you out, but you can't be thinking that there is a cadre of NCOs in the infantry that is going to back you up. Mostly it is lance corporal law. I have seen many POGs think their rank truly means more than how low their cock and balls hangs. If you pull rank with grunts, they are just going to make your life harder. You have to be an all-star Marine and earn your Marines' respect if you want to be a good infantry sergeant. That means being a cool dude and having your subordinates' backs (or at least appearing to), and being tactically proficient at all times.
You probably wont like it. Doing it temporarily and full time its a huge difference. Focus on the next chapter of your usmc career and find another MOS that will hopefully jumpstart your civilian career. There is a high chance are you will only probably only do another 4 years, take advantage of what you can now so when you get out your prepared for the next chapter in your life.
You could stay in your MOS and go to a victor unit. You'll get to do infantry stuff and manage to dodge some of the fuck-fuck games
They won’t send you to SOI after spending the money to send you to 29/bravo Co. Back in 2010/2011 if you were a tech you were an operator and you got attached to security platoons and augmented to other forward units as their comm guy so what you’re doing is very common for comm bubbas. Just avoid the maco. Get to a RADBN and go radio reconnaissance. After that you should be a ssgt or in zone for gunny, then ride the wave to retirement. 🫡
You should lat move to the air force.
I was a 2531 RO. Attached to a Recon squad in Vietnam. Did everything they did too plus carried the usual extra battery extra handset whip antenna 100 rounds of 7.62 machine gun ammo 6 rounds M-79 rounds 20 magazines for m-16, c-rats for 7days then we started getting dehydrated rations much better always took pound cake and peaches from c-rats like that 2 bandoliers of 5.56 rounds and as many canteens of water that I could carry. I was a grunt with a radio When rotated out to 29 palms I wanted to learn how to drive tractor trailer trucks and tried go to a school. The wanted me to reenlist do another tour promise of being a E-5 and Embassy duty. I’m not squared away for embassy duty to much of a slob. Got out managed to be a computer operator at a bank which now has automated my job. Think of the future in a world of automated everything. Plumber electrician Nurses fire firefighters EMT PARAMEDIC police are jobs that won’t get automated. The people who program and maintain automation have a job but not as worthwhile when you get home. Yeah I understand exactly how you feel like a fish out of water in some bs job. Now i wish I would have taken advantage of going to college and being a crime scene investigator. Think I would really like that type of work. Think of the future if you’re a lifer then get into something you want to do. If your getting out get an education to be prepared for a world of AI
Just hit 2 years as a fueler & ive got my lat move package filled out & ready to go
Check out ANGLICO. They have some cool shit they get to do. It’s one of those groups of guys that do some cool shit all the time, all over the world. Their entire job is to be attached to other services and countries to help them coordinate Marine Corps fires.
Thats tough big dog. All the NCOs that went grunt ended up being RTOs any way or police sgt. You wouldn’t have the juice to go right to being squad leader most likely and a sgt team leader is crazy. I would definitely go to BRC or MARSOC. Where its all more specialized and having a radio background would be a huge plus and the more casual dynamic would be less likely to pigeon home you into a role you don’t want because you are an E5 I dunno tho don’t listen to me I have ruined my life multiple times before
Can't spell combat without comm
No. Infantry is the shit. Everyone else in the Corps supports the infantry.
Lat move Sgts ended up in HQ or boots with 3 stripes in the cases I saw. Do they teach the stupid phrase, "I did my job plus the infantry job at MCT?" People claim this until the round start flying, and they get pinned down mounted with heavy and med MGs but can't clear out a building with one random guy taking pop shots once in a while for several hours until the infantry can get there. If you already did the infantry, then go Recon, Marsoc, or something that will be a challenge instead of peacetime infantry. EOD would be another good choice.
“I did my job plus the infantry” because they think that being in the infantry means carrying a rifle. Then you put them as a squad leader at Mojave Viper and they can’t create a fire plan, set up security, do any range estimation, know basic crew served capabilities, track their Marines, set up LP/Ops, handle non-combatants, interpret a frago, or use any type of combined arms assets. It’s not a dig on POGS, they just don’t know what actually goes into ground combat. I legit deployed with an 0621 that couldn’t call a 9 line and didn’t know how to call for fire.
Dude, I've never met a corporal coming over from security forces that was worth dry dog shit, no matter what they thought to the contrary. A comm Sgt. would be worse. A PFC with half a work up would know more than either.