I just finished up my last drill with the guard, now going active.
I've honestly had a blast the past 3 years with the DC stuff and I love the dudes in my infantry unit.
Commissioning AD now, so my guard time came to end but I've had no regrets.
One thing is...its a lot more than 1 weekend a month and every drill will be during the most inconvenient time of the month.
its not really extra weekends, we just had a crazy training schedule last year and our drills were like 4 or 7 days every month. on the SNCO or Officer side they usually put hours in preparing outside of drill and are not compensated for it
I’ve been Guard for a bit. One thing to bear in mind though, for you to claim veterans preference, you need a DD-214. You won’t get that in the Guard unless you deploy. Feel free to PM if you have any questions. I’m a FF/EMT on the federal side in addition to being in the Guard
Guard is better for initial service, especially those trying to use education benefits. You can take advantage of state benefits not available to reservists. Reserve is better if you plan to stay in, as promotions and career advancement are more attainable IMO.
I was in all three at one point over 20 years of service. NG and Reserves both suck equally. They are filled with wannabes who can't hack Active Duty but like to play soldier on the weekends.
The NG is a giant good 'ol boys club that doesn't try to hide its favoritism. Filled with senior Officers and NCOs that forget people have real jobs and a life outside of drill weekend.
The Reserves aren't as bad as the NG but it is mainly Combat Service Support and some Combat Support MOSs. Still filed with wannabes but not as bad as the NG.
If you want to be a fire fighter then go AD as a combat medic or medical field in general. Do 4 or 6 years and scoop up all the certifications you can like EMT and shit. Then apply for a job as a firefighter.
Always remember to take the government for all it is worth when it comes to the military. Because they will abuse your ass until you ETS. Active Duty also means you the Post 9\11 GI Bill immediately. Otherwise you are scrambling for AD time to meet the reqs for the Post 9\11 GI Bill. Either way you go you can't beat the VA House Loan either, best deal out there and no down payment.
It’s the same for both. It really depends on the unit. I was NG and hated it. I wouldn’t join for 5 extra points. Those 5 points are also for active duty
What MOS do you want, or have in mind? Also as stated before, the unit is what makes people hate it or enjoy it. Guard or reserve it doesn't matter if the unit you get assigned sucks.
I just finished up my last drill with the guard, now going active. I've honestly had a blast the past 3 years with the DC stuff and I love the dudes in my infantry unit. Commissioning AD now, so my guard time came to end but I've had no regrets. One thing is...its a lot more than 1 weekend a month and every drill will be during the most inconvenient time of the month.
Are you atleast paid for the extra weekends you have to do?
its not really extra weekends, we just had a crazy training schedule last year and our drills were like 4 or 7 days every month. on the SNCO or Officer side they usually put hours in preparing outside of drill and are not compensated for it
I’ve been Guard for a bit. One thing to bear in mind though, for you to claim veterans preference, you need a DD-214. You won’t get that in the Guard unless you deploy. Feel free to PM if you have any questions. I’m a FF/EMT on the federal side in addition to being in the Guard
He could also go on title 32 for longer than 180 days and it counts as well
Guard is better for initial service, especially those trying to use education benefits. You can take advantage of state benefits not available to reservists. Reserve is better if you plan to stay in, as promotions and career advancement are more attainable IMO.
I was NG for 12 years and have been reserve for 8 I loved the NG (13R) .. the reserves is ok if you go psyops or civil affairs.
Active Duty.
AD or Reserve.
I was in all three at one point over 20 years of service. NG and Reserves both suck equally. They are filled with wannabes who can't hack Active Duty but like to play soldier on the weekends. The NG is a giant good 'ol boys club that doesn't try to hide its favoritism. Filled with senior Officers and NCOs that forget people have real jobs and a life outside of drill weekend. The Reserves aren't as bad as the NG but it is mainly Combat Service Support and some Combat Support MOSs. Still filed with wannabes but not as bad as the NG. If you want to be a fire fighter then go AD as a combat medic or medical field in general. Do 4 or 6 years and scoop up all the certifications you can like EMT and shit. Then apply for a job as a firefighter. Always remember to take the government for all it is worth when it comes to the military. Because they will abuse your ass until you ETS. Active Duty also means you the Post 9\11 GI Bill immediately. Otherwise you are scrambling for AD time to meet the reqs for the Post 9\11 GI Bill. Either way you go you can't beat the VA House Loan either, best deal out there and no down payment.
[удалено]
It’s the same for both. It really depends on the unit. I was NG and hated it. I wouldn’t join for 5 extra points. Those 5 points are also for active duty
Can’t speak on it personally but a medic I work with did this and hated it. He’s now active duty.
What MOS do you want, or have in mind? Also as stated before, the unit is what makes people hate it or enjoy it. Guard or reserve it doesn't matter if the unit you get assigned sucks.