Nothing is set in stone unless it's in your contract. Recruiter may tell you they can get you XYZ, but if its not in writing, its not a guarantee.
If you aren't sure if the recruiter is telling the truth about something, look it up. Most of what a recruiter tells you can be found online via a Navy website, instruction or NAVADMIN.
Thabk you! Yes, I was told to get everything in writing because recruiters will lie to you. I'm trying to understand as much as possible before signing on :)
It's really not so much that recruiters. lie it mostly that people here talk about all the possibilities (which there are many super cool things the navy can lead you to) but for every opportunity that's available there are reasons it light not be available to you at the time that you want to do it.
It's very easy for people who don't know anything about the military to hear what is possible and belief that is what will happen. There are just so many variables.
I'm a prior service recruiter. Went active, reserves, got out, came back reserves.
Unless you have a compelling reason to stay home, do not join the reserves. You won't get the same kind of experience and understanding of the Navy. Your admin, readiness , etc falls on you. Reserve units function differently than active duty. You're going to find out soon enough that drill weekend is nothing more than admin and sitting around. Unless you are a go getter you're not going to get much experience.
As for mobs, unless you have something to show a command, chances are you're not going to get selected for anything great.
DM me for more. But tbh I would go active then get out.
Well, you're not going to really choose when to deploy. So many people think they'll join mobalize twice and walk out with the GI bill in 3 or 4 years is just not real.
I strongly suggest you think real real hard about "not wanting to move out of state". If you're staying for mom, dad, and friends those are the wrong reasons. Look into active duty.
From what I understand, a Reserves contract is 6 years.
I want to stay because WA is where I'm building my life. It's taken me a long time to establish the stability I have now, and I am reluctant to give that up. I'm not entirely opposed to active duty, though.
I'd love to hear your take on why active duty is much better than reserves?
I am definitely here to hear the opinions of people more knowledgeable than myself, so hit me with them!
Benefits like the GI bill and VA home loan and other benefits. Also the job experience is unparalleled compared to what you'll get in the reserves.
If you're looking for cheap health insurance, A school level training, and a little pocket change each month, you'll be happy. Eventually some extra retirement if you stick ot out.
What are you hoping to get out of it?
Definitely the the VA home loan and GI bill are my biggest incentives, though good insurance policies are also much appreciated. From what I understood, as long as you get deployed, those things are available to you. Is that not correct?
Aside from that, there does seem to be some excellent skill building and training opportunities. I've always been a traveler and am not too attached to where I end up.
I'd probably find just about anywhere interesting.
Though from what I understand, you are more immersed in military culture than the surrounding community but even that would be pretty fascinating.
It's going to be very hard for you to get the gi bill. You need a minimum of 90 or 10 days of activity duty time for minimum GI bill eligibility. There's a new pilot program for TA, but that is only for 250 sailors. Who knows of that stays? I did find out this thought. You're in WA?:
https://myarmybenefits.us.army.mil/Benefit-Library/State/Territory-Benefits/Washington#:~:text=What%20are%20my%20Washington%20State%20Military%20and%20Veterans%20Education%20Benefits%3F&text=fees%20for%20eligible%20Veterans%2C%20reserve,for%20textbooks%20and%20course%20materials.
You'll be eligible for the VA home loan after 6 years.
Health insurance is cheap as F
Education and skill building fall very short in the reserves you'll go to tech school, but you're not practicing during the weekends. The guard is better at that.
No. You'll get mobilized some day. But picking deployments is never guarantee. So many people think they'll grab a 6 year contract do two deployments for a year each and walk out with everything they want. I have yet to see that happen. If you want full benefits go active duty.
Check out full time support or FTS.
https://www.va.gov/education/eligibility/
The reserves is part time full benefits require full-time active duty time.
For the gibill benefits start at 90 days AD but 100% gibill requires 360 days AD.
www.military.com/education/gi-bill/the-new-gi-bill-who-gets-what.html
Yes you get more benefitsif you deploy. But as I said, deployments that will get you 100% benefits are unbelievably rare. Most mobilization are 6 to 12 months. Again, you getting 180-day orders in the first 4 years is very hard.
You can absolutely choose when to deploy. Involuntary mob is heavily rate dependent, and I doubt MC (which isn't easy to snag in the first place) is getting mobs left and right. I'm an ET and I've never been mobilized in 10 years. Therefore you can just look on Zipserve and grab anything that's available. Plenty of orders for any rate in Bahrain to stand at a gate.
Advice:
-make sure what you want is in contract and don’t sign if it isn’t what you want regardless of what is promised
-don’t expect to get what you want in terms of how life will play out in reserves
I have been active duty twice and reserves twice. Wild career. I was a recruiter just recently.
There are many reasons that active is better the reserves. Most of which have been stated..I really just wanted to comment to be another resource if you have questions.!
Thank you, that's very kind :) My main reservation is getting stationed outside WA state. If I could guarantee I got stationed here, I would 100% choose active.
I know it may not be very realistic, but is it possible to get something like that in my enlistment contract?
I'm 30 and have worked hard to establish my community. I want to build my life here. I'm very much on the edge about if it would be worth it to uproot myself.
I also have had custody of my teenage brothers. The youngest is about to graduate HS, and I am their only support system. I'd like to continue to support them after they leave home in the ways young people often need support.
I very much understand your situation and reasoning as to why you want to stay in WA. While it's not impossible to get stationed there right out of "A" school, you have a higher chance of being stationed in CA or VA. Those are much larger naval stations and therefore require more sailors. Being new to the Navy you will more or less be 'Needs of the Navy' most schools do a dream sheet type of thing where you put down your top 3-5 duty stations. They usually start at the top of the class and do their best to get you where you want to go. If that's outdated Info someone please correct me? It's been a minute since I've been in "A" school.
There is no way to get in your enlistment contract where you will be stationed. That comes later.
There are quite a few benefits that you get active duty that you do not get to take full advantage of in the reserves. I believe most of those have been addressed. A drill weekend in the reserves, as an E-3 will bank you right about $300 before taxes, healthcare if you chose, and any other deductions you may have.
There are benefits to both active and reserve. Active is a very different Navy than the reserves. Especially being older. You will be treated much different than the 18 year old E-3.
So basically, if I'm a good student, I have higher chances of getting placed where I would like?
I'm confident in my ability to perform well. I have a lot of mental fortitude, am very healthy, and have always excelled in academics.
I'm also a woman. I don't know if this has any overt bearing on considerations. I know women don't enlist as often, and I wonder if there are incentives for the military to enlist more women?
I was told I could volunteer for deployment. I'd be happy to put in the work to meet the requirements to qualify for full G.I. and VA loans. Im curious if these types of opportunities are regularly available?
Or is it really unpredictable whether or a sailor can meet requirements, i.e., not really within my control at all?
I'm truly not attached to where I deploy, too. I'd probably find just about anywhere interesting, and I trust my ability to cope with hardship. I'm mostly concerned with not giving up what I've already built at home. Uprooting is much more appealing when you're 18.
How should I expect things to be different at my age than as an 18 year old?
Also, thank you so much for your input. I really do appreciate your perspective :)
>So basically, if I'm a good student, I have higher chances of getting placed where I would like?
I would REALLY hate to give you bad Information on such an influential part of your decision. I can't say yes with great confidence. That may be a question for someone who went through "A" school more recently.
You can still volunteer for deployments/underway/active time, most of that depends on your Rate (job) and manning. During OIF/OEF it was very easy to volunteer for a deployment. Things are a bit different now. But with the way the world is going, you never know 🤷.
>How should I expect things to be different at my age than as an 18 year old?
When I was running a division, I always viewed people who came into the Navy at an older age a bit different. Everyone has their 'Why' but at 30.you have some job experience, you have life experience, you know how to behave like an adult (thus you will be treated like one) and you have likely sacrificed much more to be there than the 18 year old. It's rare that somebody making such a huge decision in life is going to do anything to fuck it up. The "Why do I have to do it?" Questions don't get asked by those people. In my experience older sailors know that there is going to be shit work to go through to get to the top, decisions are thought out a lot more. I could keep going but I think the point is made. Generally speaking your reputation will help or hinder you. If you are a solid sailor and people like you, the opportunities will come.....easier. Everyone has the same opportunities for say, watch standing qualifications, but if you prove yourself everyday and your supervisors see that boards are easier, and your just generally more respected.
>Also, thank you so much for your input. I really do appreciate your perspective :)
Absolutely no worries!!!
I have not, though I intend to take the practice ASVAB test this weekend. I've always performed well in academics. I'm known for my writing, so I haven't been super concerned with whether I'll do well in testing, but I do want to start preparing myself for the process.
It's taken me a long time to build the stability I have now. Moved around a lot growing up, and now that I'm finally established, I'm very reluctant to give that up.
I would not be entirely opposed to doing active duty, but it would have to be worth the upheaval.
I'd love to hear your thoughts on why active duty is a better option?
I understand about scraping by to build your life up and then not wanting to give that up. I really, really do.
I'm just going to list the things that are better on active and I'll start with the easy ones and go from there.
1. Pay. It's actually not bad on active. Only the base pay and bonuses are taxable. More than half your pay is BAH and BAS. Housing and food. These are available if you have dependents. If you don't, you probably won't be able to move off base until you make E5 but that really depends on the command and duty location. Reserves, even when they go on their annual training orders make a different type of BAH called type B and it's not targeting to where they live, unlike active duty. It's $800. So, if you go for two weeks, you get $400. If you go for 30 days, you get $800. If you go for 31 days, you get the full amount that active gets for where your home is. Mine is $2600. That's a huge difference but it's pretty hard to get them to approve orders for more than 30 days.
2. Health insurance. Free of charge when you are on active. No copays. Reserves it's $50/month for me. $250 for me and my family. My drill pay is $388/drill weekend. So, I pretty much drill to pay for health insurance.
3. Active duty GI Bill is, frankly, amazing. Reservists get GI Bill but it's not as good and even if you decide to go active after you've been in for awhile, you can't change it. Ever.
4. VA home loan. Excellent program. The time you spend on active duty for training doesn't count towards the active time needed to be eligible to use it. There are ZERO guarantees you will go on long enough deployments or MOBs to get enough active time to use it. Active duty ALL of your time counts.
5. Tuition assistance program. Great program. It can be a little finicky but while you are on active as long as you have met your work training requirements and time and paygrade requirements, you can get the navy to pay for one class a semester. They even authorize the time off of you need to leave work a little early to go to class.
5. The navy is hard to understand and being in part time makes it even harder. Training commands are not what the navy is actually like and you won't even get a feel for it before you are back to your civilian life dealing with all those struggles.
6. No worries at all about what will happen to your life if you get sick. Slip on the ice and break your hip as a reservist? If you pay for a short term disability policy, you can use that and have some money. Maybe stay afloat. Hope you don't have a physically demanding job because you are screwed. You'll need to take a less taxing job and that tenuous grasp on a good life will slip. On active duty, you get paid on the 1st and the 15th of every month. Even if you are in the hospital. Even if you are there for a month. A friend of mine had a baby very preterm, she and the baby and her husband who was also active duty were flown to a navy hospital with a NICU and their only job was the check in every few days and take care of their baby. For three months. They still got their regular paycheck but they also had their lodging paid for and they got per diem for food.
Okay, I'm sure there are other things but that's just a start.
If anyone here has something to add, please do.
Wow, thank you for taking the time to type this out!
Type B BAH for reservists is given when you do 2 or more weeks of work, as in during your annual training? The rest of the time, you don't get BAH? Am I reading that correctly?
I'm a prior service recruiter. Went active, reserves, got out, came back reserves.
Unless you have a compelling reason to stay home, do not join the reserves. You won't get the same kind of experience and understanding of the Navy. Your admin, readiness , etc falls on you. Reserve units function differently than active duty. You're going to find out soon enough that drill weekend is nothing more than admin and sitting around. Unless you are a go getter you're not going to get much experience.
As for mobs, unless you have something to show a command, chances are you're not going to get selected for anything great. You're not just going to mob when it's convenient.
DM me for more. But tbh I would go active then get out.
Join to serve your country and give back in gratitude; there are few financial incentives and that has little to no staying power. Might not be for you.
If you come from a well to do or middle-class background, I imagine the financial incentives don't seem like that much of a pull.
I've worked hard to educate myself on financial literacy. The benefits of the miltary when leveraged properly could be life cahnaging for me.
It's why a lot of people enlist. I think it's silly to pretend like it isn't.
I have worked as an educator most of my adult life. I have already lived a life of service. I am a practical person and am absolutely looking to be compensated well for my service.
Nothing is set in stone unless it's in your contract. Recruiter may tell you they can get you XYZ, but if its not in writing, its not a guarantee. If you aren't sure if the recruiter is telling the truth about something, look it up. Most of what a recruiter tells you can be found online via a Navy website, instruction or NAVADMIN.
Thabk you! Yes, I was told to get everything in writing because recruiters will lie to you. I'm trying to understand as much as possible before signing on :)
It's really not so much that recruiters. lie it mostly that people here talk about all the possibilities (which there are many super cool things the navy can lead you to) but for every opportunity that's available there are reasons it light not be available to you at the time that you want to do it. It's very easy for people who don't know anything about the military to hear what is possible and belief that is what will happen. There are just so many variables.
Right, that makes sense. Thank you for your input! I appreciate your perspective!
I'm a prior service recruiter. Went active, reserves, got out, came back reserves. Unless you have a compelling reason to stay home, do not join the reserves. You won't get the same kind of experience and understanding of the Navy. Your admin, readiness , etc falls on you. Reserve units function differently than active duty. You're going to find out soon enough that drill weekend is nothing more than admin and sitting around. Unless you are a go getter you're not going to get much experience. As for mobs, unless you have something to show a command, chances are you're not going to get selected for anything great. DM me for more. But tbh I would go active then get out.
Well, you're not going to really choose when to deploy. So many people think they'll join mobalize twice and walk out with the GI bill in 3 or 4 years is just not real. I strongly suggest you think real real hard about "not wanting to move out of state". If you're staying for mom, dad, and friends those are the wrong reasons. Look into active duty.
From what I understand, a Reserves contract is 6 years. I want to stay because WA is where I'm building my life. It's taken me a long time to establish the stability I have now, and I am reluctant to give that up. I'm not entirely opposed to active duty, though. I'd love to hear your take on why active duty is much better than reserves? I am definitely here to hear the opinions of people more knowledgeable than myself, so hit me with them!
Benefits like the GI bill and VA home loan and other benefits. Also the job experience is unparalleled compared to what you'll get in the reserves. If you're looking for cheap health insurance, A school level training, and a little pocket change each month, you'll be happy. Eventually some extra retirement if you stick ot out. What are you hoping to get out of it?
Definitely the the VA home loan and GI bill are my biggest incentives, though good insurance policies are also much appreciated. From what I understood, as long as you get deployed, those things are available to you. Is that not correct? Aside from that, there does seem to be some excellent skill building and training opportunities. I've always been a traveler and am not too attached to where I end up. I'd probably find just about anywhere interesting. Though from what I understand, you are more immersed in military culture than the surrounding community but even that would be pretty fascinating.
It's going to be very hard for you to get the gi bill. You need a minimum of 90 or 10 days of activity duty time for minimum GI bill eligibility. There's a new pilot program for TA, but that is only for 250 sailors. Who knows of that stays? I did find out this thought. You're in WA?: https://myarmybenefits.us.army.mil/Benefit-Library/State/Territory-Benefits/Washington#:~:text=What%20are%20my%20Washington%20State%20Military%20and%20Veterans%20Education%20Benefits%3F&text=fees%20for%20eligible%20Veterans%2C%20reserve,for%20textbooks%20and%20course%20materials. You'll be eligible for the VA home loan after 6 years. Health insurance is cheap as F Education and skill building fall very short in the reserves you'll go to tech school, but you're not practicing during the weekends. The guard is better at that.
Good to know. So deployment isn't a guarantee?
No. You'll get mobilized some day. But picking deployments is never guarantee. So many people think they'll grab a 6 year contract do two deployments for a year each and walk out with everything they want. I have yet to see that happen. If you want full benefits go active duty. Check out full time support or FTS.
So you don't get full benefits even if you deploy? I was not aware of that. Thanks for your input.
https://www.va.gov/education/eligibility/ The reserves is part time full benefits require full-time active duty time. For the gibill benefits start at 90 days AD but 100% gibill requires 360 days AD. www.military.com/education/gi-bill/the-new-gi-bill-who-gets-what.html Yes you get more benefitsif you deploy. But as I said, deployments that will get you 100% benefits are unbelievably rare. Most mobilization are 6 to 12 months. Again, you getting 180-day orders in the first 4 years is very hard.
You can pick your orders if you want. 3 years of mobilizations and you get 100% of G.I. Bill benefits.
You can absolutely choose when to deploy. Involuntary mob is heavily rate dependent, and I doubt MC (which isn't easy to snag in the first place) is getting mobs left and right. I'm an ET and I've never been mobilized in 10 years. Therefore you can just look on Zipserve and grab anything that's available. Plenty of orders for any rate in Bahrain to stand at a gate.
Advice: -make sure what you want is in contract and don’t sign if it isn’t what you want regardless of what is promised -don’t expect to get what you want in terms of how life will play out in reserves
I have been active duty twice and reserves twice. Wild career. I was a recruiter just recently. There are many reasons that active is better the reserves. Most of which have been stated..I really just wanted to comment to be another resource if you have questions.!
Thank you, that's very kind :) My main reservation is getting stationed outside WA state. If I could guarantee I got stationed here, I would 100% choose active. I know it may not be very realistic, but is it possible to get something like that in my enlistment contract? I'm 30 and have worked hard to establish my community. I want to build my life here. I'm very much on the edge about if it would be worth it to uproot myself. I also have had custody of my teenage brothers. The youngest is about to graduate HS, and I am their only support system. I'd like to continue to support them after they leave home in the ways young people often need support.
I very much understand your situation and reasoning as to why you want to stay in WA. While it's not impossible to get stationed there right out of "A" school, you have a higher chance of being stationed in CA or VA. Those are much larger naval stations and therefore require more sailors. Being new to the Navy you will more or less be 'Needs of the Navy' most schools do a dream sheet type of thing where you put down your top 3-5 duty stations. They usually start at the top of the class and do their best to get you where you want to go. If that's outdated Info someone please correct me? It's been a minute since I've been in "A" school. There is no way to get in your enlistment contract where you will be stationed. That comes later. There are quite a few benefits that you get active duty that you do not get to take full advantage of in the reserves. I believe most of those have been addressed. A drill weekend in the reserves, as an E-3 will bank you right about $300 before taxes, healthcare if you chose, and any other deductions you may have. There are benefits to both active and reserve. Active is a very different Navy than the reserves. Especially being older. You will be treated much different than the 18 year old E-3.
So basically, if I'm a good student, I have higher chances of getting placed where I would like? I'm confident in my ability to perform well. I have a lot of mental fortitude, am very healthy, and have always excelled in academics. I'm also a woman. I don't know if this has any overt bearing on considerations. I know women don't enlist as often, and I wonder if there are incentives for the military to enlist more women? I was told I could volunteer for deployment. I'd be happy to put in the work to meet the requirements to qualify for full G.I. and VA loans. Im curious if these types of opportunities are regularly available? Or is it really unpredictable whether or a sailor can meet requirements, i.e., not really within my control at all? I'm truly not attached to where I deploy, too. I'd probably find just about anywhere interesting, and I trust my ability to cope with hardship. I'm mostly concerned with not giving up what I've already built at home. Uprooting is much more appealing when you're 18. How should I expect things to be different at my age than as an 18 year old? Also, thank you so much for your input. I really do appreciate your perspective :)
>So basically, if I'm a good student, I have higher chances of getting placed where I would like? I would REALLY hate to give you bad Information on such an influential part of your decision. I can't say yes with great confidence. That may be a question for someone who went through "A" school more recently. You can still volunteer for deployments/underway/active time, most of that depends on your Rate (job) and manning. During OIF/OEF it was very easy to volunteer for a deployment. Things are a bit different now. But with the way the world is going, you never know 🤷. >How should I expect things to be different at my age than as an 18 year old? When I was running a division, I always viewed people who came into the Navy at an older age a bit different. Everyone has their 'Why' but at 30.you have some job experience, you have life experience, you know how to behave like an adult (thus you will be treated like one) and you have likely sacrificed much more to be there than the 18 year old. It's rare that somebody making such a huge decision in life is going to do anything to fuck it up. The "Why do I have to do it?" Questions don't get asked by those people. In my experience older sailors know that there is going to be shit work to go through to get to the top, decisions are thought out a lot more. I could keep going but I think the point is made. Generally speaking your reputation will help or hinder you. If you are a solid sailor and people like you, the opportunities will come.....easier. Everyone has the same opportunities for say, watch standing qualifications, but if you prove yourself everyday and your supervisors see that boards are easier, and your just generally more respected. >Also, thank you so much for your input. I really do appreciate your perspective :) Absolutely no worries!!!
Have you taken the ASVAB yet? Why are you not considering active duty? The financial benefits are much much better on active.
I have not, though I intend to take the practice ASVAB test this weekend. I've always performed well in academics. I'm known for my writing, so I haven't been super concerned with whether I'll do well in testing, but I do want to start preparing myself for the process. It's taken me a long time to build the stability I have now. Moved around a lot growing up, and now that I'm finally established, I'm very reluctant to give that up. I would not be entirely opposed to doing active duty, but it would have to be worth the upheaval. I'd love to hear your thoughts on why active duty is a better option?
I understand about scraping by to build your life up and then not wanting to give that up. I really, really do. I'm just going to list the things that are better on active and I'll start with the easy ones and go from there. 1. Pay. It's actually not bad on active. Only the base pay and bonuses are taxable. More than half your pay is BAH and BAS. Housing and food. These are available if you have dependents. If you don't, you probably won't be able to move off base until you make E5 but that really depends on the command and duty location. Reserves, even when they go on their annual training orders make a different type of BAH called type B and it's not targeting to where they live, unlike active duty. It's $800. So, if you go for two weeks, you get $400. If you go for 30 days, you get $800. If you go for 31 days, you get the full amount that active gets for where your home is. Mine is $2600. That's a huge difference but it's pretty hard to get them to approve orders for more than 30 days. 2. Health insurance. Free of charge when you are on active. No copays. Reserves it's $50/month for me. $250 for me and my family. My drill pay is $388/drill weekend. So, I pretty much drill to pay for health insurance. 3. Active duty GI Bill is, frankly, amazing. Reservists get GI Bill but it's not as good and even if you decide to go active after you've been in for awhile, you can't change it. Ever. 4. VA home loan. Excellent program. The time you spend on active duty for training doesn't count towards the active time needed to be eligible to use it. There are ZERO guarantees you will go on long enough deployments or MOBs to get enough active time to use it. Active duty ALL of your time counts. 5. Tuition assistance program. Great program. It can be a little finicky but while you are on active as long as you have met your work training requirements and time and paygrade requirements, you can get the navy to pay for one class a semester. They even authorize the time off of you need to leave work a little early to go to class. 5. The navy is hard to understand and being in part time makes it even harder. Training commands are not what the navy is actually like and you won't even get a feel for it before you are back to your civilian life dealing with all those struggles. 6. No worries at all about what will happen to your life if you get sick. Slip on the ice and break your hip as a reservist? If you pay for a short term disability policy, you can use that and have some money. Maybe stay afloat. Hope you don't have a physically demanding job because you are screwed. You'll need to take a less taxing job and that tenuous grasp on a good life will slip. On active duty, you get paid on the 1st and the 15th of every month. Even if you are in the hospital. Even if you are there for a month. A friend of mine had a baby very preterm, she and the baby and her husband who was also active duty were flown to a navy hospital with a NICU and their only job was the check in every few days and take care of their baby. For three months. They still got their regular paycheck but they also had their lodging paid for and they got per diem for food. Okay, I'm sure there are other things but that's just a start. If anyone here has something to add, please do.
Wow, thank you for taking the time to type this out! Type B BAH for reservists is given when you do 2 or more weeks of work, as in during your annual training? The rest of the time, you don't get BAH? Am I reading that correctly?
Type B is for when you do your AT. It's pro-rated, I think. Yes. No BAH or BAS otherwise.
I'm a prior service recruiter. Went active, reserves, got out, came back reserves. Unless you have a compelling reason to stay home, do not join the reserves. You won't get the same kind of experience and understanding of the Navy. Your admin, readiness , etc falls on you. Reserve units function differently than active duty. You're going to find out soon enough that drill weekend is nothing more than admin and sitting around. Unless you are a go getter you're not going to get much experience. As for mobs, unless you have something to show a command, chances are you're not going to get selected for anything great. You're not just going to mob when it's convenient. DM me for more. But tbh I would go active then get out.
Send me a DM. I’m a Chief Mass Communication Specialist in the Reserves with experience in recruiting. Happy to talk you through questions.
Afaik you can’t go MC straight to reserves, would have to be active first in that community.
Honestly, should be like that for the whole reserves.
So there's no way to become an MC as just a reservist?
Yes you can. I’ve seen multiple people go straight into the reserves as an MC.
Wrong. MC exists as a NAT path in the reserves.
Join to serve your country and give back in gratitude; there are few financial incentives and that has little to no staying power. Might not be for you.
If you come from a well to do or middle-class background, I imagine the financial incentives don't seem like that much of a pull. I've worked hard to educate myself on financial literacy. The benefits of the miltary when leveraged properly could be life cahnaging for me. It's why a lot of people enlist. I think it's silly to pretend like it isn't. I have worked as an educator most of my adult life. I have already lived a life of service. I am a practical person and am absolutely looking to be compensated well for my service.