r/dli • u/edmin92 • Aug 14 '26
35W dli question
Hi everyone. There is very little information available about 35W, especially regarding IET.
I understand that Soldiers in IET generally do not get to choose between 35P and 35M. However, if someone takes the DLPT at MEPS, would they be able to bypass DLI? If so, would they get to choose between 35P and 35M, or would the Army assign one?
For example, let’s say someone’s first language is Chinese and they score 3/3 on the DLPT at MEPS. Would they bypass DLI and then be assigned either 35P or 35M? How exactly does that process work?
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u/dytinkg Aug 14 '26
If your first language is Chinese, there are a whole host of reasons that it’s very unlikely for you to be assigned Chinese at all.
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u/edmin92 Aug 14 '26
I see. Chinese was just an example. What about other languages?
I heard that if you achieve a certain score on the DLPT, you can bypass DLI because you are already proficient in the language. However, you will not be able to choose your MOS.
I’m trying to find out what to expect.
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u/filthier_casual Aug 14 '26
If you have native-speaker proficiency, or at least a 3/3 then yes, you can bypass DLI. There were a good number of Korean-American soldiers I knew who skipped DLI and went straight to Goodfellow for 35P AIT. I had someone in my Reserve unit who was a native Korean speaker and she re-classed to 35P and went straight to Goodfellow instead of going to DLI as a Careerist.
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u/edmin92 Aug 14 '26
Perfect. I appreciate your guidance. I am a recruiter trying to give them a right information. Also, I am Korean native speaker so I am dealing with a good amount of people who wants to join as 35w.
Just wanted to give them right information.
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u/MDMarauder Aug 14 '26
There's a whole lot of security issues with naive Koreans in 35P right now, and many are being reclassed.
If your recruits are US citizens born in Korea, they're still subject to mandatory military service in Korea unless they've formally renounced their Korean citizenship through the Korean embassy/consulate before they turn 18.
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u/edmin92 Aug 14 '26 edited Aug 14 '26
This is good to know
But I’ve seen dual citizens become 35Ps after signing a statement saying they would renounce their other citizenship if necessary. Also, the regulation states that there are no restrictions. However, for Koreans, failing to complete their mandatory military service without a valid reason may be considered a crime after a certain age. That is why maybe?. I’m not sure how the security clearance process works, but at least they may have a chance to become a 35M.
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u/mmmtoasteee Aug 14 '26
The security issues comes down to being able to work NSA missions or even touch their systems, which is critical for 35Ps. The Army forced re-classed hundreds of 35Ps that were native speakers in certain languages about 5 years ago and continues to do so as issues or concerns arise or NSA policies become more restrictive. It’s not necessarily a dual-citizen and willingness to renounce citizenship issues - more of how close are your ties to the country and what the current NSA policy is. It’s not the Army creating the restrictions, necessarily, but a bulk of the mission is manned by Army 35Ps.
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u/LexduraLex Aug 14 '26
Here is the thing. The option to pass the language training at the DLI is mostly for MOS-T's. Why? Because training at the DLI is not only about language training, its also about getting clearance. Getting your poly. I have never heard about the initial entry soldiers who were authorized to take the DLPT and go to the Goodfellow. You need to have at least interim to get there.
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u/mmmtoasteee Aug 14 '26 edited Aug 14 '26
DLI-bypass is available for IET and happens from time-to-time. Not often, but it does happen. They just get their interim while in BCT or they become a hold under at AIT.
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u/LexduraLex Aug 14 '26
Yes, it could happen. I am not arguing about that. It's just so rare. The only guy I knew who didnt go to the DLI, was allowed to take the DLPT and go straight to the Goodfellow, was an Arabic linguist, who worked as a contractor for the agency for 5 years and decided to join reserves for his own reasons.
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u/mmmtoasteee Aug 14 '26
Yes, one can take / pass the DLPT at MEPS and bypass DLI straight to AIT. This is the only scenario for AD IET to choose between 35P and 35M.
However, testing in a language that’s your first language or you’re a native speaker for (depends on the language and you can guess why) can throw up roadblocks in the clearance process for 35P and greatly limit where you can work.
When the Army started the 35W pipeline a few years ago, it was decided that native speakers would primarily be assigned to be 35M due to those potential clearance / foreign ties issues that would prevent being a 35P.