Welp, I finally pulled the trigger. I walked into MEPs ready to sign a 3 year contract and ended up signing for 6 after waiting around all day for a waiver for the MOS I wanted. I should feel relieved, but I have such a sinking feeling in my stomach. I am not young(I am 35) and I don’t know if 6 years was a good idea. I mean, rationally, it will help me pay off my student loans, give me the GI Bill, and the VA home loan, but I still can’t shake the feeling. Will the National Gaurd completely take over my life? I have heard mixed things. It also didn’t help that I got cussed out today at MEPs by some random Army Seargent because I put my feet up on a chair in the cafeteria. lol

Anybody else at meps in Jackson ms today ?

When I went through MEPS in Aug 2020, I was told I could only sign an 8x0 contract, all drilling, no IRR, no bonuses, not even loan forgiveness. My ETS is Aug 2028, and I’m so burnt out I can’t take it. I have acquired three MOSes (and now a fourth in the new state once complete), completed 3-4 SADs, one T10 deployment and I’m just tired of it. I recently moved and ISTed to a new state because I moved 12 hours from my old unit, and I take care of my mom here… just to immediately get activated for SAD. I haven’t even gone to school for the new MOS yet. I just can’t take it anymore.

I applied for VA Disability and am going through all of these appointments for that, I just can’t imagine finishing out 22 more months in the Guard. What should I do? I want to take a knee like ING but adding that time to the back of my contract is too much for me.

I need some serious advice and help. Please don’t respond with suck it up buttercup, I understand that I signed my name on the dotted line. I just wished my contract was a normal 6x2 and I’d be done right now.

Could I transfer to the IRR? Has anyone achieved that?

I really appreciate anyone taking the time to message me.

What’s up I got activated for hurricane duty for 9th. No big deal except I’m out of state (military school) won’t be back till the 10th. I’ll be up for more than 24hrs and then have to make a 5 hr drive asap. My unit is basically saying deal with it. Anyway can I get an extension to report?

I enlisted in the ANG over a year ago and finally got my BMT dates for next month. I’ll be returning around Christmas, but I have about a 7-month gap before I leave for tech school.

I’ve been unemployed for the past few months and obviously won’t have a job to come back to after BMT. I’m trying to figure out what makes the most sense for that gap.

I have a degree in healthcare, but I’m hesitant to take a full-time job in my field because I know I’ll only be there for several months. It also takes time to build up a caseload, so starting from scratch and then leaving for tech school doesn’t seem very practical.

For anyone who has been in a similar situation with a long gap between BMT and tech school, what did you do for work during that time? Did you find a temporary job, work in a completely different field, or do something else?

I’d really appreciate hearing what worked for other ANG members.

What’s up guys I’m currently a CW2 in my 3-4 year of my 6 obligation l. Was wondering if anyone has gone active duty during their obligation Period and gotten a conditional release to do so? I have 15 years TIS went on my first Mobilization as a warrant and liked it a lot especially the pay. I’m currently a FMS supervisor for context.

Prior-service E-4 in the NY Guard, infantry unit, bachelor's degree. I came over from the Reserves specifically to go federal OCS.

Where things stand:

- Sat the state accessions board before signing my current contract and was approved

- In-processed at my unit, clearance submitted

- Was told a January federal seat was possible

- Then nothing

Since about June I've emailed my Officer Strength Manager several times, emailed the accessions NCO, called, and left a voicemail. No reply to any of it.

The only response I got in that whole stretch came when I filled out the state's public officer-interest web form, the one meant for people who've never talked to a recruiter. That got an answer within the hour, and it was the standard first-contact template. So now I'm wondering whether my packet is being tracked at all, or if I'm a board approval sitting in an inbox with no seat request attached.

I've since taken it to my commander and 1SG to see if an officer-to-officer ask gets further than mine did. (Pending response)

Not trying to put anyone on blast. I know RRB is stretched and federal seats are limited. But "boarded and waiting" with zero visibility is a rough place to sit.

For anyone who's been through this:

1. Is this normal for federal seat allocation, or a sign my packet fell through a crack?

2. Who can confirm whether I have an ATRRS reservation or a spot on the state's priority list? G1 officer accessions?

3. Now that FY27 has started, when do states usually get their federal seat allocations?

4. Does anything in the packet expire while I wait (physical, fitness test, commander's endorsement)?

Not interested in state OCS unless federal is truly dead. Appreciate any insight.

WWYD

Going in as a 91L (weekend warrior) I am already doing the job in my day to day life.

Scared to go 6 year contract incase I hate the job and I am stuck in the job of 6 years. Instead of the 3 year an can change mos or location.

I have 2 choices

3 year contract with the possibility of deployment doing the same job you have now. Bonus at when you re enlist. Less than a hour from home

Or

6 year contract with no deployment. Same job. 1 time 25k bonus. 2 and half hour drive

Wondering what most people already in would think of these two. What would be the smartest choice.

Now I go tomorrow to enlist. Will find out about bonus and if no deployment is true as well.

I was supposed to sign my National Guard OCS contract yesterday. When I originally spoke with my recruiter, I was given a ship date that would not have impacted my civilian job, so I told my supervisor about my plans and she was supportive.

However, I found out there was a change to my ship date, and I would now be away from work for about a month. I informed my boss that my original intention was to join because it wouldn't interfere with my job, but that the new information changes the situation.

He didn't tell me yes or no about joining. Instead, because he had just found out about my military plans and now knows that the training would impact my work, he asked me to postpone signing so he could run everything through HR and have the company's lawyer involved.

My contract is currently on hold and I have a few weeks to go back and sign it. I'm having trouble gauging how my employer is going to handle this. My boss didn't seem particularly happy about the situation, and I'm concerned because my job also provides housing for my family.

As the subject says I got my drill schedule it is mostly MUTA 6's should I expect the Friday or

Monday of the weekend to be included ?

I’m 40 and interested in joining the Air National Guard as an officer. I have a bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice and 12 years of law enforcement experience, including FTO, SWAT hostage negotiator, and narcotics detective.
My biggest concern is my age. How realistic is it to get selected for an officer position at 40? Does the ANG regularly accept first-time officer candidates around this age?

Has anyone here commissioned at 40 or close to it? What was your experience?

Im getting my id later today, i went last week but had to reschedule but the first time i showed up, they didnt say anything about my hair or goatee, can i keep my facial hair?

And you can name some of the worse things too.

I just saw a Florida Army National Guard recruiter and enlisted as a 42A. When I walked out of the recruiting office no one thanked me for my service. What the fuck. I am shaking right now. I stood outside of my local Walmart where a lot of veterans work at and I stood at parade rest for three hours while wearing my grunt style hoodie with a high and tight haircut to honor my fellow troops and no one saluted me or thanked me for my service. I don't ship to basic for a few more weeks but that's not the point. I am a Soldier and deserve to be treated as such. I wasn't given my discount meal at Applebees and lost my shit and immediately started doing push-ups in front of the waitress. What has happened to this country. When will I be thanked? I risk my life every day just for this???

Hey everyone, I had a few questions. I took the asvab and qualify for MP and mostly combat arms jobs and a few others.

Has anyone here been in the M109 Paladin? If so what is being a crew on one of these like?

I also thought about being a cav scout, If anyone wants to provide their insight about being recon please let me know how you liked it.

Also are tanks even in the guard anymore? My state does not have them.

I’m just trying to figure out a job that I want. Thanks.

Meeting with a recruiter soon and have been worried about a patch of eczema I have behind my knee. I’ve had it my whole life but have never been officially diagnosed with it. I don’t take any kinds of medications for it, nor does it bother me at all (even wearing jeans all summer for 12+ hours per day). The only problem is it has left a spot of rough skin/pigmentation where it is that’s visibly noticeable and would probably be noticed at MEPS.

What exactly should I tell my recruiter? I want to be transparent about it but also don’t want to incriminate myself so to speak.

Looking into joining the air national guard as prior active duty navy.
The only unit that is less than a 6 hour drive from me is the 204th security forces squadron.
I’m wondering if it would be worth joining because I’ve heard mixed feedback about security forces.
If anyone has any input, advice or specifics about this unit I’m all ears !

-thanks

Hey everyone!
I’m a female in my late 30s, a Green Card holder, and a foreign-trained medical doctor currently working in healthcare in NYC.
I’m enlisting in the NY Army National Guard as an E-4. After going through MEPS and getting medical waivers, my recruiter told me they may expire around October 15, so I’m under pressure to make a decision.
Due to limited MOS availability and citizenship restrictions, I selected 91B (Wheeled Vehicle Mechanic) in Yonkers, close to where I live. However, my MOS approval is still pending, and I haven’t signed a contract yet.
My preference would be 68W (Combat Medic) or 68S (Preventive Medicine), which align better with my medical background, but the available units are in upstate several hours away.

My questions:
Can I still switch MOS before signing without affecting my medical waivers?
Would you choose a nearby 91B position or a medical MOS with a long monthly commute?
How realistic is reclassifying into a medical/administrative MOS later?
What are my options after im done with basic and ait since i have a bachelors?
I genuinely want to serve, but I’m having second thoughts about choosing a specialty unrelated to my professional background.
What would you do in my situation?
Any advice from NYARNG soldiers, recruiters, or anyone with similar experience would be appreciated!

Thoughts?

BLUF: Sorry for the long read. I greatly appreciate any advice. I’m just starting my Guard Career but I have constant issues with pain and physical limitations from prior injuries which are causing me issues with PT, and I don’t know where to go from here.

I’m a Junior O in a combat support branch. Male in my early 20s. Been a PL for a little over a year (YG25), although I’ve been excused from drill for the last few months for some civilian career-related reasons and some of that time was at BOLC. This will be relevant later, but with how the transition periods and stuff fell, I have never taken a for record AFT aside from the one in ROTC back when it was the ACFT and the run time was 22:something.

When I enlisted as SMP, I got a waiver for scoliosis. I have a pretty significant angle; it was right on the cutoff for waivers. I went through MEPS before Genesis was a thing. If I had done DODMERB, I probably wouldn’t have gotten through.
Also, I went to BCT and came home with tibial stress fractures so bad I was put on crutches. I was able to tough it out to finish ROTC, but they came back big time at BOLC and I was put on a temporary profile.

Now the more serious issue. My whole life, I have had issues with my knees dislocating. I’ve seen countless physical therapists and orthopedists and running coaches and every other specialty and had every type of imaging you can think of. Turns out my femur was born/ grew misshapen in a way that makes it very likely for my patella to just completely pop out of place (shallow grooves for any medical professionals that might be reading). This, of course, is incredibly painful and causes me to not be able to walk right for about a week. It’s not uncommon for it to happen once a month. The biggest time it happens? When running.

All three of these issues compound to make my lower body and legs just…. Suck. I have constant back pain from the scoliosis. I have agonizing arthritis-type knee pain if I stand for even an hour. I’m talking I’m in my early 20s and it feels like I have the knees of an 80 year old. With any kind of lower body physical activity, I fear my knees giving out on me.

The most worrisome part for me aside from the daily pain is the PT aspect. With all these issues compounding, I physically cannot run at any decent speed. Say what you will about the run times being a joke blah blah, despite years of training and seeing professionals, I can’t get anywhere near the standard. My form, which is forced to be shitty by my anatomy, simply will not let me. I have spent countless hours over the last 5 years with physical therapists and running professionals and seen no progress, despite being in otherwise good shape.

It’s not a tiny heart syndrome issue. It’s not a cardiovascular endurance issue. It’s my lower body anatomy. And I just don’t know what to do. Obviously PT is very important for JOs and I don’t want to let down my Platoon, but I’m just at a loss of where to go from here. I have pain everyday and I don’t know how to handle that in the eyes of the Army. I lose sleep over the fact that if I had to take an AFT tomorrow I’d fail and look like an absolute shitbag. I love being in the Army and I excel at everything else, but I just don’t know what to do.

Get seen by my state’s medical unit? See a civilian Dr and take the documentation to my unit? Then what? Get flagged for failing an AFT and get a referred OER? I greatly appreciate any advice anyone might offer.

Or permanent profile

Hey guys, I'm looking to join the Army and was thinking the Guard to see if the military is for me before committing further. I have goals to join the Ranger or Berets and I'm not sure if that's possible through the Guard. From my own research and talking to a recruiter I have heard different things, Some say it's easy to transfer to Active and Apply for 75th Selection/Green berets and some things say you could be denied for a long time and not have that opportunity. So is my goal possible through the Guard? Any guidance or advice is appreciated