Running out of time.....

[Boris]

Hey guys,

Long time reader, first time poster. I am running out of time to get a commission. I am turning 26 this month and pulling my hair out. I started out going the wrong way to get into the military. I went to flight school first. Too many people who didn't know what they were talking about told me to go that way.

So, I started college two years ago and I have a little more than one year to go. I feel as though I am going to miss the boat. I cannot go any faster in school because I am completely tapped out on the money thing. Paying out of pocket is slow and painful.

Do I have a chance? Is there a program for guys like me?

26 years old
ATP certificate
First class medical
3100 hours (2000 pic turbine w/ two types)
Junior in college (3.45 gpa)

I am looking to go career. Who can I talk to? I can jumpseat to the panhandle to talk to anyone at PNS. A name or a number would help. I have been dealing with local recruiters for year in South Florida who have given me no direction to meet my goals.

Thanks guys.

 

[Lawman]

Your a competative setup with what you've listed so far. Big thing right now is take the ASTB, which should be an easy one for you given your background.

Now here the real kicker, you want the military no problem. Question you need to ask yourself is what culture of the Military are you really wanting to do. Go talk to the Marines, and the Navy. Big differnce in the culture of both services and you really need to figure out what you want. Some guys went to OCS for the Marines thinking they wanted that lifestyle, come week 3 a lot of them DOR'd because they didnt.

 

[Brett327]

Your a competative setup with what you've listed so far. Big thing right now is take the ASTB, which should be an easy one for you given your background.

Now here the real kicker, you want the military no problem. Question you need to ask yourself is what culture of the Military are you really wanting to do. Go talk to the Marines, and the Navy. Big differnce in the culture of both services and you really need to figure out what you want. Some guys went to OCS for the Marines thinking they wanted that lifestyle, come week 3 a lot of them DOR'd because they didnt.

It sounds as though his biggest hurdle is finishing school before the age limits come into play. I don't know if the USMC's age req's are any different than the Navy's, but they generally do not waiver those. There really aren't any special programs for people with lots of hours and you'll have to start with square one at flight school. Obviously consult and coordinate with an officer recruiter, but it looks like you need to do everything humanly possible to finish your degree and get accepted into a commissioning program ASAP.

Brett

 

[Zilch]

Eh, I've actually heard the opposite about age waivers, at least on the Marines side. They aren't handing them out like candy as I hear the Army is doing, but they are obtainable. You look pretty competative already, and if you score high on your ASTB, which you should if you already know about flying, it increases your chances.

I got accepted to OCC the first time through when I would have graduated 2 weeks before the age cutoff for flight. Now I need an age waiver, which my OSO says is not going to be problematic in my case (although obviously it's better not to need one.) Then again, I've already been to OCS for a bit and they invited me back, so that might have something to do with it also.

At any rate, go for it as hard as you can if this is what you want, and don't take "no" for an answer until you've exhausted every path. Trying and failing is infinitely better than not trying at all, right?

 

[thull]

I'm 27 and got an age waiver for the Marines as part of my application, but was informed pilot slots are filled until october OCS '07.

You have to be in damn good shape though or you won't get one.

 

[zippy]

So, I started college two years ago and I have a little more than one year to go. I feel as though I am going to miss the boat. I cannot go any faster in school because I am completely tapped out on the money thing. Paying out of pocket is slow and painful.

If your biggest limiting factor is funding of college, any chance of you taking out a bunch of loans to get it done a lot sooner?


Have you looked into BDCP, or PLC?

 

[Boris]

flightinfo trash!!!!!!

Yeah!!!!!!!

Have you looked into BDCP, or PLC?

What are those?


--------------------------------------------------------

Thanks for the tips guys. I don't think the Marines are for me. If I don't go Navy, then I will end up in the Army. The Navy is my #1 goal right now. I am already at 76K in loans for flight school and half of college. Key Bank has cut me off and will not fund me anymore. They are scared to overfund flight students. I have appealed with no results.

 

[Boris]

flightinfo trash!!!!!!

Track down the officer recruiters number in Jacksonville. Any local enlisted recruiter should be able to get it for you. If they can't PM me their name, number and rank and I'll fix them.

They will not give me PNS or JAX numbers. Only local.

 

[PU Grad]

You need to ask for an officer recruiter. If you have one of those, they can help more with the specifics.

 

[greysword]

This may be a silly question, what college are you attending? How many credits do you have left to graduate?

Jacksonville NRD Phone Numbers:

http://www.cnrc.navy.mil/jacksonville/Contact_Us.htm

Contact Us

[FONT=trebuchet ms, Arial, Helvetica]Command Duty Officer - (904) 753-2136

NRD Jacksonville (904) 396 -5909

CO/XO Secretary - ext 1000

Administration - ext 1116

Public Affairs - ext 1150

Officer Programs - ext 1130

ROTC - ext 1146

Enlisted Programs - ext 1120

LEADS - ext 1170

[/FONT]

 

[Boris]

67 out of 120 credits. Yeah I am a brand new Junior. I may consider switching schools to get done in time. I am at ERAU. Thanks for the numbers. I am calling tomorrow.

 

[johnritenour@co]

Paths to a Commissiom

I personally feel that the NROTC (Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps) program is the best way to go. I knew I wasn't academy material - just not for me. My Scholarship was great. It paid for all my tuition, books, and lab manuals. I also received a $100 a month check - certainly not enough to live on but nice for some spending money (I was commissioned way back in 1982). Most important thing to me though was that everyone in graduating class got the warfare community they wanted - and two guys were even able to go supply. We had three folks go SEALS - which I couldn't qualify for because my eyesight was too bad. I think I had the best of both worlds - good leadership training from my upperclassmen and freedom to enjoy my college experience!