My son told us this morning he's joining the Marines

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momof2angells said:
Thank you, I read MOS’s are usually one month. Perhaps I misread or is this typical of training time? He’s looking into aviation or I forget, I think engineering. THey must train fast!

Lastly, is the permanent duty station for the 4 years in the same place or do they travel like he stated he was interested in doing?
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Technical training lasts anywhere from 1 month to 1 year, depending on his MOS.

Permanent Duty Station (PDS) will change every 2 - 4 years on average, he will likely PCS (have a Permanent Change of Station) at least once in a 4 year enlistment. That’s not including any TDY (Temporary Duty) at a TDS (Temporary Duty Station) or deployments.

Active duty military personnel move around… a LOT.

It’s not unusual to have career guys (guys who did 20 years or more) go to as many as 25 or even 50 different places (not all PCS, but including training, deployment, TDY, etc).

In my short 3 years in the Military I went to 5 different locations in 4 different states.
 
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Thank you Spyridon. I wonder how long training is for aviation. I’m supposing the one month training is for simpler tasks, not that I can imagine what simple tasks any marine might have. I am still learning. I just want him to pick an MOS that will help him get a job to support a family. Really. He wants engineering or aviation and I don’t see how that can be a month but I admit I know nothing of this.
 
Technical MOSs will probably have longer training periods, and some require longer enlistments to make up for this. Also, make sure his ASVAB is high enough. Some of those MOSs have higher cutoff scores.
 
There’s about 20 different MOS’ for Aviation in the Marines, so without knowing his actual MOS we’d be making an uneducated guess at best.

Aviation guys in Keesler where I went took about 2 months, so my guess for him would be 2 or 3 months.
 
The help this country needs is to honor a Veteran killed by Police Officer bullets. Yes, I lost people in the military and it is clear as day that a house divided against itself cannot stand. Honoring one and not the other is an injustice I would not want for any military mother to witness before her sons great decision to join the USMC. My comrades served this country honorably and there are many who should seek patriotism at Arlington.
 
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Rambo is a fictional character. Do you realize that?

I’m going to stop responding now because you seem a little kooky, frankly. If you need mental health treatment, I encourage you to seek it out. Good luck.
 
Remember that’s just basic tech training which will put him at a number 3 skill level, meaning he’ll enter tech school with an MOS skill level of 1 - a helper.

He’ll graduate tech school and become a level 3 - an apprentice.

Then he will go to his PDS and undergo a period of OJT (on the job training) where he will progress from a 3/apprentice to a 5 level journeyman.

As a 5/journeyman he will work in his field until eventually becoming a 7/craftsman, and if he stays in long enough and becomes an advanced expert in his field he may finally end up a 9 level or even 10 level (a superintendent or chief) in his field, which is kinda like a military equivalent of getting a Doctorate.

3 level is kinda like having an Associates degree, 5 level is kinda like a Bachelors, 7 level is kinda like a Masters, and 9/10 is like a Doctorate.

To get a 9 or 10 level though he would have to progress to the rank of E-8/Master Sergeant (9 level) or E-9/Master Gunnery Sergeant or Sergeant Major (10 level, and E-9 is the highest grade possible for Enlisted Marines). The vast majority of Enlisted Military members make it to 5 or 7 level - only a select few make it to 9 or 10.
 
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If you don’t want to admit to Vietnam Veteran maltreatment, that’s your problem, it’s common sense not to put that on another Veteran. Jesus stated that one who sacrifices his life for his friends is the greatest expression of love.

And he wasn’t talking about you.
 
Spyridon, thank you. After 4 years of training is there a certain level they are in? It seems that the last level would take longer than the four years or does that depend on the person?
 
That’s not even close to what i said. You’re either unwilling to unable to understand to what is being said and respond with either cliches or complete non-sequitirs.

Best wishes, but I get the sense you should seek help. You’re coming across as not all there. Do with that what you will.
 
After 4 years they would most likely be a 7 level/craftsman, or maybe a 5 level.

Generally 9 level will not be reached in under 10 years, and 10 level won’t be reached in under 13 or 15 years.
 
Thank you, this question is to you and Spyridon and anyone, my fear is that he didn’t do well in high school academically so I’m wondering if he should actualloy avoid certain MOS’s that have math for example.
 
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Nah. As long as his asvab is high enough to qualify, they’ll teach him what he needs to know.
 
His ASVAB score will have certain levels for certain categories like math, and his recruiter will work with him to put him in an MOS which fits well with him and his aptitudes. That’s what ASVAB stands for - Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery.

The Military has no interest in putting him in somewhere he will fail, they invest a lot of time and money in people, they want success.
 
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Thanks, so no more essays on Shakespeare or trigonometry. High school isn’t for everyone, I personally would prefer learning a trade expertly that will provide for a family. Just get right into it.
 
This is great news thank you. Ironically, he may have scored high in his pre-test in math but his grades don’t reflect it. THat’s strange but I may be mistaken.

My husband thinks we should buy the ASVAB book for him to study, do you think this is a good resource?

Thank you.
 
Lots of people find that academic stuff comes easier in the military because they need the structure. Maybe your son is one of them. Who knows, maybe he’ll find he really enjoys the military and he’ll make a career out of it.
 
momof2angells said:
My husband thinks we should buy the ASVAB book for him to study, do you think this is a good resource?
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You said he already took the ASVAB, no?

If he already took it then no, don’t waste money.

If he hasn’t taken it yet, then by all means yes.
 
My brother-in law was in the Marines. It’s a noble path and will help teach your son many valuable lessons.

Pray for him every day and offer your heartache to the Blessed Mother.
 
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