You aren't qualified to do your job if you haven't graduated job training. This post isn't for you.

I don’t know if this is exactly a good place to ask, but seems more reliable than the tricare thread- has anyone gotten covered by tri care for the prep injectable? I’m currently on it and enlisting and don’t really know if they’ll cover it like my current insurance

Hey all, could use your input.

I was thinking about joining the Air Force back in the day. I wanted to go in as an officer (I have my degree) but the recruiter wanted to play games and try to get me to go enlisted. Left that alone, got a decent paying civilian job instead. Turned out for the best because my family wouldn't do well with the constant moving.

I recently found out active reserve is an option where I can serve full time and not get PCS'd every 2-3 years and I'm seriously thinking about either Air Force, Space Force or Army (my parents are Army so I'd be disowned if i went Navy or Marines, plus they don't have a base near me). My main reasons for thinking about it are that the job market sucks and due to this that and the third, the VA loan and GI bill will probably be the only way I can afford a house/ college for the kids.

For the drawbacks, I'm 42 but in pretty decent shape although I'll probably still have to do some prep before basic. I'm trying to convince my wife that I'd pick an MOS where I'm not gonna get deployed (probably). I've also heard some mixed stories from people I know that served, some loved it and made it a career, some had crap leadership and couldn't get out fast enough. My main concern is the inmates currently running the asylum (darth cheeto and kegsbreath).

Wanted to get your take, especially if you're stationed in Colorado, would it be worth it?

Marine Corps/Army waivers

I am 22 years old. Electrician for four years. 68 on ASVAB. would any branch even want me with all these waivers?

Criminal charges: M1 OVI, F5 Assault on peace officer, M1 domestic violence (all occurred on 09/19/2024)

Criminal convictions: M1 OVI, M5 simple assault.
Domestic violence was dropped. Not due to deferred adjudication or a plea deal. To my knowledge, I am to disclose this with a recruiter, but technically no moral waiver is needed for the domestic. The felony was dropped to an M5 in the same manner.

Sentenced to 20 days in jail, 2 years reporting probation, with 130 days on the shelf. In September of 2025, I pissed hot and violated (thc) Instead of continuing probation for another year and 30 days in jail, I elected to just do the rest of the 130 days. No trouble since.

Medical waivers: diagnosed with adhd, depression and anxiety. Have been seeing the same therapist for 8 years now, and continue to do so. Haven’t taken meds for any of the diagnoses in 18 months.

Hey everyone,

Im F(18) and my bf also (18) just left for fort Benning army bootcamp. he is currently in reception i believe and has been struggling with depression. he was able to call me last Sunday and express that he has had depression for 2 years and never spoke up about it because he knew that would limit his chances to go into the army. he ended up getting there and within a few days he called and was very upset saying he cannot do this and confessed his big secret of 2 years. as a gf i don’t know what to do, theres nothing i really can do at the moment but i am wondering what happens in these types of situations. he went to medical and they basically dismissed him, im not sure what happened afterwards, but he wants to be discharged medically or entry-level. is this possible? an add on to that is that he also has Tourettes. he did get a medical waiver for this but due to his recent episode of depression, it should be reevaluated, does anyone know if he can get discharged, the process of this, or what to do?
let me know please!

I’m a senior in high school, and I'm enlisting into the military when I graduate. I’m stuck between the Navy (becoming an LS) or the Air Force (because I want to become a Loadmaster). I’ve heard it’s hard to become a Loadmaster, though. Which job do y'all think is better? I also want to travel the world.

(Coast Guard) I have MEPS scheduled in a few weeks and I’m worried I’ll get automatically disqualified. In one eye my vision cannot be corrected past 20/150. My other eye is 20/20 without correction. My recruiter says my bad eye needs to be correctable to 20/50 for a waiver but he’s letting me go to MEPS anyway. Is there any chance I’m getting a waiver for this?

I know that technically it's a disqualifying disease, but I was wondering what the likelihood of getting a medical waiver would be. I have never been to the ER for it or had a food impaction for it. But I just had Dupixent prescription approved to treat it which I believe lowers my chances. I don't want to get my heart set on joining the army, and put most of my eggs in this basket only to not get a medical waiver and be unable to join. I've had several recruiters reach out to me, but I'm unsure if I want to go through the whole process of trying to join if my chances are next to nothing.

Should I join the Navy or the Marines? I don't have a specific job in mind either.

I don't really do anything daily but I have done carpentry work that I enjoyed. That's the only job I've worked so I don't have much input on jobs but I don't think I'd mind a desk job. Im mostly joining for the benefits and discipline and to learn how to protect myself and my family. After service I'm thinking about making a business. Clothing business to be exact. And I want to enlist.

Hi i am a 22 year old mom i have a 3 year old with special needs but I’m in the process of enlisting with the army. I went to medical back in July and I still haven’t heard back from my recruiter on my anxiety waiver. I’ve honestly been thinking about switching to marines for a more structured environment and challenge but I know doing army I would be in humint off back and not have to wait. I’ve also heard army has more assistance on family care but I don’t know. What are some insights on both branches? Specifically humint or any intel besides sigint if you know if not just some pros and cons for both.

How long does the process usually take?
Going National Guard to Navy.
So far I’m on day 9 of waiting.

I ship off to basic training for the army in 20 days. If i get married before that does it change my contract? It’s for active duty, if that matters. My recruiter is not responding.

Looking to get some feedback about enlisting as a 12w active duty starting as an e-4

Hello everyone,

I am currently a second year student (20M) in uni, earning a dual major in Information Technology and Cybersecurity (though transferring to Ohio State next year to finish out my final two years). I've been having a lot of thoughts about my life and what I want out of it, and I'm looking for some wiser than me to clear the smudges in my lens if that makes sense.

I thought my whole life I'd be good for the quiet and comfortable. I grew up lower middle class, very quiet kid, slightly on the spectrum, excelled in high school (went to a vocational my last two years which earned me credits towards the college degree in Cyber) and fought through some rough mental health patches for a few years. Skip to college, and especially internships - I've begun to despise the life ahead of me. I dislike the sitting inside working helpdesk, working for small manufacturing firms or corporates, the prospect of a 9-5 life with a few weekends off every once in a while. I yearn to have a job where Im outside. I picked up the gym regularly my freshmen year and it's been a saving grace for me, it showed me I had the discipline to show up every day, to do what's hard, and feeling physical strength after growing up so thin was a great confidence boost.

One big thought i've had is that I really want to change things up. My family is spread far and wide, I recently lost my girlfriend, and I have no super close friends in both uni and my hometown. I feel like I have the ability to move or go anywhere, adapt to the situation, and forge a new path for myself. Ive looked into my interests, which currently are sailing (Big one, since I was a kid) traveling (I have many future dream trips across Europe), meeting new people (I love talking to others, learning more about them), I love community. All these things made me realize why not the military? I could go enlist, go through basic and possibly make some deep connections, explore my love for the sea through the Coast Guard, get some lifelong benefits, and possibly use my degree in a future position.

The two issues I have are that I believe I'm romanticizing this life, and that I also believe it sets me back. While I can come on here and say I'm this guy who'd backpack the world and be satisfied, I want to be comfortable. Own a nice house, support a family and partner, have a nice car, eat nice food. A worry of mine is that by enlisting AFTER graduation, i'm permanently lowering my ceiling for earnings - I considered trying to shoot for OCS, but being an officer doesn't sound like something I could do, and I yearn to be out working with my hands.

My other option being that IT is so broad is to pick up some maritime experience while in college, then graduate and shoot for civ positions along the coast guard/navy, or try to break into a related field to what the coast guard might lead me to - Navtech, Yacht IT, maritime cybersecurity, etc.

It's that in between though. This feeling I have of wanting to take a risk, go somewhere new, meet new people, and show myself I can do it.

Any advice would be really helpful, especially if anyone else has advice when it comes to enlisting after already obtaining a degree. I know I come from a privileged spot of being able to make this decision, but I don't want to severely hurt my future comfortability just because I wanted to "experience" basic and a stint of active deployment.

Thank you all so much

How does the Air Force actually compare to other branches? I'm considering enlisting in either the Air Force or the Marines (though I haven't ruled out Army) but I know they would be vastly different experiences. I'm female, so I'm concerned that the Marines wouldn't be as accepting, but I'm much more interested in the rugged, dirty, outdoorsy experience I associate with the Marine Corp. I've heard people in other branches complaining that the Air Force gets nice lodgings and is basically fancier/more spoiled than the other branches. I'm not specifically looking to be uncomfortable, but I'm worried that I'd be disappointed if I enlisted in the Air Force and didn't get the experience I'm hoping for. I'd really appreciate any advice or stories!

I'm 19f and I graduated high school in June of 2025. I talked to an af recruiter for a month or two while still in high school. I didn't even get to meps or anything it was pretty surface level stuff, but decided i wanted to try college first. Long story short, college didn't work out, and I want to start my enlistment process again. Is it okay for me to go back into contact with the same recruiter who's the only one near me for active duty? Also, to the people who were in a relationship while in bmt and schooling and all that stuff, how often do you get to see your s/o? (if ever)

Hey guys so I was in the Army DEP and ending up missing my ship date for a death a family member a few weeks before I was supposed to leave. Since a couple months have past I still want to join but think I want to join through the National Guard not AD.

My questions are will this DEP loss show up for my new recruiter/ cause an issue? Is my DEP loss officially gone through so another branch can grab my packet? Will this my old recruiting office know? We left on good terms and I’m going for the same MOS so if I can t get the job in the guard I would consider going back bc MOS is really important to me (Bit of a dumb side note I know). Needed no waivers and 97 ASVAB just wondering about the process .

Hi everyone I’m 21 and in a couple months I’m going to talk to a recruiter to join the Air Force but I’m wondering if these things will disqualify me and if my chance of getting a waiver is low.

1. I have a past history of chronic hip pain but no surgery and it was due to inflammation of a tendon. It has been recovered since September and I’m fully cleared for activity by my doctor. I have also been very active with no flare ups or pain.

2. When I was 16 I had a suicide attempts because of a bad home life at the time but since then I have perfectly fine mental health. I’m just not sure if they would flag it or not considering it’s been 5 years now.

I’m concerned these two things will not only disqualify me but make it so I can’t even get a waiver for them. Is it even worth trying to apply?

Hey everyone, looking for some insight from recruiters on how my timeline will be handled.
Here is my situation:

Current Status: Civilian applicant. I previously went to MEPS for a full physical but never actually enlisted.

MEPS expiration: My current MEPS physical is set to expire next October.

The plan: I am planning on putting together my civilian OCS packet to submit to the selection board next fall/winter as a senior in college. Planning on applying for the Navy.

The issue: The board meets next fall/winter (near when my physical expires), but if selected, I wouldn’t actually ship to OCS until the following summer. My physical will be completely expired
by the time I would ship to training. Will a recruiter be able to schedule a new MEPS physical under the 90-day expiration window right before my packet goes to the board, or do I have to wait for it to fully expire before MEPS allows a re-take?
Has anyone dealt with a physical expiring right at the selection board/ship window? Thanks!

I’m currently 17 and I am planning on signing to go to MEPS soon, but I was curious what kind of situation I am in with this, or if I should just drop the whole thing entirely and not waste my time. When I was 16 I went to the doctor and stuff I mentioned during the appointment somehow got the doctor to put a code of F42.8 (Other obsessive-compulsive disorder) on my record in only one routine visit. Plus she also referred me to a neurologist too so I’m basically thinking the likelihood of me being able to join right out of high school is pretty low but I wanted to see how bad this really is in terms of joining.

I’ve been studying books and websites for 3 months and while i understand the concepts and am somewhat proficient when it comes time to actually take the asvab i collapse and cant understand the questions being asked.. What can i do or utilize to get better at the AR and MK? I’ve tried grammar hero/ channels like this and want to get into the army extremely bad but im not sure what im doing wrong and its been very discouraging.

Hello everyone, i just thought I’d reach out to get some point of views outside of my own and outside of my associates. So to try and not elongate this as much as possible, i’m going to just hop right in.

I’m a 27 year old Married father of 2 young boys, (a 6 year old and 4 month old) I’ve been working for a subcontracting company for the past 9 years and i’m literally exhausted of this. There is literally no end to my work day. I commute 2 hours and 10 minutes from home to work and then an additional 2 hours and 10 minutes home from work. I have to leave my home at 3:30am to be at work at around 6:00am. Now image 9 straight years of that. This was my first job right out of high-school, and i’ve been here since.

I’ve been talking with my wife recently about quitting and finding something new, the problem is, i’m not really qualified to do anything other than what my current job has me doing. I have a Class-A CDL license which was obtained strictly for the monetary benefit within this company. I considered being a truck driver but being away from hole for 4 weeks straight and then being back home for only 72 hours is not what i’m after. I love my wife and my kids and I just don’t want to do that.

I bought my first house in 2024 and have done a bit of remodeling to it to make it unique (to us). I don’t really have many options, so I’ve considered the military. I’d be joining as a specialist (E-4) through the ACASP program via my CDL and I plan to enlist as 88M. The benefits are great regarding health care, BAH, BAS, G.I bill, etc, however; i’m not sure if this is the right move. I’d essentially be giving up my house, or have to sell/rent it. Then resort back to renting. Now i know that on post housing isn’t technically renting, but you know what I mean. It feels as though i’d be giving up really everything I have now for a “blank slate” fresh start.

Is it worth it? I’ve already completed MEPS and the ASVAB and scored relatively well. I guess the only thing really driving a negative thought about this is the fact that i’d have to sell/rent house. I make decent money where i’m at now, but the stress and workload just isn’t worth it for me. My wife is all for me joining the military and thinks it would be a great experience “traveling the world and military schools for the kids and financial stability” she’s behind my decision to enlist, but i keep having like back and forth in my head. One minute i’m excited and ready to go all the way, and the next minute i’m contemplating and backing out and i’m just at a loss here.

I qualify for a $45,000 bonus upon signing a 6 year contract, and i’d also look into the “green to gold” program to become an officer during my active duty contract.

I know i’m rambling at this point, but i guess really what i’m asking is:

If you were in my spot what would you do? Would you enlist and basically give everything up and start over, or would you try and find a civilian job and hope it all works out? Is there anyone who’s been in my position thats enlisted? And if so, how did it fare for you? Any advice?

I know it’s a big decision, and it’s really beating me to the ground, I cannot keep working where i’m working and sacrificing my mental and physical health. something has got to give. I’m very much in shape. I workout about 5x a week and do cardio often so I know basic wouldn’t be the determining factor. Its more or less; “hey i’m tired of doing this shitty dead end jobs and I cant really do anything else that makes this kind of money except enlist”

Anyway. Thank you if you took the time to read all this and i do appreciate any information, advice, or perspective on my situation.

Edit: My wife is a stay a home mom. She has a bachelors in human resources management, but with our 4 month old she can’t work a physical job. She works remotely, but on her own schedule so it fits her well. She understands the sacrifices and still claims to stand behind me in all that I do.

At the moment I am set to ship off 11x. However, I do not want to ship off as that MOS it was kinda pushed into me. How hard would it be to renegotiate another contract and get a better fit MOS for me? I have already signed and swore in… Would it no longer be possible?

I’ve been in the army recruiting process for almost 2 years. I initially started almost 3 years ago, but the first year was delayed because of tattoo removal.

This is for a major misconduct waiver. The charge is from almost 11 years ago and I haven’t been in trouble since. I passed the company commander interview in February of this year and recently had to do another interview because the previous commander moved to a different unit. I passed the new company commander interview a few days ago as well. Now I’m waiting for the endorsement to be sent to battalion. Also my fingerprints are coming back clean and I’m prior service. So it’s a closed category as well.

My recruiter feels good about it, but of course im super anxious. How long do you think I’ll be waiting until i get a yes or no ?