Posted on Jan 12, 2022
2LT(P) Officer Candidate
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I am considering branching MP after OCS. I would like to know first hand experience of the junior officers especially those in National Guard. If you could share all the pros and cons of the position I would be thankful.
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LTC Self Employed
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I was military police and armor branched when I was deployed to Iraq. You may find the access components think they are super soldiers like Captain America compared to the National Guard soldiers. You may also find out they treat you with respect. Be prepared for them to think they are Superior to you even though you could beat them on the PT test, have more education than they do and you know how to fix their internet or Wi-Fi. I really didn't encounter any other issues except for politics in the National Guard. The National Guard has its own animal and you eventually may want to switch over to the Army Reserve especially when you want to get above the rank of Captain and you want to make sure your schools you are required to take have precedence over the monthly mission that's your National Guard Battalion, Brigade or division. Good thing at the National Guard, Army Reserve and Active Components have the same common access card. When I was a lieutenant, it said Army guard on it. Hopefully others will give you some better feedback than me.
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2LT(P) Officer Candidate
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Thank you Sir although I intend on staying National Guard I still am considered making the jump to active. Thankfully I've had the opportunity of working with both members of the active components so I'm confident I can work with a multitude of personalities.
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2LT(P) (Join to see) you may also want to consider the active Guard Reserve program in the Army Reserve. Those her types We're very professional and most of them also served in the guard and Reserve at one time or another as an enlisted 40p you Soldier. I just know that active component were sweating it out because they had to have top block to get promoted. I got proficient and most of my evaluations as a major and I still made it to lieutenant colonel. I remember we had a deputy commander of our Brigade who was an active component in bed in our training command because all the active officers knew that if received proficient and not top block, they were passed over and maybe even separated. It's good that you're going through a officer candidate School source that is federally recognized. I went through officer candidate School through California Army National Guard and others here on rallypoint said that switching over to active component is a NOCO. The alternative is to go through Tour of Duty. I have three overseas stripes. I was mobilized for operation Iraqi freedom three and four, and I was in operation enduring freedom. I broke my ankle in Afghanistan then I was at Joint Base Lewis-McChord for convalescence. I got one year credit for early retirement so I am a gray area retirees that will receive my retirement any week now. I should have received it starting last week but HRC is a little backlogged and getting retirements done. In case the Army gets a reduction in force since our inept president considered climate change more important than beating up the military, you may want to consider an AG our position in an Army reserve unit. They do have positions in Germany and other parts of the world. My a g r G3 and our current Ops officers both were in Germany as active Guard Reserve in the Army Reserve. They get all the same benefits and all the same schools and all the same time off as active component. I was with a one Star Command in Marysville Washington that has theater and core assets. I was with the 364th expeditionary support command. Everything leads through Logistics so no matter if your military police, infantry, armor or civil affairs, getting your rank may require you to go through Logistics. It will probably also apply in the active Army
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2LT(P) (Join to see) I'm using voice text and I will fix my last paragraph later. I have to fix it on the laptop
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CPT Lawrence Cable
CPT Lawrence Cable
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You have longevity on me and I was a pre-9-11 soldiers, but similar experience in the Guard (11B, 11A, 21A). Working with Active Duty (at that time) as Infantry usually got you the Nasty Girl treatment until you could show you are capable. Engineers were a different story. Outside of the 12B Squads, the Engineer units I was around had better operators, maintenance, and drivers than any active unit. It didn't take long for that to show up.
The states where I served, depending on your Branch, promotion through Major, assuming you go some good evals and had your schooling, seemed to happen in a reasonable time frame. Kentucky had two full battalions of Engineers when I was around, so there were generally positions to move into as a Major. After that, I agree with you, you may be better off transferring to the Army Reserve to promote from there. I never had a problem pulling schools in the States I served, but your mileage may vary. I had contemporary's that said they did have problems.
Yes, Guard Politics can be a pain in the butt, especially the politics that involve technicians and AGR.
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LTC Program Manager
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Being considered federal law enforcement under LEOSA is a big benefit of MP if you are at all interested in carrying a pistol off duty.
Best of luck
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SFC Michael Hasbun
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