Can I switch over a secondary MOS from the Marines to the Army?

SGT Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 08 May 2019 19:13:00 -0400

I have been in the Army for a year now, and previously I was in the Marines for 9 and half, with a 5 month split in service. I have been having a heck of a time switching over awards and stuff from the Marines to Army. To this point, I have given up trying at this unit and I am pcsing to Benning, and will try again there. But the main question I have is can I switch over secondary mos s from the Marines to the Army ?

Response by SFC Kenneth Hunnell made May 8 at 2019 7:44 PM

SFC Kenneth Hunnell — Wed, 08 May 2019 19:44:45 -0400

Try talking too retention

Response by 1SG Private RallyPoint Member made May 8 at 2019 8:55 PM

1SG Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 08 May 2019 20:55:23 -0400

Sometimes.
Not all MOSs have equivalents in different branches.

Response by CSM Darieus ZaGara made May 8 at 2019 8:56 PM

CSM Darieus ZaGara — Wed, 08 May 2019 20:56:31 -0400

If all of the requirements for certification are the same it is possible. If there is no direct translation, then it is likely not possible. Awards are much the same. Some awards are recognized, others are not. Thank you for your service.

Response by SGT Mark Saint Cyr made May 8 at 2019 9:38 PM

SGT Mark Saint Cyr — Wed, 08 May 2019 21:38:05 -0400

Switching awards? No. Any awards you received from the corps you can wear on your dress army uniform, so long as it is federally recognized.

You DON'T switch over awards. Don't even try. Just remember that army equivalent awards take precedence over marine ones. Army regulation 600-8-22 covers miltary awards and their precedences.

As far as schools, and other MOSs your PSNCO in your Battalion S-1 should be an excellent POC for finding out which Marine MOSs can switch over.

Good luck.

Response by SSgt Gerald Sapaugh made May 8 at 2019 11:22 PM

SSgt Gerald Sapaugh — Wed, 08 May 2019 23:22:00 -0400

All MOS are transferable. I had 5 from the Corps and all transferred to the Air Force. I was the only Medtec with a snipper rating, NBC, EOD and Recon ratings. I took what was available at the time.

Response by CW2 Michael Bodnar made May 9 at 2019 7:40 AM

CW2 Michael Bodnar — Thu, 09 May 2019 07:40:55 -0400

It depends. I'm a prior service Marine as well and ran into the same challenges. For your awards, as long as they're on your DD214 from the Marines, the Army should accept them. If you have certificates, make sure they get entered into your IPERMS and the award shows up on your ERB. For you secondary MOS, in most cases it does transfer over but if there's not an Army equivalent, you might right into issues. If there is, the POI has to match the MOS school you attended or they will not let it transfer over. Stranger things have happened however and it might anyway. Best of luck to you.

Response by SSG Private RallyPoint Member made May 9 at 2019 7:47 AM

SSG Private RallyPoint Member — Thu, 09 May 2019 07:47:22 -0400

I think as some have stated it would depend on the MOS, I know the Army and Marines share some MOS's and use the same training facilities for those MOS's but not all are shared.

Response by SSG Mark Ledford made May 11 at 2019 9:07 AM

SSG Mark Ledford — Sat, 11 May 2019 09:07:23 -0400

I BELIEVE YOU CAN SWITCH MOS ?WITH THAT SAID. IT'S A FEDERAL QUALIFYING SKILL . ALL SERVICES HAVE MOST OF THE SAME MOS'S BUT WITH A SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT NAME FOR THEM.TO CHANGE THE YOU WOULD NEED TO HAVE ORDERS TO HAVE A AWARD TRANSFER TO THE MOS YOU HAVE ALREADY QUALIFIED FOR FROM ANOTHER SERVICE. FOR EXAMPLE. WHEN I LEFT THE ARMY MY MOS WAS 05C20 .SO WHEN I JOIN THE TEXAS STATE GUARD MY QUALIFYING SKILL WAS COMMUNICATION SO ORDERS WERE MADE TO AUTHORIZE ME AND TO RECOGNIZE ME FOR THAT MOS. I WAS AUTHORIZED TO WAS THE COMMUNICATION BADGE (SAME HAS THE AIR NATIONAL GUARD/US AIR FORCE. BUT IN THE SERVICE'S TODAY A LOT OF CROSS TRAINING. GOOD LUCK .