Civil Affairs and CID

SGT(P) Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 05 Mar 2014 10:23:56 -0500

I am looking to get into one of these two fields but having a hard time deciding which one to focus on. I know one person in CID so I have some info in that field but I dont know anyone in CA and would love some insight. I have been to both websites and read all the info they provide but I am looking for a little more of a personal opinion here

Response by 1SG(P) Private RallyPoint Member made Mar 5 at 2014 10:48 AM

1SG(P) Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 05 Mar 2014 10:48:57 -0500

If you're considering CA, you may also want to look into this. Best of luck with your decision:
http://www.soc.mil/swcs/cst/

The United States Army | SWCS

Response by SFC Private RallyPoint Member made Mar 28 at 2014 7:11 PM

SFC Private RallyPoint Member — Fri, 28 Mar 2014 19:11:11 -0400

Please visit the SORB on Fort Bragg for any information you may need in regards to Civil Affairs. If you have any additional questions please do not hesitate to contact me.

Response by SSG Private RallyPoint Member made May 1 at 2014 6:01 PM

SSG Private RallyPoint Member — Thu, 01 May 2014 18:01:41 -0400

I just went to selection for CA and got selected. I learned a bit of what CA truly does and from my experience there I think it personally will be the best fit for me in the Army. If you want to engage with people on many different levels all over the world then CA is good for you. If you want to help people and use your brain to it's breaking point and exhaust all possible resources to create the best solution to assist the commander in your AO then CA is right for you. If you want to be a detective, then CID, but personally I think CA is way more rewarding a MOS and field.

Response by SPC Matthew Birkinbine made Jun 25 at 2014 5:27 AM

SPC Matthew Birkinbine — Wed, 25 Jun 2014 05:27:39 -0400

The CA guys and gals that I work with are an awesome group of people. Company commanders here have battalion signature power. One CA Team, from my perspective, can take care of things it might take a whole company of regular units to do. Efficiency, morality, and political correctness, in my opinion, are what drives the relationships between Civil Affairs and the civilian leaders they assist and the military commanders they support. The FORSCOM side of civil affairs is expanding exponentially, too, so there is a great opportunity there if you want to get into nontraditional deployments, and professional growth maximization. I've heard it's even better if you have other languages that you can certify proficiency in.

Response by 1SG Private RallyPoint Member made Jun 1 at 2016 3:03 PM

1SG Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 01 Jun 2016 15:03:48 -0400

Both are honorable careers and you are doing the right thing by researching both of them. CID has been great to me and I love the opportunities it has given me.

With that said continue your research and determine which one is the right fit for you.

Response by SSG Private RallyPoint Member made Jun 2 at 2016 3:12 AM

SSG Private RallyPoint Member — Thu, 02 Jun 2016 03:12:49 -0400

The direct link between the military commanders and the civil authorities in the area of responsibility (AOR) is Civil Affairs. If headquarters needs an analysis of a community in the AOR, such as who the key figures are, what's the status of the basic survival needs (water, food, medication), education, basic atmospherics, etc., the commanders turn to CA. But that's not all CA does. Lots of teams assist in training foreign militaries in not only Civil Military Operations, but various other things such as medical and human rights. CA does much more than that; CA is such a broad MOS with no direct written boundary of the limits of a "job". Every deployment is different.