Posted on Oct 30, 2018
Is it possible to attend OCS prior to completing a Bachelors degree?
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By the end of next year I plan to complete my bachelors degree, attend OCS, and commission into the USAR.
I have heard a couple of times that it is possible to apply for, and even attend, OCS prior to completing you degree, once you complete 90 credits towards your degree.
Is this still a valid program or a thing of the past?
I have heard a couple of times that it is possible to apply for, and even attend, OCS prior to completing you degree, once you complete 90 credits towards your degree.
Is this still a valid program or a thing of the past?
Posted in these groups: 
Officer Candidate School (OCS) (Army)
Recruiting
2LT
ARCC (Army Reserve Career Counselor)
Commission
Officer Candidate School (OCS) (Army) Recruiting 2LT ARCC (Army Reserve Career Counselor) Commission
Posted >1 y ago
Responses: 10
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Yes, that is still valid. I just graduated last month from the Guard OCS program. They're all federally recognized of course, however the reserve and guard programs will allow admission with a min of 90 hrs college credit. Go for it!
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CPT (Join to see)
Came here to say this exact thing. I've never met anybody who did it, but a friend of mine explained doing State OCS over the course of Senior year of college as kind of an "ideal" timeline for those still in college that want to do OCS. Of course, the same requirement applies equally to other commissioning sources, regardless of ability to earn your commission while working on your degree separately. My Commander at my last Company commissioned after being an E-7, got his Bachelor's Degree a few years later before pinning on his Captain's Bars. Technically you only need the Bachelor's Degree to make O-3 and can Commission with the 90 credits, though in practice a degree is kind of expected. Definitely go for it!
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SPC (Join to see)
Do you just need a total of 90 credits or do you need 90 credits that are going towards your specific degree?
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As things stand right now, applying for OCS on the Reserve side without a bachelor's degree will not net positive results. Continue your education, work on your GPA and APFT, then move forward with the application process. Best of luck to you!
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Yes. I graduated OCS while I still have a semester of my bachelor’s degree left. If you want to get promoted to 1LT, get that degree!
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2LT (Join to see)
2LT (Join to see) I went through traditional state OCS. All you need are 90 college credits to be eligible.
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SPC (Join to see)
So you can go to OCS with 90 hours, however you won't become a 1LT until you finish your degree? I'm in the Guard, I currently have 53 credit hours before I graduate, and I wanna go active as fast as possible. My recruiter tells me that I need to either:
A. Finish my degree and see him upon completion then he says he can get me an OCS spot if I'm qualified.
B. Sign an ROTC contract at my college (But I have to be in ROTC for 4 semesters).
C. See the recruiter and have him get me a DD-368 to be released from the Guard and get active duty, then later finish my degree and become an officer.
I've got a few options, however I don't want to have to wait 4 semesters to get a commission. What do you recommend?
A. Finish my degree and see him upon completion then he says he can get me an OCS spot if I'm qualified.
B. Sign an ROTC contract at my college (But I have to be in ROTC for 4 semesters).
C. See the recruiter and have him get me a DD-368 to be released from the Guard and get active duty, then later finish my degree and become an officer.
I've got a few options, however I don't want to have to wait 4 semesters to get a commission. What do you recommend?
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