Is it possible to serve in multiple branches of the military ?

Years ago, when I went through boot camp at MCRD San Diego, we had a guy in our platoon who had already done four years in the Air Force and four years in the Navy. I always wondered if he went on to serve in the Army also.

At the same time? Never heard of it. One at a time? Have at it. Be prepared to lose rank every time you switch and go to another Basic or Boot Camp, depending on your choice. Plenty have served in more than one and if you have time on your hand's research it and find out more. Why not dedicate yourself to doing the best you can in the Army? If that doesn't work then go from there. Your plate is going to be plenty full once you ship to Basic so that's what you should focus on for now.

Geez, only one person barely answered her question.... Problem paying attention to detail is an issue to some.... ANSWER... YES! You can go from branch to branch and you can also in the Army, train in multiple MOS's.. Plus, check this out. After you become a non commissioned officer, you can apply to become a warrant officer and get it if you meet the qualifications and I know you can. To me and most other veterans I know, a warrant officer is the best rank in the military and to become a warrant officer, you will be trained in several MOS's before graduating as a warrant officer. A warrant officer is a technical advisor.. I have friends to this day that are now retired and was marine then army then air force. And another that was Army then went air force and retired, and another dear friend buried in Arlington that was marine then army...I hope I answered your questions and I hope that anybody else that comments, answers your questions as well.... You are a go getter and you seem very motivated. I would love to have a troop like you and I would do everything I can to help you advance and achieve your goals plus I would convince you that what you are looking for is becoming a warrant officer... The Army need troops like you. Troops line you set an example to others and motivate others to be all they can be.... Drive on and good luck to your future endeavors....

The mastering of the MOS is crucial, sound advice from the prior comments. You will need to become the SME of you MOS and people will listen to you and follow your advice because you know your stuff. I transitioned from the USMC to the Army over 20 years ago and became an SME of my field, you gain the respect from all no matter the level. However just jumping because you want to learn more is different than what you can teach to increase the ability of others, you need to focus on you being absolutely proficient.

As a jack of all trades myself, I'd stick with one branch, and if you want change MOSs or AFSCs within that branch. Every branch has every job that the others have, but how they go about it might vary slightly. You can switch jobs and still follow a path for promotions, but switching branches could make it more difficult or cause delays. Sometimes there are very valid reasons for switching, but just because you want to try a little of everything, isn't. I'm not trying to crush your dreams, it's just I understand what it is that you want, and after being in myself, and having an Air Force job who's nick name is "jack of all trades" I'd say you can go Air Force now while you still have the chance of stay your path, but once you're in, stick with it, like others have said.

Considering the Army has so many career fields, switching services might not be the best answer. If you talk to any of your senior NCOs at your first unit, you might find several are on their second or even third MOS. The reasons I heard were because in some MOSs it is very hard to gain the rank you need to stay in. I've been out for over 20 years but it used to be if you were E-4 you were forced out after 10 years, E-5 was 15 then forced out, E-6 though, you were forced to retire at 20. There were a few who like you either disliked the duties or got bored with their MOS and wanted something different. Every MOS is different, and every assignment is different. The thing about the Army is generally if you don't like your situation you can change it!

I served as a Marine 0351/8151/0321 from 1984-1988. I had a 13 month break 88-89 and joined the Army National Guard, then transferred to the Army Reserve and became a drill Sergeant in 90'. I served till August 1995. On January 27 2007, I reenlisted in the Army National Guard and did a tour in Iraq 07-08 and Afghanistan 10-11.
If you go Marine 1st, you will not have to repeat basic training. If you enlist in the Army and want to go Marine you will have to complete USMC Boot Camp.

I have served with people with more than one branch affiliation. Whether it be Army/ Navy, Marine/Army. I myself was Navy/ Coast Guard.

Yes. I spent 3 years in the army and 17 in the Air Force.

YES. Yes you can serve in multiple branches. I served in both Army and Air Force, My Brother-in-Law served in Marines and Air Force. I had a good friend who served in Marines and Army. Both my brother in law served in the Marines during Vietnam and their remainder service was their "Retirement" Branch. I on the other hand, Served Army during Vietnam War and a 3 year stint with the Air force only to return to the Army for my final departure in 93. One thing prevalent that I did not like was the loss of one Rank on each change of service. While you acquire more skills, your advancement is retarded during the process.

I served in the Marines, Navy, Army and now I'm back in the Navy! I've loved the journey. No regrets.

Ran into a guy at a Marine reunion about 20 years ago in Charleston, SC, who enlisted in the Army at 15 and subsequently the other three branches. His first enlistment was during WWII.

The simple answer is yes. I served 4 years in the Marines, a year National Gaurd, and have been in the regular close to a year.

Settle down, Francis. Get into one first. You may like your first job. Now, If by chance you don't: The Army is usually pretty good about letting you reclass once maybe twice, but keep in mind the military rewards and promotes based on experience and expertise. So, if you keep bouncing around laterally you are never going to bounce up and that can cost you years and you have grade requirements to hit if you are planning on hittin' 20. Other branches aren't always as forgiving, I left the USMC for the Army because the USMC wouldn't let me reclass and I hated my job. Some services will take rank, time in grade or make you re-do basic. Get in, sniff around you will make a much better decision once you have a couple of years experience in any mos/branch.

I served in the military for 28 years, retiring eventually from the Army Reserves. My service included time in the Georgia Air National Guard, Air Force Reserve, Active Army and Army Reserve.

Joined Army Reserves right out of high school, 1976. Was a corpman.Went active duty Navy 1988 and was a Deisel mechanic. Loved both.

2 more things to consider - that the Recruiter might not know or will tell you - Time in Service TIS carries over to all branches - BUT Time in Rank TIR - E3 to E4, etc - starts over in each branch - so if you are an E3 in the army with 4 years TIS and 1 and 1/2 hrs TIR - when you switch over to the other branch - you have 4 yrs TIS and 0 TIR credit on the new enlistment. This was not explained to me twice - I didn't question it when I went from the Navy to the Army Guard (since I had a ten year break in service) - but when I switch from the Army Guard to the Air Guard - I lost almost 2 yrs TIR and had to wait 2 more years to get promoted from E4 to E5.
Depending on the needs of the other branch that you want to go into - you might have to take off a strip - go from E5 to E4.

I served 6.7 years USN as a nuke submarine electrician. Got out for 8 months. I rejoined the USNR to complete 17.5 years service. At that point I lateral transferred over to US Army reserves. My Navy MOS followed me. They also awarded me a 2nd MOS for my civilian computer career (no school at all). I did about 5 years USAR, along w/a year in Iraq, got out, and joined the MD National Guard for 3 years. When that contract ended, I went back to the USAR for about 7 years. In total, I have 34 years service. I spent 24 years AT THE SAME RANK, which I believe is a world record. Transferring services does not help your career advancement. You do know everything about everything, but my retirement is $1100 bucks/mo and healthcare. Peanuts. On the flipside, I do make $200K/yr as the DoD guru in cyber engineering w/the highest level clearances. In all that time, I always used my military training to enhance my civilian career. It worked. If you can stand being nothing more than an E-6, you can do it. I wouldn't advise it. It's a tough row to hoe.

If you are really wanting to switch branches after your contract with the Army is up - keep this to yourself until about a year from your ETS - if your supervisors know you are not invested in staying with the Army, you run the risk that they will think twice before giving you a school or other training due to the fact that they will lose you and not get the return on their investment in you. If you still want to try and go directly from the AD Army into another service without a break in service - at about a year out - go to the recruiter for the other branch and see what they have related to your MOS or another field to cross train into. Remember that you might not be what the other branch wants - each branch has different requirements that may be different for a current military member than what is required by a new recruit. I served on AD in the Navy, had a ten year break and then went into the Army National Guard. The unit that I was in wasn't a good fit - I was getting my degree as a paralegal and want to move to a legal slot - there were none available in my state, so I had to look at the Air Nation Guard. So, I have served in 3 branches of the service during my 23 year career. I can tell you that I had the most fun with the Army, grew the most with the Navy (I went in at 18) and had the most opportunities in the Air Force. Good Luck

It is possible to serve in multiple branches but it seems you are putting the cart before the horse. From the sounds of your posts you are DEP right now which means you haven't even been to basic or AIT. If you are having questions about other branches now maybe you need to determine if the Army is really the branch for you at this time. You can go Blue to Green from the Navy and Air Force but it is harder to go to the Air Force from the Army unless you are in very specific career fields.

From reading your posts and responses I'm getting less a desire to be a jack of all trades and more a lack of understanding with what you want to do. You're young that's natural but you're about to make a very serious life changing decision. Please make sure you are 100% focused on the task ahead, becoming a US Army soldier.

Best of Luck to you