What are the pros and cons of going from your first contract as active duty Army to Reserves?

SGT Private RallyPoint Member — Tue, 22 Oct 2019 14:08:18 -0400

Response by SGT Dave Tracy made Oct 22 at 2019 2:31 PM

SGT Dave Tracy — Tue, 22 Oct 2019 14:31:27 -0400

Pros: Pride in continued service; additional income; Tricare Reserve Select; opportunities for rank and leadership experience; opportunities for additional training; additional motivation to maintain your physical health; service member benefits; contact with people from diverse occupational backgrounds; train close to home ("close" being relative so it may also be a con); your fulltime military experience conveys value to your Reserve unit.

Cons: Can interfere with civilian life and career; most civilians and Active Duty SMs do not understand, and may look down on, what you do and if/how you sacrifice; "one weekend a month; two weeks a year"...that's a bit optimistic; military bearing may not be what you were used to on AD.

Response by CPL Gary Pifer made Oct 22 at 2019 11:49 PM

CPL Gary Pifer — Tue, 22 Oct 2019 23:49:34 -0400

Retire at 20 years. Retire at 60 years...

Response by MAJ Matthew Arnold made Oct 23 at 2019 1:28 AM

MAJ Matthew Arnold — Wed, 23 Oct 2019 01:28:18 -0400

I served 12 years on active duty, was caught up in the Clinton era downsizing, and moved to the National Guard, where I served another 12 years. As a senior captain going from active duty to the national guard the main pitfall was not belonging to the in crowd. I was always an outsider. The only thing that saved me was I had a couple of good friends in the unit that I went to ROTC with, but I was never, never going to have a command or be in an important position. Those assignments went to one of the boys. It may be a lot different for a PFC or SPC making the transition, but they have their in crowd and you will have to deal with that.

Response by PO1 Orlando Miller made Oct 23 at 2019 7:36 AM

PO1 Orlando Miller — Wed, 23 Oct 2019 07:36:27 -0400

Pros: Use your Post-9/11 GI Bill and go to college, while serving in the reserves.
Con: Choose your reserve unit wisely as you could end up in a unit that's cycling back to the desert.

Response by LTC Ken Connolly made Oct 23 at 2019 10:17 AM

LTC Ken Connolly — Wed, 23 Oct 2019 10:17:35 -0400

Each option has its risks and benefits. In order to properly answer your question, would need to know what is prompting the question.

Response by SFC Private RallyPoint Member made Oct 23 at 2019 3:59 PM

SFC Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 23 Oct 2019 15:59:52 -0400

A lot of the comments touch the bases, but without knowing your career goals, we can't give you the most applicable advice.

What your plan? Do you want to stay AG? Commission, warrant, CSM, AGR?

Maybe you want to go to nursing school, get your BSN and the go AMEDD and get all those sweet annual bonuses 66Hs get just for hanging out in the Army Reserve.

The Army has great benefits on both sides, but the RA component is going to require a lot more of your time than the Reserve and you're going to earn that Tricare Prime.

Response by SGT Mathew Husen made Oct 24 at 2019 10:00 AM

SGT Mathew Husen — Thu, 24 Oct 2019 10:00:07 -0400

The difference is being actual Army, or being a civilian pretending to be Army.