Posted on Aug 12, 2019
What type of opportunities or options for commissioning does a 29 year old enlisted National Guard soldier have?
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Greetings, I am a newly enlisted member of the Army National Guard. I am looking advise in what commission opportunities are available for a 29 year old. To give you a better perspective, my experience and educational background is in IT. I currently have a Bachelors in Computer Science and I am finishing a Masters in Information Security . My current MOS is 25U, and I was looking for advice on what possibilities I have for commission if I still have them at this time. Any advice will be highly appreciated, since I don’t have much experience in this matter.
Posted in these groups: Officer Candidate School (OCS) (Army) Warrant Officer Candidate School (WOCS) ROTC Green to Gold Direct Commission
Posted >1 y ago
Responses: 13
Posted >1 y ago
Since you are almost done with school, your option is OCS. The Guard has three versions they will let you follow, depending on the state. The Traditional National Guard OCS is 14/16 months that includes two annual training periods. There is an accelerated version that I know little about, other than the dropout rate is high. The last version is the 3 months long standard Army OCS. All have there good points and bad, depending on your situation. Don't let your age worry you, I commissioned two months before my 30th birthday. Any method you chose will require you to do an Active Duty Basic Officer Leadership Course for your chosen branch. How long depends on the branch, but plan on 20 weeks plus as a minimum. Being in the Guard does allow you more control over your Branch and you will generally know where you are headed before you commission. Be aware that it is still needs of the Service.
OCS is a bigger pain in the ass than BCT. It may be because I already had been through all the petty stuff when I enlisted, but I was my least favorite duty of everything I did in the Army and Army National Guard.
OCS is a bigger pain in the ass than BCT. It may be because I already had been through all the petty stuff when I enlisted, but I was my least favorite duty of everything I did in the Army and Army National Guard.
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LTC Stephen C.
>1 y
CPT Lawrence Cable has done an excellent job of describing the OCS options, SPC (Join to see). This link simply fills in a little and describes with more specificity the Traditional option and the Accelerated OCS option available through the National Guard. I don’t think that AD OCS at Fort Benning is addressed in this link. Also, please note that even though the options are the same nationwide, one must go through the Regional Training Institute (RTI) of their own state. I provided the link for the ALARNG because that is the one with which I’m most familiar, and it has long been a premier OCS program nationwide.
https://al.ng.mil/ALABAMA/Careers/OCS/Pages/default.aspx
https://al.ng.mil/ALABAMA/Careers/OCS/Pages/default.aspx
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Posted >1 y ago
You could pursue an AMEDD Direct Commission as a 70D. CPT Enrique M. may have some tips there
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CPT Enrique M.
>1 y
Yup plenty of openings in 70D you can IM me for any questions around the program. Responded also on this thread.
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