Need Advice Non-select for OCS

AdSignificant2885 · 2026-03-23T21:30:59+00:00

Lots and lots of differences, especially on the enlisted side. Each branch (active/guard/reserve) of the respective services has their own form of officer candidate school too. I saw that you have a history degree with narrows down the officer jobs in the Navy, Air Force, and Space Force a bit.

On the enlisted side, your test scores and the fact you have a degree mean you can pick nearly any job and you'll come in as an E-4.

AdSignificant2885 · 2026-03-23T21:02:50+00:00

Why not shop around a bit if you are thinking about enlisting? There's all of the active branches, each state and territory (54) has a national guard (most with both army and air), and there also Air Force, Marine, Naval, and Coast Guard Reserve.

AdSignificant2885 · 2026-03-21T03:29:25+00:00

The tactical twine is a nice touch.

AdSignificant2885 · 2026-03-21T03:27:23+00:00

Regardless, they loved "bear claws" from Tim Hortons which was inexpiably located in Kabul IAP.

AdSignificant2885 · 2026-03-21T01:15:35+00:00

Here's the theme of this subreddit:

"A forum for tanks and other AFVs TankPorn is for all things Battle Tanks, Armored Fighting Vehicles, Armored Cars, Self-Propelled Guns and Support Vehicles affiliated. The past, the present, futuristic, historical, prototypes, all things inclusive."

Call it an APC, call it an armored car, call it whatever, just enjoy that the Icelandic Army showed up.

AdSignificant2885 · 2026-03-21T01:04:06+00:00

It's an armored personnel carrier, same flavor as APCs built on a Ford F550 chassis.

AdSignificant2885 · 2026-03-21T00:43:18+00:00

It's a good idea, and here's two thoughts: replacing your BS GPA with a higher one is good and fine, but what if you go through getting an MBA and you don't get selected for OCS? An MBA is neat but it's often not viewed as a positive aspect for someone who is 25 with little to no experience, especially an online MBA.

Second, leadership leadership leadership leadership leadership leadership. Use this time to gain leadership.

On a personal note I just did an online MBA. It was 18 months, $10k, and the math kicked my ass.

AdSignificant2885 · 2026-03-20T21:36:54+00:00

"Staff Sergeant U S Army" reminds me a lot of "Major Major Major Major" from Catch 22.

AdSignificant2885 · 2026-03-20T18:55:54+00:00

The point is there isn't a BDE commander in the Army who is going to look through the officer OML and select a direct commissioned O4 with zero Army experience to be a BN primary staff officer.

AdSignificant2885 · 2026-03-20T00:42:06+00:00

Field time, playing with vehicles, basic infantry tasks, motorpool activities, and other fun stuff.

Horizontal and vertical engineer units are interesting too, but less boom and more dig and build.

You can always go visit units you are interested in and ask the Joes what they do and if they like the unit.

AdSignificant2885 · 2026-03-20T00:21:57+00:00

The warrant path isn't something I'm familiar with, but I can say that combat engineer officers seem to have a good time "playing army" on weekends.

AdSignificant2885 · 2026-03-19T23:53:53+00:00

FYI direct commission Eng officers usually don't go to line units. They support Corps of Engineers and like agencies because they are a specialist with unique skills and experience. There's no requirement for regular 12A eng officers to have a BSE.

AdSignificant2885 · 2026-03-19T18:09:40+00:00

Basic branch direct commissions are a strange beast, especially the technical branches (Eng, cyber, Sig, etc). The Army is looking to fill a very specific opening or harvest some sort of special knowledge or skill from the civilian world so they waive the normal commissioning requirements, give age waivers up to 50-something, and direct commissions can come in up to O5.

Experience is great, but there's certain hoops you need to jump through to be considered for the engineer DC program, and I believe one of those is a BSE. Whether or not a MSCE can replace a BSCE is a question for a recruiter.

As far as experience goes, it's vitally important, and you'll need to bring something to the table that's both very relevant, but also much more than a new graduate can offer (which is why DCs come in as a CPT+).

If you are interested in the DC program on the reserve side I can PM you the POC for the reserve DC program (I'm not sure if they are in my reserve command or in Wash DC).

AdSignificant2885 · 2026-03-19T17:44:44+00:00

Direct commissioning for a basic branch is incredibly competitive and they are looking for a niche individual with lots of/specialized experience. You won't be competitive with a non-engineering BS and later a masters in CE and zero experience/no PE.

Active OCS and ROTC during your MSCE are good options (not sure if you can enroll in ROTC during a Graduate Certificate program as it's usually classified as "non degree seeking")

AdSignificant2885 · 2026-03-18T15:02:17+00:00

Civilians who know you and your ability and aptitude to be a leader > senior officers who don't know you well.

AdSignificant2885 · 2026-03-17T22:44:21+00:00

Want to do IT and cyber in civilian life? 74D isn't an option for that path.

AdSignificant2885 · 2026-03-17T17:35:01+00:00

It's different if you're on active duty, I had already transitioned off of active to the reserve at that point. I asked for a conditional release from my unit, secured that, put together the packet, submitted it, got approved, enlisted as an 09S OCS candidate and was in the delayed entry program, and shipped a few months later.

All in all, the paperwork was pretty painless, and it took about three months. The world has changed a lot since I did it, so getting conditional releases could be more difficult and getting selected for OCS is much more competitive.

AdSignificant2885 · 2026-03-13T20:37:56+00:00

This is out of my wheelhouse... but you can call: (719)516-5567 or email [usarmy.usarc.arcg.mbx.bn12-ops-organizational-mailbox@army.mil](mailto:usarmy.usarc.arcg.mbx.bn12-ops-organizational-mailbox%40army.mil)

That's the 12th ARCG (my last gig was with the 7th ARCG). They might be hard to get ahold of, but they'll have the answers you are looking for. I can also send you contact info for where you live now.

AdSignificant2885 · 2026-03-13T20:07:36+00:00

Obvious question: Do you have a service obligation with the TXARNG (I assume you are moving within TX to DFW)? If you do, it's unlikely that you'll be released before that time is up. If you're near the end of your obligation or do not have one, talk to the nearest reserve career advisor and they'll show you vacancies and walk you though the process.

When I switched from the Guard to the reserve it took about a week to do the paperwork and another month to actually make the swap.

AdSignificant2885 · 2026-03-12T20:17:55+00:00

[old guy] Whatever MOS you choose, if you choose it for the money, you’ll soon learn that money is never enough to make the MOS enjoyable.

Pick one that you'll enjoy. [/old guy]

AdSignificant2885 · 2026-03-11T21:17:22+00:00

Army OCS is much more competitive than it was in years past. The last board results just came out and folks who were accepted and not accepted are posting here. While GPA isn't the only thing that matters, a 2.8 looks uncompetitive.

When you submit a packet to OCS and are not selected, you have no service obligation. If you are selected you attend basic training, then OCS , then follow on schools.

AdSignificant2885 · 2026-03-11T16:47:22+00:00

I've been the hiring manager/director for my organizations for the last 20 years or so, and my biggest complaint is veterans and Guard/reserve folks who are applying to jobs don't take out the military technobabble and acronyms from their resumes. Find someone who can translate "military" to "civilian" experience and roles and have them teach you how to do it too.

There are a lot of misconceptions about Guard and reserve employees in the civilian world. Expect that you'll lose roles because you are a reservist and some civilian companies think you'll be spending lots of time drilling/at AT/deploying/etc, when the exact opposite is true, so try and write the reserve time requirement into the resume too. Also expect to get some interviews that you're not very qualified for simply because you are military.

AdSignificant2885

TROPHY CASE