Have a four year degree and want to know options, please help!

[cbennett07]

I guess I need some education about what my options are and what to expect.

The recruiter I spoke to locally was of little help with a typical enlistment bonus for my skill set.

Currently, I am a successful project manager for web and interactive projects, but with the economy, work seems to be drying up and I am not sure how much more I can stay in this field.

Ideally, I would likely enlist asap if I was offered 40k to enlist and could also take part in the Loan repayment program.

My questions:
1. Is 40k a realistic bonus to enlist for 4 yrs ?
2. I have been told that a signing bonus does not preclude you from taking advantage of the LRP, is this true?
3. My degree is in Computer Information Systems, is it realistic to pursue Information Warfare?

Thanks for all your help,

CHRIS

[Punisher4]

Chris,

Let me try to answer your questions as best as I can:

1) a 40K bonus is pretty typical for a 4+ year enlistment. Keep in mind though that any initial enlistment is always 8 years, minimum. Of course, you may only do 4 out of the 8 on Active Duty, but your contract will show that the remaining time will be listed as "IRR TIME", or Inactive Reserve. A bonus though is tied directly to the MOS (job) you decide on. Jobs that are more sought after by applicants in general usually pay smaller bonuses; ie. $10,000 vs. $40,000.

2) LRP and Signing Bonuses USUALLY cannot go together as an incentive. Think of it as "Double Dipping" from the bank. There are times when it may be authorized, but those cir***stances are Very Few and Far Between.

3) Since you have a degree in CIS, I Personally would consider some of the Crypto type jobs. They are listed under the Military Intelligence branch. The great thing about the Army though is that you have the ability to ReCl*** (change job fields) after you spend about a year into your current ***igment.


Hope this helps. :-)

Punisher4
US Army Recruiter

[cbennett07]

Thanks Punisher4.

Does Crypto have a higher pay rate or better opportunity to work in Washington? I like the idea of information warfare and I guess I need to know the difference in day to day duties of each.

Thx,

CHRIS

[Punisher4]

Chris,

As far as jobs in the Army (in military in general) all pay is the same and based Soley on rank and years of service. I put a link to the 2008 pay chart for you to look at:

http://www.defenselink.mil/militarypay/pay/bp/paytables/2008%20Basic%20Pay%20Table%20_capped.pdf[/url]

Now there are many jobs that are paid Special Duty Pay: Diver, Drill Sergeant, Recruiter, Airborne, Interpreter, and many more. However, these positions all get their base pay from the same table I posted.

If you are thinking long term, and after your Army service is over then YES, the Crypto jobs have a great placement rate with serveral organizations in Washington, DC and elsewhere. The mail reason is this: In the Army, in order to perform the Information Warfare or Crypto job you would eventually have to get a Top Secret Security Clearance. These are exretmly expensive to get, and take sometimes 2 years to process. Many DC organizations draw their personnel right from the Army just because they (NSA, CIA, etc) know that the applicant already HAS a vaild TS Clearance and has also been doing the very same job for however long their Time of Service was for.

Hope this was a little helpful for you. Anything else, just let me know.

Punisher4

[cbennett07]

Thanks again Punisher,

What is the equivalent job in the Navy? Is there one?

Any major differences in benefits of the Army v. Navy going in with a 4 yr degree?

more money? better advancement oppy?

Thanks for any additional help or recommendations.

CHRIS

[Punisher4]

Chris,

I cannot say with any certainty what the equivalent job in the Navy would be. I think it might be safe to ***ume that there is one though, considering the constant need for Cryto work between subs, Aircraft carriers and whatnot. As far as differences in benefits between the two; this is what I tell all the people that I meet with in my recruiting station:

Army is the Largest Branch of service and therfore has the largest budget to work with for bonuses, Loan Repayment, etc. All branches offer the Montgomery GI Bill of course. However the Army wins out everytime when it comes to overall variety and choice of enlistment options.


Have you had a chance to actually sit down with an Army Recruiter? Although I am sure that you probably got the bare minimum responses when you talked to one over the phone the first time. What area are you in? I may know someone there I could recommend that would be willing to answer all of your questions.

[cbennett07]

Thanks again Punisher4,

I am in VA Beach area and have not spoken with an Army recruiter as of yet. But I will make a point to do so, if you think that there will be more opportunities for me.

Remember, I just turned 34 and need to make sure that there are not age restrictions on what I want to do. I fear that I will not be challenged mentally if I am not able to qualify for a crypto job or similar intelligence level position.

Decision criteria for me:
1. Position type
1a. Enlistment bonus
1b. LRP

All these would need to be a reality for me to sign up. Realistic?

Thanks for any refernce you could give me that would be an expert in this area.

CHRIS

[Punisher4]

Chris,

I will have to double check when I get back to my office tomorrow morning on Contact info for you in that area. I THINK that the LRP and Enlisment Bonus should be no problem though, As I said before, the actual amounts are all continget on the availability of the job at the time of enlistment.

As far as being 34, that is not an issue at all. The Army max enlistment age is 42. Overall though, I have seen in my experience that there are far more opportunities in the Army vs. the Navy just due to the sheer variety of jobs we have within our own service. More jobs in the branch lead to more opportunites outside of the branch (back in civilian sector) after your enlistment contract is up.

I will do some looking tomorrow though and get back to you when I get home tomorrow night.


Punisher4

[cbennett07]

Let me know if you have a contact that I could speak with...

Thx,

CHRIS

[Punisher4]

Chris,

I checked with everyone in my recruiting station and there wasn't anyone that could provide a decent reference or point of contact in your area. There were several "I know the name" type of things, but nothing where anyone (including myself) felt confident actually giving a referral. I have worked with Lynnhaven Recruiting Station before, and I can say that ALL the guys in there are very upfront about everything and VERY good at their jobs. The couple of names of people that I know who have enlisted out of that area were very happy with their overall experience. So as much as I wanted to get you an actual name...the Station is the best I can do. Give them a call though (757-4861221) and talk to them. I don't think that you will be disappointed.

If you have any questions after you meet with them that you want to run by me....just post them here.

Hope all goes well. Let me know how things turn out after you talk to them.

Punisher4