#13 - Finally in!

After a grueling 13+ hour day at the MEPS, I am finally in! I took my oath of enlistment with a few other people last night.

I initially played hardball and told the job counselor I only wanted one of those two jobs or I would be willing to punt and walk out the door (yeah, I actually said those words). Unfortunately one of the two was not available anywhere ('tis true, I checked the AIT schedules). There was a technicality that I did not qualify for the other because of a specific math class I never had. The job counselor actually convinced the Reserves unit to overlook this since I had 9 years of college and could probably handle it. After hours and hours spent on this with faxes and phone calls going back and forth and seemingly being approved, just as my AIT reservation was about to be made, it was discovered that I could not have this MOS after all because of my eyesight. That would have been nice to know earlier in the process before going through the emotional rollercoaster, but what can you do...

I was offered my choice of just about everything else under the sun, and decided on 25B, Information Technology Specialist. I didn't realize it before, but apparently this is very difficult to get into as IT positions are very much sought after. Ironically this is the Army equivalent of what my husband did in the Air Force. He used it as a stepping stone to a pretty nice civilian career. I still want to remain an Archaeologist, but I guess I can handle being a computer nerd for one weekend a month in the Army Reserve. The best part of this is that I will be drilling with a unit that is 10 miles from home.

This is the description for this MOS from goarmy.com:

Information Technology Specialist (25B)

Computers are essential to every division of the military. Information
Technology Specialists have the great responsibility of maintaining, processing and troubleshooting military computer systems and operations. Information Technology Specialists may perform some of the following duties:

- Identifying computer-user problems and coordinating to resolve them

- Installing, configuring and monitoring local and wide-area networks, hardware and software

- Compiling, entering and processing information

- Providing customer and network administration services such as passwords, electronic mail accounts, security and troubleshooting

- Constructing, editing and testing computer system programs

- Conducting data system studies and preparing documentation and specifications for proposals

- Assisting in the design, preparation, editing and testing of computer programs


Job training for an Information Technology Specialist consists of nine weeks of Basic Training, where you'll learn basic Soldiering skills, and approximately 15 weeks of Advanced Individual training with classroom instruction. During the course of your training, you'll become experienced in:
Use of computer consoles and peripheral equipment
Computer systems concepts
Planning, designing and testing computer systems

Helpful attributes include:
Interest in typing and computer science
Interest in work requiring accuracy and attention to detail
Ability to communicate effectively
Interest in working with computer equipment
Experience in installing software and setting up computers

Advanced level Information Technology Specialists perform the same tasks as other Information Technology Specialists, but are also responsible for:
Configuring information-processing equipment
Performing senior operator and systems administrator duties on assigned computer systems
Assisting less experienced soldiers in the installation and maintenance of
information-processing equipment
Writing, analyzing, editing, testing and modifying computer programs.

The skills learned as an Information Technology Specialist can easily be transferred to the civilian workforce. You'll be able to work as a network support technician, data processing technician or computer programmer in just about any company that uses computers.

The AIT (job school) is actually 20 weeks long, not 15. I will be shipping to Fort Jackson, SC for basic training on January 17, 2006 with a start date of January 27th. BCT is 9 weeks long. Barring any complications (like failing PT standards or injury!), I will graduate BCT and then begin AIT at Fort Gordon, GA on April 3, 2006. If all goes well, I will finish AIT and return home again sometime around August 19th.

Here are a few details of the enlistment. Since I have a B.A. in hand, I will be going in at the rank of Specialist (E-4). I will receive a $4,000 "hi-grad" bonus because of my college education, and a $3,000 bonus for my MOS. Additionally, my MOS will give me $10,000 in student loan repayment (I think it's broken down something like 1/6 of that amount per year... my loans are a lot more than that, but every bit helps). I will also have the full (Reserves) GI Bill, which is up to $20,000 for grad school, and be eligible for a GI Bill kicker (an extra $100 a month for 36 months while I'm attending school).

Obviously I will not be able to keep up this blog when I go to BCT. Perhaps I will have some free time in AIT to work on it. If not, it will have to wait until August.

More to come...