Anyone know the difference between USArmy Reserves/Rotc/National Guard?

[platinumike]

Im at a community college right now. I am planning to do 2 years here and 2 years at alocal University. But, I really want to join the Army, most likely as an officer, since i would have completed school anyways.Im just trying to figure out the best path, here is what i gathered so far:
Reserves: You leave for basic,you then go for you training,then you come back home and recieve a small allowance a month, and meet 1 weekend every month. 2 weeks over the summer

National Guard: ???

Rotc: You enroll at a university, they offer all kinds of scholarship and loan payback programs.AT some point you leave for basic training.

Im just trying to figure the best route for me. I've talked to 2 recruiters recently, and they only tell me good things about going active duty. I know there is some former Military guys on this forum, and some knowledge buffs, that i was hoping that could help. Thanks.

 

[captains]

enroll...go to war...forget about college

 

[NikPreviousAcct]

If you want to know the difference, talk to someone in the military. Your best answer would be a recruiter.

 

[Ramma2]

National Guards is pretty much the same as the Reserve, except that you work for the state govt as well as the Army. Meaning that you can be called for riot patrol, disaster aid, etc etc.

Benifits will differ between the 2, so check them both out.

 

[Deadtrees]

Those are just cover up names. They all die in a oh-so-needed war created by politicians.

 

[PingSpike]

National Guard seemed like a good idea at the time, thats the difference.

Naw, I dunno.

 

[SarcasticDwarf]

The NG gets better educational benefits as well. Well, better than the USAR.

 

[sic wil]

I'm in the Army Reserves, and have been for about 4 years. Came back from a year in Iraq last May.

If you are going to school, become an officer. The Army needs more officers. (Plus basic training is easier for officers, not matter who says.) There are two ways to do this.

ROTC: You train as you go to college, and eventually end up with your commision (takes a long time, but great for people that don't have the time for OCS.

OCS: Enlist in the Army as an officer, go to Officer Candidate School, then your specialization school, then receive your commision. Don't do this unless you have your degree.

You'll need to pick an area you want to be in, engineering, infantry, armor, chemical, so think of that.

The Army Reserves and National Guard are almost the same. Same obligations, different funding. Although in the Reserves combat MOS's are limited to non-existent. Guard has a few more combat units. So, if you are going infantry, your best bet is to go active duty.

Now, the things they don't tell you. This only applies to the Reserves, as it is from personal experience. Also, it doesn't apply to officers - I'm speaking about enlisted and NCO's (non-commisioned officers). Your enlistment bonus is split, so you only get hald when you sign (and complete training) then the rest is divided between your remaining years of your initial enlistment. 1 weekend a month, 2 weeks a year is outdated, at least in my unit. I usually have to report Friday evening and don't get back home until Sunday evening. My '2 weeks a year' this year is actually a whopping 24 days. I've been playing hell trying to get my boss to understand. Don't ever think you won't get deployed. My unit was 50% under-strength (Full strength is 200 people, and we only had about 60), and they pulled 'fillers' from other units to get us to 100% and we were sent to Iraq. Initially, the only said 6 months. Then after 6, they kept telling us next month until we left 6 months after their initial date.

The Army demands a lot of patience, discipline, and time. You'll either love or hate it, there's no 'in-between.'

Cliffs:
- I'm in the Army, and know what it's like reserve-wise.
- The Army makes no sense a lot of the time.
- Be an officer, at least you get paid a lot more!
-The Army isn't for everyone

:beer:

 

[platinumike]

thanks for the reply man, check your pm.