USMC recruiting timeline

[Mitcherd]

I have a few questions about the recruiting timeline for USMC aviators. But first, some context:

I have been working with a Navy Officer Recruiter since late January. 3.4 college GPA, passed MEPS, 63 8/8/8 on the ASTB, no waivers needed, my packet is complete and waiting on their next aviation board. I want to serve my country, and if I have the chance I would REALLY like to be a pilot. My recruiter put me in contact with a few guys that went through his office that are between OCS and flight school to ask questions, and I took full advantage of the opportunity. What came up was the NAMI flight physical and how many guys get disqualified for random reasons like sinuses too narrow or motion sickness and have to become a NFO. This made me think long and hard about how I don't want to spend 8 years of a flight contract driving a desk as a NFO. If I get weeded out for any reason, I would rather have a combat assignment and lead Marines over being a Navy NFO. This pushed me to get in contact with a Marine OSO and am currently waiting for a time he's available to meet. But before I meet with him, I had a few questions the search feature on here and Google couldn't help me with. Any help is greatly appreciated in advance.

1.) What sort of timeline am I looking at from meeting with my OSO for the first time (knowing that I flew through the Navy's process so quickly without hiccups) and signings a contract? This has little bearing over whether I choose Marine over Navy, but I'm just curious. Online I have read about guys saying it has taken them years, and I'm not sure if that's a normal timeline to adjust myself to or those are the only guys that post online.

2.) What qualifying test is used for Marine OCS? Articles say you can use your SAT and ACT score, obviously your ASVAB, but will the Marines recognize my OAR score and not just the aviation sections of my ASTB? I'll take whatever test I need to, but I never took the ASVAB and my SAT/ACT scores from getting into college aren't anything special.

3.) Is getting disqualified by NAMI whammy as common as the Navy guys made it seem? Obviously the easy way out is to stick Navy until the next board, find out if I have a pilot's slot, and if I do follow that path and hope for the best, but who ever goes far by taking the easy way out? The chance of medical disqualification is the same between the branches, just the backup plan is a lot better on the Marine side.

I hope I don't come across as a sour college grad that worked for a year at a dead-end office job and stumbled into a recruiter's office and is being bitchy about the chance of being a NFO. I'm sure there are people that would love that opportunity. Any help is appreciated.

 

[Renegade One]

... I don't want to spend 8 years of a flight contract driving a desk as a NFO.

I hope I don't come across as ...being bitchy about the chance of being a NFO.

In your 8-year contract as an NFO, you would spend almost exactly the same amount of time "driving a desk" as you would if you're a pilot. And about the same amount of time in the air. I don't think you're being bitchy exactly, just that you don't really know too much about the NFO community.

 

[Rugby_Guy]

Couple quick points, what do you really want to do? Lead Marines in combat or fly? Because if you wash out of flight school, you aren't going to be an Infantry Officer, Artillery or Combat Engineer. Think more along the lines of Logistics Officer or Air Supply. Reason I say this is because the people who want those ground jobs get them in TBS, so USMC doesn't need to fill them with flight school washouts.

Also, the main qualifying test for OCS will be your PFT. Grades are great and important, but if you are the smartest guy ever and can't run faster than 24 minutes in your 3 mile, you get dropped the first day. So, of your test scores, I would say that the PFT is weighted just as much as your ACT/SAT scores. And no, they will not care about your OAR, just the 8/8/8 when you apply for an air contract.

And the last point is, in my limited experience, I have found that NAMI kills flight dreams as a whole a lot more often than they tell someone they aren't SNA just can be SNFO. Maybe it's just the Marines, since we don't have a lot of NFOs, but for you aren't medically qualified to fly in USMC, you might not be in the air at all.

 

[exNavyOffRec]

I have a few questions about the recruiting timeline for USMC aviators. But first, some context:

I have been working with a Navy Officer Recruiter since late January. 3.4 college GPA, passed MEPS, 63 8/8/8 on the ASTB, no waivers needed, my packet is complete and waiting on their next aviation board. I want to serve my country, and if I have the chance I would REALLY like to be a pilot. My recruiter put me in contact with a few guys that went through his office that are between OCS and flight school to ask questions, and I took full advantage of the opportunity. What came up was the NAMI flight physical and how many guys get disqualified for random reasons like sinuses too narrow or motion sickness and have to become a NFO. This made me think long and hard about how I don't want to spend 8 years of a flight contract driving a desk as a NFO. If I get weeded out for any reason, I would rather have a combat assignment and lead Marines over being a Navy NFO. This pushed me to get in contact with a Marine OSO and am currently waiting for a time he's available to meet. But before I meet with him, I had a few questions the search feature on here and Google couldn't help me with. Any help is greatly appreciated in advance.

1.) What sort of timeline am I looking at from meeting with my OSO for the first time (knowing that I flew through the Navy's process so quickly without hiccups) and signings a contract? This has little bearing over whether I choose Marine over Navy, but I'm just curious. Online I have read about guys saying it has taken them years, and I'm not sure if that's a normal timeline to adjust myself to or those are the only guys that post online.

2.) What qualifying test is used for Marine OCS? Articles say you can use your SAT and ACT score, obviously your ASVAB, but will the Marines recognize my OAR score and not just the aviation sections of my ASTB? I'll take whatever test I need to, but I never took the ASVAB and my SAT/ACT scores from getting into college aren't anything special.

3.) Is getting disqualified by NAMI whammy as common as the Navy guys made it seem? Obviously the easy way out is to stick Navy until the next board, find out if I have a pilot's slot, and if I do follow that path and hope for the best, but who ever goes far by taking the easy way out? The chance of medical disqualification is the same between the branches, just the backup plan is a lot better on the Marine side.

I hope I don't come across as a sour college grad that worked for a year at a dead-end office job and stumbled into a recruiter's office and is being bitchy about the chance of being a NFO. I'm sure there are people that would love that opportunity. Any help is appreciated.

In my experience dealing seeing applicants from the NRD I was at get found NPQ for SNA from NAMI they all had something in their background that caused them to jump through hoops in one way or another, I can't think of anyone from my NRD that breezed through MEPS and N3M that was later NPQ, not saying it won't happen though.