How are my chances?(Juvy history)

[GroundStruck]

Hi all, I recently discovered this site. I've poked around and got some answers but I have a question that I hope to get a few replies to my specific situation.

When I was 16, going on 17, myself and 3 of my friends made a smoke grenade and placed it in a gutter. The smoke grenade was close to a car and did about $150 worth of smoke damage. We were charged with attempted arson and criminal mischief(one felony and one misdemeanor). I'm not trying to deny or excuse my actions. I don't know why I went along with the situation but I did. I owned up to my stupidity...I no longer spoke with any of those who I got in trouble with. I wasn't held in lock up. I did my community service and probation and was the only one to have no infractions on probation and I got released in half the time on good behavior.

I can't erase my past, I can only be remorseful for what I did and strive to continue to better myself. I've always known I've wanted to serve atleast one contract and now that I'm halfway through with a mechanical engineering degree I've decided I want to shoot to become a aviator.

I spoke with a OSO and he said he tends to believe this would be able to get waivered but he can't say for sure. Right now I'm in the process of getting a copy of my records but its a decent little process due to them being sealed since I was a minor. I tend to keep things like this on my mind constantly until they are resolved, for the better or worse, so I figured I'd try to get some opinions here. Has anyone had any experience with such situations? I found some past threads but it was mainly about people wishing to keep their history hidden, which is not what I am looking to do. Is there a way to try to give a waiver a better chance of being approved?

I could keep typing forever, so I'll just stop and see what others have to say.

Thanks

 

[Lawman]

Whats your age, GPA,PFT, ASTB score, etc etc.....

What ever they are, try and get them higher. Thats gonna be used as fuel to show that your not still a "f#ckup." Thats kinda the thing your waiver will be trying to explain, and Ill give you one you actually came on and explained you know what you did was dumb and you dont have any "let me tell you this to excuse my actions," attitude like the last guy that came on asking about having a record. So as long as you can convince your OSO and the people above him that you arent still a "F#ckup" and everything else about you being squared away will go a long way towards helping, you have a shot.

Good luck.

 

[GroundStruck]

Thanks for the reply. Hearing that I have atleast a small chance of ending up somewhere that I would absolutely love to be gives me a huge amount of motivation to keep trudging forward.

Whats your age, GPA,PFT, ASTB score, etc etc.....
I'm 20. Unless I bomb my exams, my gpa should be just above a 3.0 after this semester. I took the asvab at the end of highschool and scored 93, I believe. It was atleast a low 90.

PFT and ASTB I haven't been tested on. I'm a mechanical engineering major so I believe with enough preparation I should score well on it. PFT, I'd say I'm hovering right around the minimums at the moment.

Read the following as if you could hear my thoughts/ideas like I'm giving myself motivation
Since I got the idea to call a OSO, and ask him if I had a chance in hell, I've been busting my ass to show I can be of use to the Marines, or any branch really. I had passing, but not steller grades at the beginning of this semester and since then I've brought them all up into the A-range. I would have passed out trying to make the OCS minimums at that time. Now I can make the minimums and I have my sights set on the 100% PFT marks. 100% is probably a long shot for anyone but athlete-caliber bodies but I'll shoot for it.
End of the insight to my thoughts.

Right now I'm a 1st-semester sophomore. My plans are to commit 100% to making myself rock-solid in every aspect that I can change(GPA, ASTB, show that I'm a stand-up citizen now) and applying near the end of my junior year. The parts of myself that can't be changed(My past, etc) I'll just have to man-up to and prove that I'm no longer a ****up.

I don't want anyone to think I'm trying to hide my past or make excuses for it. I guess my only question in this post is if I've mentioned the areas I need to make myself rock-solid in or does anyone who knows more than I do about the process have any suggestions as to how I can work to improve myself during the next year.

Sorry for the long post. I'm type to go over every little detail in my head multiple times and sometimes it spills out into words.

 

[Lawman]

Your doing fine, just keep your head up and go after it.

 

[batman527]

Jesus, did the book hurt when the hurled it at you?

I second going for it. You're probably going to have to bust ass, but you sound like you're good for it. Good luck.

 

[BrandonJ1780]

Best wishes to you GroundStruck...For further PFT help, check around here, but also see marineocs.com--they've got some tips for you.

 

[Brett327]

Sorry to chime in like this, but what's with all you fvckers hoping for/eeking out a 3.0 GPA? Yeah, yeah, I know some of you might be in engineering programs, but how about putting forth a little effort for Christ's sake. Some of you are enjoying the benefits of government funded programs. How about some proper stewardship of tax-payer dollars?

Brett

 

[BrandonJ1780]

GroundStruck, do what Brett said and pay attention to the GPA...You're a soph, so you're out of time to waste (as you're likely aware). I was talking to the Navy about SNA/NFO slots--grades and background that helped me with successful law school apps still leave me out in the cold for SNA competition...Workout all you want, but hit the books.

 

[Steve Wilkins]

Some of you are enjoying the benefits of government funded programs. How about some proper stewardship of tax-payer dollars?

You're obviously not a product of nuke power program. Two-five, stay alive my friend. Two-five, stay alive! That's all that matters.

 

[batman527]

Hell, C's get Degrees.

 

[BrandonJ1780]

C's definitely get degrees, I'm not knockin it--that's how I got mine--but they're not great for getting you in the cockpit...where GroundStruck wants to be.

 

[GroundStruck]

I keep getting reading and hearing contradicting opinions on the GPA issue. The OSO I spoke with said that GPA is a decisive factor but not as big as many make it out to be. He felt that the ASTB and PFT were the biggest factors. I don't intend on letting my grades slip like I did freshman year, so I guess I'll only know from actually applying.

Thanks for the advice everyone.

 

[HOORAH]

C's definitely get degrees, I'm not knockin it--that's how I got mine--but they're not great for getting you in the cockpit...where GroundStruck wants to be.

Sure C's get degrees but for example I don't want a C surgeon cutting me open. Just some food for thought.

 

[GroundStruck]

Oh, one more thing before I head out for a group study session. Someone mentioned via PMs that volunteer work is helpful. Is this true? I divemaster for free for a local scuba shop since they are nice folks but it isn't exactly volunteer work. Should I start volunteering a few hours a week at a place I use to volunteer? I use to volunteer for a animal rehabilitation center since I got to be around awesome hawks and wild animals but they got a ton of middle and highschool students to do the busy work so I was no longer needed. Should I see if they need me for a few hours a week again? I know this can't be detrimental but will the people who make the selections ever see this and count it as a plus for me?

 

[Wankertank]

When applying for USMC, getting excellent PFT scores matters alot as well as being able to pass/ace the ASTB...ASTB are less competitive for the MC than the Navy but getting better scores will make you more competitive vs. other candidiates. At least this is what my OSO tells me.

And as for volunteering...anything extra is helpful, spending an extra two or three hours a week doing something for others shows that you care for things other than yourself. You should put this in the extracirriculars section of your application and the board will see it. If it helps you positively on your application...then put it down!