Becoming a Scout Sniper

[Ruffdaddy]

Sounds like some knee jerk BS rebound plan...just saying. This comes from the born again bachelor statement. My guess is you either learn real quick you don't really want it, or you hate the next 4 years of your life.

You say you can always go back to college like it's easy, well I hate to break it to you but that's terribly incorrect. You will say "I'm too old" when you're 30. Then when you're 40 you would have realized 30 was still young enough. I have several friends that served. Most couldn't afford school and took the next best route. I have ONE friend that was in the military, came back for school, and went back in as an officer. I have four close friends that tried college and couldn't make it, so they joined the forces. They are now back in college or trying to.

However, I hope my opinions are wrong and your intentions are pure. Either way, best of luck to you and work for what you want.

[GE]

Nat Geo (I think) had a pretty neat segment on sniper school that aired within the past year.

[helosailor]

I joined the Navy at 24 and got WAY more out of it than I had hoped. There are age limits for a lot of special programs, but if you aren't at that age, just bust your ass to get into it before you are. Time waits for no man. I was able to do everything I wanted to do, and more. I had intended to do 4 years and ended up doing 13. I'd still be in if I hadn't gotten hurt.
My point in all of this? If you've made up your mind (I mean REALLY made up your mind) that this is something you want to do, go for it! There will be obstacles along the way, to be sure. But if you want it bad enough and you are capable of meeting the requirements to do it, there is nothing in your way.

[SlowLX]

Have fun dealing with the masses of 17-19 year old retards that make of the majority of boots. Never knew any guys who made it through the school. Knew a couple that tried out and they were in pretty good shape, so it would probably be of great benefit to be running at least a 285pft. I'd talk to a recruiter first about overall what you want to get from your time in and what you want to do. If you think he's bullshitting you just post up your concerns and what he said on here, there's countless vets and plenty of vet Marines hanging around.

[Forever_frost]

I wouldn't trade my time in the Army for anything. I hated humping 80 pound rucks, hated Iraq and wasn't happy about getting shot, but I miss the life, the camaraderie, the nights where it's pouring and cold and everyone is hungry but you're laying in a water puddle in the dark, with NODS that don't work, waiting for OPFOR to come across so you can light them up. It's a life of fulfillment and took everything I was, destroyed it and reforged me into someone different.

I can say, you will never see anything the same when you get out. Even if you are a POG and never leave the states. You change.

[TonyMCev]

there is not much i can say about this that hasn't already been said.

my advice would be to start getting yourself in HELLACIOUS shape if you plan on even trying to go the infantry route to get considered for Scout/Sniper school.

and i would say go talk to your local USMC recruiter. think long and hard before making a decision and if you are still wanting to enlist...DO IT.

there are many other opportunities in the military in addition to becoming a sniper. i would not trade my 5 years in the Suck for anything. if you end up hating it, you can get out after your first contract is up.

some people will tell you not to enlist, others will encourage you. as with anything else in life, your military experience will be just that...YOURS. you may find that pursuing this is your true path.

good luck.

[racrguy]

Haha! Yeah right. Recruiters blow so much smoke up your ass. They will tell you lie after lie just to get your Hancock

Do you mean one of those people that will lie through their teeth to get you to sign up? They are the very last people I would ask for advice.

I know all about their games. I was getting ready to ship for USMC boot (at MEPS) read through my contract, it wasn't what my recruiter said it was going to be, so I put a kibosh on it. You just have to know how to sift through their BS. It doesn't hurt that my father was a company commander in the Navy so he'd seen firsthand all the bullshit recruiters pull. I was told I was set to go, and when I got to MEPS everything was set up as Open Contract. FUCK THAT.

To the OP. The recruiter can tell you whatever they want, the only thing that matters is what's in the contract. If they say you get a signing bonus, get it in writing. It doesn't mean SHIT if it's not in the contract.

[BP]

What is it about being a scout sniper that intrigues you? Can you run 3 miles in 18 minutes or do 100 situps in 2 minutes? If not you better get to training before even considering it. You need to score a perfect on the USMC PFT to even qualify for the school.

[ceyko]

Take the physical training aspect serious before you ship off for training and do your best. If you're not meant to be, you'll generally washout along the way somewhere or figure out real quick that you don't want to be in combat arms/a sniper.

Combat Arms type jobs specifically - there is waaay more shit then anything good. Even when just training, digging a lot of holes, humping gear for miles on end, and on and on.

I'm not aware of any military job that does not have a lot of suck in it. Just know that it's nothing like games, TV and so on. Hell, active duty can be a lot different then training in some cases.

If you really want it though, you'll get whatever you need/want. I'm of the opinion the Army needs to following strengths in this order....

1. Good mental state
2. Intelligence
3. Physical abilities (PT)

Sometimes with #2, you just need to let it go and not think about stuff too much.

[LANTIRN]

As said before, I would not trade my 6 years in the Air Force for anything. At times I miss it and regret getting out; others I am happy I did. And it completely changes you and your outlook on life. If you want to do it go for it, but you really need to know what you are getting into and what to expect. You are taking the right first steps though by asking vets on here. Correct information is the key to talking to a recruiter. My main point is don't get your heart set on scout sniper because that is really hard to make happen. I would make that a goal if you really want it, but I would first focus on another job you would enjoy in the Corps because you will be doing that while waiting for sniper qualifications and the school; and if you don't get in you will be stuck with that job. That is where I would start, at least.