DAKMOR

Hello, I have a few questions about the National Guard and some questions about the traing for M.O.S. 63B, light wheel vehicle mechanic.

First I would like to know if joining the N.G. is really worth it for any extra benefits. I keep being flashed with all the great benefits for higher education tuition assistance. But none of them have any links to any official school listings. That is very important because I would like to go to vocational schools to be an automotive technician, or further my knowledge of that field through a vocational school.

If I were to join it, and get deployed somewhere, would I live on a base(in the U.S.) and where are the most common deployments for the N.G. and M.O.S. 63B?

Finally, does the 63B AIT(Advanced Individual Training) relate in any way to courses I would take for ASE(Automotive Service Excellence) Certification?

Thank you for your time.

KnightmareLS1

iTrader: (12)

The National Guard guys don't get stationed on post in the US. You go to a base once a month for training and 2 weeks during the summer. I'm active duty Army in Iraq right now and more than likely once you get deployed,and you WILL get deployed, you'll go to a big FOB with all the good ****. I'm with the 3rd ID at Ft. Stewart and we got sent to a shithole in the Anbar Province. AIT won't really help you with certification because they push you through it, and it's all really basic ****. I'm a 63M which is a Bradley Mechanic but we got a 63B on our team. AIT is almost usless once you get to your unit because everything there is in a controlled environment.63Bs can got to any post with wheeld vehicles(everywhere) but you're NG so you won't be stationed there. The ARMY gives tuition assistance but I've never got to use it. They tell you that they'll pay for stuff, but they don't tell you you won't have time for school. At least that's how it is for active duty guys. It'll prob be easier for you though because you are NG. If you have any more ?'s just ask, I got nothin but time.

Pewter_LS1

Im with the 3rd ID also..on TQ..what **** hole you in Kinightmare?

also to add to what he he said is as far as schooling you need to check with your recruiter to see how much a school bonus you might get or to find reading on schooling for NG soldiers..some states give good amount of money..In SC they get 9k towards education..as far as deployments its hit or miss so its a possible to find youself deployed...take care and good luck!

sgt0704

iTrader: (3)

Are you sure NG is the way you want to go? that's an 8yr contract right? kinda like the reserves? if you can get the same amount of money for college on AD, it would probably be better to go that route anyway. You'll be deployed about the same.

I used to be Motor T, and there's a lot of other training that's involved to get an ASE. but if you're working on Hummers, which is what i'd think light wheeled would mean, then that would transfer over when you get out. Also, the GI bill will probably cover some of your Tech school, but the way it works is you get $XXX for XXX months. so if your school is $10k for 8 months, and you get $800 a month, you're coming up short.

and finding the time to go to school is also another complicated thing. you probably won't find many links on the Army.mil site, but you'll have to check at the base you'll be stationed. there's usally links on their site. There's satellite campuses and **** that you can attend.

Good luck.

MagiC5

not army but af. I left active duty because i couldn't use my educational benes. Worked way to hard for to many hours to even think about touching a text book besides teh ones they where shoveling at me for my mil career. I wanted to fly and the only way to do so was a degree. So I left Active for the guard.

Honestly any accredited school they will pay. it varies per state is my understanding. My state pays 75% of my tuit. up to a certain dollar amount. I'm not sure what that number is because well i've never used that much in a year.

You also get the GI bill. For NG you dont' have to pay into it like active. for chapter 1606 you get just shy of $300 a month tax free to go to school for 36 months assuming your full time. If you attend less hours that dollar is prorated. Depending on the career field you choose you could get a kicker bonus that increases that dollar mount. I'm ammo so i qualify for the highest kicker which is $350 a month in addition to that $300 a month that everyone gets. So they pay 75% of school and give me $650 a month tax free. Also as an E4 i take home about $200 a pay check for working 18 hours 1 weekend a month.

SO really if you work 16 hours a month and go to school full time it possible to get nearly all your school paid for and take home about $850 a month. That also includes my dental insurance which cost like $10 a month and my life insurance of half a mil.

So is the national guard a good deal? Fk yea it is. Alot of active duty will rag on NG but when i was active many of my officers were previous national guard. That was the encouragement i needed to go NG to get my degree so i can return to active as an officer.

Anyways good luck to you with whatever you choose. But if you go army NG you just sign for a ticket to the sand box. So dont' plan on getting done with school in 4 years if thats what your after.

Sorry about writing a book.

KnightmareLS1

iTrader: (12)

PewterLS1, I'm at Firm Base 1 with B CO 2-7. This place is garbage.

KnightmareLS1

iTrader: (12)

Also DAKMOR, they changed it from a light-wheeled to just wheeled mechanic. In the ARMY it doesn't matter what your specific MOS is, if your a mechanic, you work on whatever's around you. I'm a Bradley mech and I work on HMMVs, LMTVs,wreckers,our M88, and whatever else they throw at me. It might be different for you though because NG posts usually only have HMMVs and 5-tons and ****.

StudlyJ

iTrader: (3)

The 63B AIT course will not prepare you to take the ASE cert tests. The pricapals you learn in AIT are pretty basic. also I'm not sure about the NG, but the MOS can pretty much anywhere that has military wheeled vechicles, everywhere as far as I know. Good luck with your decision.

digdoug

My advice would be to go active duty for 3 to 4 years, then go into the Guard. First and foremost on active duty you will learn a lot more than you would if you went directly into the Gurad and you would earn more for you GI Bill. I am in the Guard and nowadays most Gurad units focus more on combat training than MOS training. Plus the Guard has a techinican program, which are full-time civilians that are required to wear the uniform, that work on the equipment between drills. AT is two weeks of combat training. Guard, Reserve, or Active Duty you will get deployed.

JUICED96Z

I think the NG guys are deploying just as much or more then the active guys also.

I know a local guy that just got back not to lang ago from a year and a half trip to the sandbox and is getting ready to go back it looks like soon. He is NG.

Keep this in mind if you want to be in school. You might get a year into school and have to go over for a year or more.

Same with active.

Thats why I like the AF and ANG, shorter deployments. I know a ANG guy about to go to the sandbox and he works on F-16's and is only going for 6 months.

If you wanted to go active AF you could sign up, when it comes time to re-up you do that and the AF will help you get your A&P (allows you to work on civilian aircraft). You have to sign up as a crew chief and if I remember right by the time you get out they will have you signed off on everything. As you do jobs on the jets they just log it and after a while you have enough to get that A&P and just have to take the tests.

In the civilian world you would have to also go to school and its about 9-12 grand.

That way if you get deployed then all well, you are still working and pluging away at it, not going to school or anything . Then once you get out in say 10 years you will have a ton of maintenance hours and will be able to walk into a good civilian aircraft maintenance job.

For you current crew chiefs the program is called Tiger Team.

DAKMOR

Well, first I would like to thank KnightmareLS1 for the pm that drew me back to this thread, and to everyone who replyed. I hadn't checked it in awhile, partially due to low interest and other affairs that kept me away from the computer.

Now after reading your posts I have some comments and some new questions.

Now I see that I probably won't get much of a training course, and will probably have to attend an Automotive Technical school. Not too much of a problem really. I just got to worry about tthe money for the school.

M questions now primarily focus on how I can go to school to get ASE cert. before going anywhere(if possible) or after a deployment while still enlisted, and how can I exactly get it all to work so I have little to no cost for it(if possible).

I am going to search for some schools that do diesel courses, and try to find out if I can see if the NG will pay for that.

I'm also trying to figure out if they could pay for my high school, it's like a private school in a way, and really is only to help people get their HS Diplomas because, well,
public school just wasn't for them or as an adult they'd like to get it. Someone who I knew that went there joined the NG and did a small seminar about it, trying to recruit people. I'm going to give him a call.

Again, thanks for the replies, and protecting our country.

StudlyJ

iTrader: (3)

About ASE certs. Frist you'll need 2 years working expreince and some cash for the tests. You really don't need schooling for ASE certs. Though it never hurts. I'm a active duty 63B, I took some automotive tech classes to help me prepare for the ASE tests and gain a better understanding of civilan vehicles.

They way I see it if you're trying to get you'r ASE certs you could, Join the NG as a 63B. Gain some expreince turning wrenches that way, while going to a tech school (or mybe some automotive courses at a community college). OR get a job as a civilan as a mechanic, mybe part time, and and go to school or better yet just work as a mechanic for two years and take the tests. If you where iffy anout the tests you could always just pick up a text book that relates to the test you want to take, or tale community college course.

As for as money is goes I'm not sure what the NG will pay for, I know that Active will pay some of the cost for the test ($75 regestion [sp] fee) and I attend automotive courses through central texas colege for free ( minus the cost of books about $110 per course).

Though I dont think joing the NG as a way to get my ASE certs done is a good idea. There might be better ways to go about it. Are depolyments worth what the NG will pay as for as schooling and will the expreince gained be enough to offset the hassle? I dont know dude, but tou should explore your options.


* sorry for any speeling or grammer errors I've been