[Jack Moroney (RIP)]

Originally Posted by futureSoldier

Specifically, I would like to be an 18A. 18x, on the other hand, seems promising in that I would at least be in Special Forces (which is a MAJOR goal). The main problem with that is that I haven't read of any SF NCO's that became officers. having to relearn much of the SF material from an officer's standpoint.

Joe, let me address some of your questions with a few questions and observations.

First, why do you want to be an 18A? You are right about the time lines. You are looking at about 6 years down range to meet all the gates for 18A by going thru the OCS route. Even then, there is absolutely no guarantee that you will be selected for OCS, get a slot for SFAS, or make the cut for the 18A program. There are a lot of factors at play here.

Second, if becoming SF is your primary goal then by all means go the 18X route. There still is no guarantee that you are going to make that cut either, but if you don't and wind up in the Infantry you can still attempt your OCS effort when you are eligible and get another shot at becoming an 18A.

Third, that growling you hear in the background is coming from SF NCOs that really could give a rat's butt less about whether or not they could have become officers. You must understand that SF is a whole lot different than anything else you are going to find in our military from mindset to execution. SF NCOs have filled slots that have called for 18As from the beginning and are probably more responsible for the development of good 18As than anyone or anything else. Everyone in SF is first a soldier and his military occupational specialty is an additional honing of specialized skill sets that they bring to the team. As far as "relearning" goes, this is a dynamic profession where education never stops. Your initial training that gets you through the qualification course is only your enterance fee to step through the team room door, your real learning starts then and it never stops. If are fortunate to get into SF and serve as a SF NCO the only learning you are going to have to do as an officer is how to deal with others in such a way that you can enable your soldiers to succeed. There is no magic about being an officer, it is just a different level of responsibility with additional demands to that puts the burden on your shoulders for everything your team does or fails to do.