Officer MOS's (Army)

[Bob1234]

I've got a few questions about officer MOS's in the Army.

-First of all, how are officer MOS's choosen in the Army?

-What are the odds of getting a counter intell. MOS?

-Is Civil Affairs a 'reserve only' MOS for officers too?

Thanks alot
Bob
:bounce:

[Tampa_#63]

It's been a few years, but if i remember right this is the way it goes. Commissioned officers are "branched" into basically three fields depending on the needs of the Army. They are 1)Combat Arms; Aviation, Infantry, Armour, Artillary, Special Forces etc. 2)Combat Support; Military Intell, MP, Signal Corps etc. 3)Combat Service Support; Quatermaster, Transportation, Adjutant general etc. When you are "branched", you attend the Officer Basic Course for that particular branch. After 3 to 4 years, you will attend the Officer Advanced Course for your particular branch, at which time you are considered fully branch qualified. During this time you will pick up what's called an Additional Skill Identifier, which denotes what your job is within that branch.

In my case, I was branched Aviation, with an additional skill identifier of maintenance officer. As a commissioned officer, your primary responsibility in the early years is as a leader of soldiers ie, section leader, platoon leader, company commader. As you go higher in rank you get into being a staff officer at regiment , brigade and division level, then command at these levels. Commissioned officers very seldom get involved with the hands on, nuts and bolts of a particular job like warrant officers or enlisted personnel do.

Be aware, I'm relying on my previous military experience from 1985 to 1994. i don't think much has changed from what I've posted, but I could be wrong.

As far as getting counter Intell, I would think you have to branch Military Intell, or maybe Military police, then get the additional identifier of counter intell, if there is such a thing.

I have no knowledge of civil affairs.

Warrant officers, a separate branch amoung themselves, are managed differently than commissioned officers. They are the ''technical experts'' of a particular field and get more "hands on" experience and training. Warrants do however serve as section and platoon leaders in many cases depending on the job. Hope this helps, and if I'm way off base i apologize in advance.

[Bob1234]

Thanks for your help!:bounce:

[RoscoeRuhl]

Tampa 63 couldn't have explained it better!

Have a great day!

[MacLeod]

Counter Intel like CID is primarily staffed by Warrant Officers. That's not to say that Commissioned Officers don't serve in those roles, but your role is not worker bee, but supervisor. As stated previously, Warrants are technical matter experts.

Selection for the branches is called assessment. Depending on your commissioning source you will complete a DA form, rank ordering your top 10 picks. If you are a male, you will be required to select a Combat Arms in your top 3. When I was commissioned, Infantry was the lead vote getter, and it was very competitive. Those applying for the Infantry were instructed to annotate anything that would make them stand out over the other applicants, to include "legacy".

Branch detailed. Due to the reverse pyramid of rank in the Combat Support and Service Support branches, some officers are "branch detailed" to a combat arms branch with a CS or CSS branch as their control branch. This plan was not well received and it's outlived it's critics. I know of several success stories and several failures.

Selections are based primarily on the needs of the Army based on your file. Your PMS (Prof of Mil Science) or OCS Tac Officer will counsel you on your branch selections and prepare a written assessment of your abilities and make a recommendation. This is really just a sanity check to make sure that the board knows that you are either well suited for your top choice or totally "shot out".

Tampa is/was Aviation, so if you want to consider that route, you have to pass a flight physical and the FAST (Flight Apptitued something or another Test). Then it's still very selective, but you can always apply later on for a branch transfer to Avn or another branch if you chose.

Special Forces: Tampa was correct about SF being Combat Arms. But just to clarify, in order to be selected for SF you have to apply when you are a 1st Lt. You are then screened and tested out the yazoo to include language apptitude testing, and physical fitness. Then you are selected to attend training for SF. IF you complete the Infantry Officer Advanced Course (or in some cases Armor Advanced Course) you attend the "Q Course" or Special Warfare School. After successful completion there, you pin on your crossed arrows, and move out for language training.

Delta Force: To be selected for Delta, you have to be a Captain, and successfully completed command in any branch. Then you proceed with similar testing and eval as that of SF. If you pass, you enter the World of Black Ops.

Civil Affairs and Psyops are both considered Special Operations, and yes they are primarily reserves. However, they are really on Active Duty, because their need is so high. If you serve in one of these branches, expect to be away from home..... A LOT!!!

There is more to the process, but that's all my little fingers will let me type out now. PM me if you have any specific questions.

[CA_ARNG_LT]

You are assessed into your branch. Military intelligence (MI) is what you would have to shoot for. Yes it is fairly competative branch to get. It is a branch which is heavy on O-4 and above. Meaning they dont need brand new officers. So, most people perform another branch for 2-3 years and then branch transfer to MI. The process is called branch detailing. Civil affairs is similar. You get into those programs after a couple of years and some luck. Counter intel such as electronic warfare is under a different branch called signal. Pick one of those two branches and you will have a blast and learn tons that you can take out into the civilian work force if you get out.