Army Recruiters provide you the very first step in starting your Army career. Recruiters are usually Non-Commissioned Officers (NCO) of the Army and are trained on all the ins-and-outs of the Army. Below is a common order of how things will go with a recruiter, starting with the very first step, calling the Army office.
Making the call to the Army Recruiter
The first thing you should do is look up your local Army Recruiters office and give them a call. Tell them you’re interested in joining the Army and would like some information. They will run through a small list of questions in order to get your name, location, etc. If someone you know referred you to the Army, this is when you should mention it. Your recruiter will then schedule a time to meet, either at their office or at your house. The Army Recruiter won’t tell you, but you call the shots. If you do not want to drive to their office to meet, tell them to come to you; more than likely they will anyway.
Talking with the Army Recruiter
This is where everything is laid out to you. You will discuss the various Army MOS, the Army Benefits, and anything else you want to know. My first visit with a recruiter lasted 3 hours. It’s good to have a list of questions for your recruiter already made up, this will ensure you that you get all your questions answered. Beware of a recruiter that only tells you the good about the Army, or that tells you that “you won’t be deployed”. Recruiters have no idea how your Army future will turn out, so it’s best to just expect the worst at all times. For more information on this check out our “What to Expect in Basic Training” page.
Army Recruiters have a bad reputation of being liars. Unfortunately, there are some recruiters that hate their job more than others, and do lie. While recruiters do not make money for each head they put into the Army, they do have quotas that they need to make and the pressure is heavy on a recruiter. So they may sway a few things, but of course they aren’t going to try and deter you from joining, it’s their job to get you to join. Remember, you call the shots. Drill their heads and learn as much as you can from them. You’ll have several opportunities to talk with them, on different days, so it’s OK if you forget a question or two in the first meeting.
In order to better prepare yourself, and to know if they are lying to you, it’s best to find out as much information on the Army as possible before, during, and after talking with your recruiter. We at USArmyBasic.com provide you with large amounts of information about the Army from real people and real soldiers. Also, don’t be afraid to ask us questions on facebook or, twitter!
What’s next?
After talking with your Army Recruiter, they will schedule another visit for you to take a an ASVAB Practice Exam. This is a minimized version of the ASVAB and will allow them to project you a spot in an upcoming ASVAB testing center. For more information on the ASVAB, check out the ASVAB section of our website. The ASVAB is very important when joining the Army, so study study study!