With who I am, what would be better? USMC or Army Rangers/SF?

What's best for me? Marine Corps or Army Rangers/SF?


First, let me get my intentions out. I've been accepted to the Citadel Military College, and I pass the requirements to take both the NROTC and AROTC scholarships there. I want to go into Intelligence primarily, or Force Recon for USMC / Rangers or SF for the Army. Those are my main places I want to get into for either branch. If I decide I want to retire, I decided that I wanted to get into the CIA, FBI, or Secret Service from my military experience.








Now with me, I've wanted to join the Marines since I was seven and first learned about the military. Every time I read something, I saw how the Marines were always the most superior fighting force of anyone in the battle field. They always defeated their enemies, and the Army could never keep up with their advances.


From what I've seen, each and every Marine has a deep compassion for his job, whereas there are apparently a lot of soldiers that enlisted in the Army for the money and bonuses (not my words, don't chew me out for that)


I've also been told that the average Marine is the equal of an Army Ranger - Navy Seal - Air Force Combat Controller, after they have been through the training to become Special Operations Capable.


Plus the fact that the Marines have much more regard and adherence to their traditions and much higher expectations than the other branches.


Also taking into account that the general pride of a Marine is the highest (I've seen that most soldiers look back and wonder if they could've been a Marine, but Marines never look back and wonder if they could've been a soldier). The uniforms are the best, hands down. From what I've seen and read, EVERY Marine is a warrior, and every one of them is a rifleman and killer first, then they have their other jobs assigned to them.





However, here are the 2 problems for my decision:





* The Marines train for mostly water-based missions, especially Force Recon.





I HIGHLY favor the missions of the Army Rangers and Special Forces, since most of the training and the missions consist of Airborne and Helicopter Air Assault missions. I pretty much hate water outside of recreation, especially if it's cold. I don't think I would be anywhere as near as effective as I would be in water-based missions as I would be in Airborne missions. I would definitely feel better if the vast majority of my training and missions were dedicated to Airborne/Ground missions rather than the water-borne missions the Marines perform.





* Acquiring the MOS





Apparently, from what I've been told by the recruiters, the Army lets you decide your job before you ';sign the dotted line.'; However, with the Marines, there would be no way to tell if I would get Intelligence/Force Recon when I would commit my life to their branch.





So here are my questions:


1.) Which branch would be better for me mission and training-wise?


2.) Which branch would be better to join for getting the MOS?


3.) For whichever branch I joined, which have better chances at getting accepted into the SF units? Would I have a better chance in getting into Force Recon competition-wise, or would I have better chances in the Army Rangers or Special Forces?





Thank you anyone and everyone that tries to help, it is much appreciated!With who I am, what would be better? USMC or Army Rangers/SF?
ok gonna try to not rag on you too much here.


first off: look at yourself. you're a civilian who has only ever played COD and seen commercials. and just like every other know-nothing civilian who has only ever played COD and seen commercials, you think marines are the ****. if they WERE as good as you think, then why did it take the marines nearly 20 years longer than any other branch to get its foot into the special operations community? what USSOCOM wants, USSOCOM gets, so it has nothing with the marines saying ';no we're not going to give you force recon,'; that would be like a private telling the Army Chief of Staff that he isnt going to deploy. they didnt get in because their BEST element wasnt good enough for the special operations community. their BEST wasnt even close to the level that rangers or seals are. or why did the marines lose falluja a month after the army handed it over to them? and why couldnt they take it back on their own, and have to call the army to take it back for them? or why when SF needs manpower, do they call on the 82nd, not the marines? SF doesnt give a **** what branch someone is from, they want the best. so no offense, but your opinion of ';marines are the most superior fighting force'; and ';an average marine is just as good as a ranger or a SEAL'; is flat out retarded, and completely untrue.


as far as advances go, the marines have actually never been able to keep up with the army. the army is much better equiped, and has more up to date training.


all branches have a deep pride in their history, most of us just arent attention-starved enough that we need to tell it to each civilian we bump into.


i've never met a soldier who said ';i wonder if i coulda made it in the marines.'; i've met plenty that have said ';damn, after working with those retards im glad i didnt join the marines'; though.


again, most of us dont feel a need to brag about every little detail as much as the marines do. every soldier is a rifleman first, its why we go through basic combat training, that is just that: COMBAT training, and why each soldier goes through continued training on their ';warrior tasks and drills';.


yes their dress blues are the nicest, but are you joining the military to look pretty or for combat?


as an officer you cannot select an MOS in either branch. you make a wishlist and you get what you get.


btw force recon never was and never will be special operations. its the same exact thing as army LRS-D, only we dont feel a need to brag about every little thing we do.


so...


1: army has more up to date training, longer deployments, and better gear. more options too.


2: about the same


3: SF is only in the army. if you mean special operations, then the army has more options. SOF wise we have rangers, SF, and CAG (what you would probably know as ';delta force';. and no its not made up of the best of all 4 branches, its strictly army.) marines only have MARSOC, which they got by taking their force recon elements and coppying and adding the rangers training and doctrin to





btw: wilyp is a poser, he said in another thread that force recon is as good as SFOD-D (';delta force';)...he already lost all credit right there. and about rangers not being special operations: well, nothing says that special operations has to be small force. rangers do have small unit operations, but they are capable of larger element operations too, because sometimes you just need manpower as well as skill. but this should speak for itself: http://www.socom.mil/SOCOMHome/Pages/def鈥?/a>


i see rangers on there...sure as hell dont see ';force recon'; though... but its ok, your just butthurt that your best doesnt even come close to our somewhat-elite.With who I am, what would be better? USMC or Army Rangers/SF?
Perhaps you best not weigh usmc prior to arriving at a conclusion
First re read your history. The Marines were not always the superior fighting force. Why people get that I don't know. Second the Army has held its ground and pushed forward. The Army has made as many sacrifices as the Marines if not more. If you are so thrilled about being a Marine and they are So GREAT go Join the USMC. USMC has a new branch called MARSOC. They are getting into SOF. So if you are a glory hog I suggest you stay USMC and go RECON or MARSOC. You can get a contract to be a RANGER. You DONT get a contract to BE SPECIAL FORCES. You can try out for SF. The physical part is for RECON and RANGERS. Many PT STUDS fail out of selection of SF. IT takes more than just muscle to get the green beret. You need to decide what kind of life you want.
';I've also been told that the average Marine is the equal of an Army Ranger - Navy Seal - Air Force Combat Controller, after they have been through the training to become Special Operations Capable.';








Seriously? You have got to be kidding me if you think that.
It seems likes you already have your mind made up. Im currently in the Army serving in Afghanistan. My nephew is serving in Iraq with the USMC. So for picking your MOS. The Army will let you chose, you will have to go thru selection for Rangers or SF. USMC will pick your job for you. You can believe that or not. My nephew didn't believe that. Now he is a supply clerk when he wanted to work with JAG (legal). As for as my supply clerk nephew goes (average Marine), you can not tell me he could hang with an Army Infantryman or Scout. We train non-stop for combat. He signs papers. However, it will be easier to join Army SF then it would be for the Corp. Simple numbers, Army needs more and are constantly recruiting. In closing I will give the USMC thier due, they do wear that uniform 10 times better than any soldier.





SSG Evans


19D
You seem quite convinced that the Marines are gods, don't believe everything they tell you. The Marine MARSOC (Special Operations Command) was actually kicked out of Afghanistan, due to lack of discipline and training, mind you that this was their special operations, the best of the best. This has not happened to the Ranger training is harder than any average marine will go through. If you are looking to be a career soldier, go Army, they have the most opporotunity with tons of specialized schools. The Marines are so poorly funded, they actually rely on the Army for much of their specialized MOS training (thus, less MOSs to choose from). People who enlist in the Corps (I greatly respect your sacrifice) are typically going to be in for a few years, and then go back to civilian life. If you're going into the Army, you're in for the long haul. If you want all the glory, join the Corps, if you want to do the actual work, join the Army. For one who is going to be an officer, it is best to go Navy or Army.
Like everybody else said, you seem to already have your mind made up already. I don't really see how thought but I was only half way paying attention. If you know you want a specific job then lets just face it, you're going to have to go Army. You don't get the luxury of picking your job in the Marines and despite what that other guy above me said the Army will give you your job guaranteed. Your job may not always be available but you can get it in your contract if it is just to make sure you don't get stuck with some crappy job.





And despite what some fool is telling you, the average Marine can't hang with a Navy Seal. These guys go through years of training. If you could get that kind of training in 13 weeks then what's the point of becoming a Navy Seal? I respect the Marine Corp as a branch but everybody in it isn't as tough as the general image and the ones who talk the loudest probably spend their time doing just that.
You know, the army is not all that bad despite their reputation compared to the Marines. I think that the reason that the Marines are so well thought of, is that they are such a small branch of the military, roughly 1/5 the size of the army, yet they seem to be able to accomplish just as much or more despite not having anywhere near the funding that the army gets..





It is ridiculous to think that the average Marine is the equivalent of an army ranger. Not even half the Marine Corps is even in the infantry. I have heard their ';Every Marine is a rifleman'; bit, but it is just not feasible for every Marine to be a top notch infantryman. Now between Marine infantry and army rangers or army infantry, it is anybodies guess. The Marines do have an outstanding record backing up their big talk, but the army does spend a lot more money on training.





My advice to you is to join either one and do your best to uphold the standards of that service.
sounds like you are really into the Marines,they are man for man the best fighting force the nation has,if you put battle histories side by side you can see the Marines history is much more impressive and legendary than the armies,the Marines have always done more with less,not saying the army is not brave but when the crap hits the fan I would rather have a Marine next me to than a soldier.


Chesty Puller said it best in Korea ' enemy on the north,east,south and west,we have them right where we want them,situation is well in hand' that type of bravery against overwhelming odds is a Marine tradition and expectation,in the same spot the army would be looking to retreat not stand and fight.That type of mindset is what make Marines better fighting men


You people need to stop saying army ranger and special forces in the same sentence,rangers are not true spec-op troops like Marine force recon,seals,delta or green berets.Rangers operate in too large of groups the majority of the time,platoon size or larger where spec-ops operate in13 men teams or lessand have much more extensive and advanced training compared to rangers,rangers are just grunts with jump-wings.
With looking at all of the answers, I think you probably have an idea which way you should go but I'll throw this into the mix. My family consist of both Marines and Soldiers. You should go into the Marines because that's what you've always wanted to do. You should because you need to find out first hand whether the Average Marine is equivalent to the Rangers, Seals, Combat Controllers so on and so forth in the Special Ops community. Personally when I see these questions, I see someone who has believed everything they were told. By the way, for some weird reason they always seem to come from those that favor the Marine Corp. What I know about the Marine Corp is that they're more bark than they are bite. As far as what you've read about the Marines vs the Army on the battlefield, I'd like to read where the Army wasn't able to keep up with the Marines advances. That's what we call MSU (Making S#!t Up.) It was the Army in the Pacific Helping the Marines during WWII, not the Marines in Europe and Africa helping the Army. Waterborne operations are conducted by all of the Special Ops Units, so if you're skittish about the water during cold conditions, don't go into any of the Special Ops units. I see a cold dose of reality in your future. Go in the Marines because none of the other branches have boots that are tall enough to stay out of that kind of BS.
You want to be an Army Ranger for a couple of years and then coast along until it retirement time, good. Go the US Army route. By the time you finish 20 years of coasting with the Army, you'll want to do nothing but coast for the rest of your life. And with that,, the FBI, CIA, OR NAVY INTELLIGENCE, wants no part of you. BUT, If you want to be somewhere that counts, and be someone that counts, and belong to a Brotherhood of brave, dedicated professionals, then go USMC. But first, go to the Citadel. Graduate. Got to PLC with the Marines. And you'll not coast. You'll count. And after 20, the FBI, CIA, %26amp; NAVY INTELLIGENCE will be fighting for you. Good Luck.
Trust me...go with the job you would most likely be best at...if you dont like water then the marines and navy inst for u...but the navy SEAL's explains itself..its air land and sea not all about water...choose the navy man...and the army does not allow guaranteed MOS, the only one that dods is the National Guard, but ehy suck anywayz, GO SEALS int eh navy or SWCC ( special warfare combat crewmen). Check out SWCC most people look these guys over in thier search for SF units. :)