Training VS. Assignment / Occupational Selection

[Rob66066]

Hello,

Just have a couple questions with regards to training and assignments. I'm working through the recruitment process now for a specific reason, with a specific occupation in mind, and I'm not sure I'm willing to commit years of service only to be assigned to an occupation I don't have an interest in. My questions are below, and any extra thoughts are appreciated.

1) Does having specific training mean I will be assigned to a position where I will be exercising that training? For instance, would someone trained as a logistics officer be assigned to a logistical role, or could they be assigned to something administrative instead?

2) More specifically, let's say I truly would love to run logistics for search and rescue missions. Assuming I excel at training and meet the necessary requirements, how guaranteed am I to get assigned to this occupation?

3) Once a contract is completed, are military personnel able to obtain different training for other occupations (ex. logistics to armor)? Is this common?

4) What is the average length of a posting, domestic and international?

Kind regards,
RoB

 

[dapaterson]

You will be assigned either a position in line with your specific occupational training, or a generic military position, or, in some cases, a position that can be assigned to a sub-group of military occupations.

Logistics is an occupation.  As a Log O you could support SAR; you could direct planning for air transport missions; you could command a transport platoon of trucks... all those are valid Logistics officer roles.

If you only ever want to do SAR, sorry, you're out of luck.  The needs of the service are paramount; while your interests and ability factor in to the decisions, they are not in and of themselves decisive.

As for occupational changes: While possible, they are never guaranteed.  There are numerous threads here discussion occupational transfers; they should provide you with context.

Postings: Are you referring to time in a specific job, or time in a specific location?  A posting is generally 2-3 years in duration, but you can be posted to a new job in the same location. Again, there are many variables that factor into posting decisions.