What military branch will accept single mothers and what is the average deployment times?

Question

I am a single mother and I am looking to join the military to help provide a better life for my 3 year old daughter. I do have a solid family behind me supporting myself and my daughter. I am currently attending ITT Tech for an Associates Degree in Criminal Justice and my plan was to wait until I graduate before i enlist. My questions are; 1. What branches could i join as a single mother (I may be getting married soon)? 2. I know that everyone is being deployed right now, what is the average deployment time for each branch and is there anything that i could do with my degree that would keep me here longer (I know i will go eventually.) 3. Even if i wait will the military still help with my student loans that i have already and help me when i continue my education (PhD in forensics)? I am just looking for a little advice please help me.

Answer 1

Man, smiley face guy was only one who answered correctly. I will elaborate on all your questions tho...



1. You can not join as a single mother, (this is for all branches) you can give custody to someone else, and then get custody back later on though. The miltiary does have single parents, but as stated, all after they joined. (I had my duaghter 3 months after, while I had just started Tech School)



2. Finishing up your Associates will be nice, you can enlist at a slightly higher paygrade E-2 or 3 rather then E-1, while still only commiting for 4 years of active duty. (You need your BA/BS in order to try to get a commision/go officer that's the 4 year degree not the 2 year associates)



3. Deployment times vary. Air Force which has the shortest average time deployed just went to 6 months Air Force wide, with the longest deployments for Air Force being a year (can extend a little longer tho)



Army does a year-16 months Same as Marines.

Navy is a little wierd, and not only do they do deployments anywhere from 4months to a year, but they also have their time on the ship.



4. Only some national guard contracts help with student loans... but Active duty will help you further/continue your education with 100% Tuition assistance while you are in, and then your GI bill when you get out.



Hope all this helps, Good luck!

Answer 2

National Guard is the only Branch, its part time work though so don't expect to live off the salary. You can and will be deployed so you need to be prepared for that. Army National Guard goes through the same exact basic training (BCT) as regular army, you will be alongside regular army recruits the whole time. BCT will probably be at Ft Benning Georgia, after that your A school will depend on what MOS you get. You need to find out what units are near your home, so you can pick a MOS that you can get to easily. Use the Unit Finder on the National Guard website to see what Units, and which MOS those units specialize in, are near you. Good Luck, if you have 60 College Credits you can get in as an Officer there is a 10K sign up bonus for that, and more monthly pay.

Answer 3

You can't join the military if you're a single parent. You would have to be married, but don't get married just so you can join the military. A deployment could last anywhere from 6-15 months.



There are single parents in the military, but they didn't become a single parent until AFTER they were in.

Answer 4

Actually i am a single mother of a 4 year old daughter and my recruiter told me that the national guard is the only branch that accepts single parents without signing away custody.

Answer 5

Actually Aden is right with the exception to the Marines deployment. The typical deployment is 7 months which was raised from 6 about 2 yrs ago when the Army raised theirs to 18 months. Their are specials cases where Marines are deployed for 1 year but like I said those special cases.



Also if you want to join you must release custody for 1 yr prior to joining and up to 1 yr after completing boot camp or basic training. The reason why after is because they want you to complete your job school training first.



Good luck to you!!

Answer 6

I'm sorry but the above poster is correct. The military does not take single parents. With deployments lasting up to 18 month the military does not want children away from their only parent for that long.

Answer 7

NO Branch allows single parents to enlist. you may not give up custody to enlist and you may not regain custody at all during the entire first term of enlistment.



family status has ZERO bearing on frequency or length of deployments. Neither does Education level. Guys with masters degrees are on the front lines.



not every Branch offers College loan repayment, restrictions vary as to who is eligible and how much is paid. you must serve 36 months AD in order to be fully vested in the GI Bill.

Answer 8

Well at degree level i would suggest joining as an officer (the food is better and you get salutes) I dont think the fact that you are single mother would preclude you from any branches of the military (just dont expect to miss out on deployment because you have kids) but take into account that females are not allowed in any frontline positions such as infantry etc. with the exception of the air force (pilots)

Answer 9

You could join any branch, but you have to give custody of your daughter to someone in your family, in your case, your mom. You could be deployed in any branch, including the Guard and the reserve, some branches longer than others. Depending on what your MOS is, you could and most likely get deployed, but you wouldn't be put on the front lines if you don't have a MOS that require it. I would get with a recruiter; he/she could help. I have friends who served and were single mothers and a few even retired from service.

Answer 10

sorry I tried to sign up with AF as a single parent, recruiter said NO single parents.