Featured Specialist Qualification - getting pinged

Reading a lot about how expectations of 2 years as general duty marine is ambitious and many are unluckily forced to head into a less desirable SQ way before their time to pick potential paths...

Can someone expand on this? Could a potential recruit do all the grueling training and finally get a well earned beret to then be forced to do a job they potentially hate for 2 years?? Obviously you've got to do what you've got to do and suck it up, just seems a bit harsh and a potential disappointment to be stuck in an undesirable job for two whole years without any options until its done.

have i got it wrong or is that the gist of it? Cheers

 

@Atlas10 The process is known as DSS - direct specialisation scheme - it is used to fill trades with capability gaps, each rank passing out of training should complete 1 draft as a GD marine, at the end of that time or close to if a branch needs filling those around the right time frame are at some risk of being pinged for that role. Bear in mind that hopefully you have not kept your thumb up your rear and placed your preferences in for the job you want , guys that have done nothing are at a higher risk as most branches need to pull in new guys. If you are pulled into the DSS at the end of that period if you put in to go to a differing branch you should automatically filter to the top of any waiting list, but remember you might not be the only one!! Also the branch you want to leave needs a warm body to replace you so timeliness can get stretched the way you don't want, only advice is look at what you want to do early and get your requests in , even polity badger the branch manager so they know you want into his branch, thing not to do is just drift!!

 

SQs, such as Clerk, Signals and Drivers are not as popular as others , but still need to be filled, so in the absence of volunteers guys are drafted into them to make up the shortfall.

The bonus is that after a couple of years you can leave that SQ and move to one that you would really like to do and you get preference over others for that. However, as @The guide points out, there maybe others in the same boat as you!

Alan

 

All above is bang on. In short, there’s roles that aren’t very popular (for various reasons). And it’s a way of fill those roles to maintain a decent level of support for the Pointy stuff.

You can be “pinged” for 2 years. Or you can volunteer yourself for 1 year in exchange for getting first priority at your chosen SQ.

Example:
Put yourself forward for Signals, do a year. Then get put on the top of the list for Mortars.

 

Ok thanks for clearing this up - Seems like a bit of an unlucky draw and that's just the way it is but you can get things done by being prepared and getting a path set early and then just hope for the best haha.

My final followup:
What changes if/when youre pinged? - are you moved away from where you've been stationed and have to change units etc? Or is your daily routine similar in that you've got your regular physical training and lunch times etc and sports opportunities and its just the time in between where you do the different jobs?


Obviously nothing to really worry about as there is much to get through before i even have this potential problem, just one of my big issues is being forced into a potential one or two years of an undesirable job after all the hard work you've put in to get away from undesirable jobs as a civillian! I'm not talking like being a soldier constantly, just learning in a field you'd prefer in comparison to one maybe not so interesting such as clerk or driver as noted above. But oh well, the perks would still outweigh the drawbacks.


Again, thanks for the help

 

You would move in most cases, after completing you relevant course normally at CTCRM , Then you go where needed , as for daily routine it down to each section / unit , but roughly they are the same.

 

There are ways to improve your chances of not being DSS’d. Such things as calling up the branch sponsor of your desired specialisation and as mentioned previously get your preferences in early. Keep pestoring the branch advisor and more often then not you’ll get where you want to go.

You’ve got to be proactive with your career after finishing training. Don’t lounge around thinking your safe. I’ve seen lads pinged 6 months after finishing training. If they need a space filled they’ll get it filled whether you want to be there or not.

If you show your keen and your developing your skills towards that chosen trade then there’s no reason why the branch advisor wouldn’t want to work his hoop off to get you on that course.

Hope that helps.

 

There is no way you can avoid being pinged but you can try to improve your chances as has been alluded to above.

Bottom line , unless you get your dream spec sorted while you are GD you will be pinged into a job you did not join to do. You’ll become comfortable and at the end of that 2 year period you will be offered promotion or some kind of incentive to stay in the unpopular job. Because you don’t want to waste that two years of your career this will be a difficult decision.

Remember that a lot of lads will do DSS and not everyone can be top of the DSS list. If you are betting on using DSS to quickly get into a popular spec bear in mind others will do it too and there will be a DSS list on top of the actual list of people waiting for a chance to do that spec

Essentially , without beating around the bush ; this system ( unless you are popular or get lucky ) will ensure time spent doing the job you were trained to do ( close combat amphibious infanteer ) is minimised as the corps needs to be “self sustaining” and it’s needs supersede yours at every turn. You get to watch your career go down roads you never wanted it to go.

Bottom line, if there is a job you really really want to do then look into alternatives to the corps. If you want to infanteer for your entire career consider the parachute regiment. If you want to work intelligence consider the intelligence corps.

Of course you’ll remain a “commando” but you won’t feel like it taking NSN numbers in a store or driving nods

Feel free to pm me any time

 

I've heard from at least 3 marines who said they wished they had gone to the parachute regiment for exactly the reasons you say. Possibly naive and down to them not doing their research but understandable.

 

^this needs to be said more often! I wish someone had told me about the DSS system clearly and bluntly without the glitter while i was in recruitment stage. Yes some experiences in the corp have been hoofing. But no one joins to sit behind a desk editing the defence writing guide or audit stores as a job specialisation, while looking over at the Navy writer who is doing the same job as you but has different flashers on.

 

I took DSS into signals to hopefully get a quick JCC and then switch over the DL branch and take it from there.

 

Ew.

 

Thing is what I said above ; indeed what I say and continue to say annoys the hierarchy so it will always be marginalised

 

Are you a real person?!

 

Bang on the money. There’s how the system works on paper, and there there’s the reality.

All the bootneck clerks I dealt with, were horrendous at their job and didn’t want to be there and reccomended lads go to the Navy lads for a proper job...

 

May I ask then please... What's the better path- DSS or no?
Or is that a 'how long is a piece of string' question

 

The best path is to look at the wide range of careers that are on offer across all the services. Pragmatically go through each that interest you and look into where you will be drafted AFTER TRAINING and what the career / deployment / progression prospects are like and make sure you are happy with that.

Simply getting fixated on commando training and the green beret is how the corps tricks motivated young men into joining and then completely 180ing their career expectations

If you seriously want to be an exceptional infanteer than there are other places that can offer that to you without complications or the need to be a “corps of specialists” I.E jack of all trades and master of absolutely none.

 

So you can get pinged and do 2 years, or volunteer and only do 1?

Madness first time I have heard of this!

 

Ive literally never heard of that actually happening. I’ve heard of lads being told it and not getting it in writing so that when the one year point comes around they claim to have had a deal from the spec advisor who promised them verbally that they will only do a year ; it turns out to be complete rubbish just to get them in that two year draft.

It’s a method of trapping lads

 

That was when I was in. So it might have changed.

Although they say it’s a year GD. But O saw blokes at 6-9 months getting pinged.