On an unrelated note, I'm taking the ASVAB on Friday! A little bit nervous, but overall pretty confident with the study I've been doing etc.
Now onto the question - I was wondering if anyone knew of any rate in the USCG which deals with legal work? Although I know there are Officer programs for people who have been through law school, I was looking for an enlisted rate a bit like the MOS in the Army of Legal Assistant, where you assist lawyers with cases etc - I'd heard that OS's occasionally help out on case prosecution etc, but was just wondering if there was anyone who had had experience in the area? One future option I've looked at for post-USCG work would be using the GI Bill to go through Law School, and eventually become a DA (I already have my Bachelor's Degree, major is Materials Sci/Engineering, but I'm not sure if I want to do a technical career yet).
In any case I'm planning to go in as a non-rate, so I get a chance to see various rates first hand, and also so I can get my US Citizenship before choosing to open up more options for me.
FA; Congratulations on you decision to try to become a US Citizen! I would suggest that you talk in detail to your recruiter about what that involves with respect to your CG Career. You will be limited as to which ratings you can go in to and further which jobs you can go in to. MANY ratings require US Citizenship status for all members of the rating. For some of the other ratings, US Citizenship would be required to be sent to specific jobs. Many jobs in the Legal field in the CG as a YN may also require eligibility to see Classified information, which requires citizenship. I am not trying to push you away here. In fact, I have not met a single Legal Resident Coastie yet who was not a top performer. I have several in my office now and another who recently earned his citizenship. As an added bonus, service in the military is looked at very positively in the naturalization process and has a great potential for fast tracking. As your detailer will tell you, Non-Citizens are not permitted to re-enlist, so make your naturalization a priority.
Mighty - thanks for the encouragement! My plan is to go in as a non-rate, and as soon as a I arrive at my first posting after Boot Camp, to put in for the expedited Citizenship process which the USCIS runs for military personnel. From speaking to other Green Card holders who did the process, it takes up to 4-5 months to get the Citizenship this way. I figure that it'll take a while for me to get qualified etc, and even if I have to spend a bit longer as a non-rate due to having to wait for US Citizenship before choosing an A-School, it'll be worth it.
Although other branches e.g. Army/Navy offer more job options for non-Citizens, my heart lies with the USCG and I'd rather spend the longer time as a non-rate, and then get into something I really want to do than choosing a job which doesn't interest me as much in another branch and having to spend longer in it.
Look into things real well as far as the time lines. The person in my office who just took his oath took ~ 4 years and the one who hasn't yet has been even longer. Make sure you know exactly how becoming a service member affects your status. The one left in the office has been a lawful permanent resident for MANY years. Like any gov't office, timelines are very dependant. The one thing you don't want to do is be a non-rate your entire time - that would bar enlistment too. Of course, your actual current status, your entry method, your country of origin and many other things affect your path to citizenship. You are the only person responsible for gathering all of the RIGHT info. Best of luck!
