<p>Hi! This issue make this mom crazy, I’ll be happy to help any potential female class members of 2013 should they need it. I know there is so much more to worry and stress about but for some reason some parents focused on boots but our issue was hair. Congratulations to each and every member of the class of 2013!</p>
<p>lol, yes, hair is a big issue! If you don't know how to put your hair in a bun...LEARN!!! I never knew how until Basic! Take time to practice, now, so you don't have to worry about it during the 3 minutes you get to change in.</p>
<p>The good news is at AFA the girls don't have to cut their hair. But - they have to be able to get it up in regs in a very brief time. My D was the only one in her BCT squad/flight (or whatever) that did not have to cut her hair. She had been told she had to have it up in regs in 30 seconds and she practiced for months until BCT (I think she had more time than that - but that is what she practiced to and it worked). While others were getting the chop she kept her locks! I know a lot of the girls did keep their hair but in her squad/flight she was the only one that got to keep it. She told me the trick is to be sure to get it up and get it up TIGHTLY in the time limit for the test. I don't know any tricks but practice makes perfect. She was very thankful to have kept her hair because it was so much easier to keep it out of her face through BCT when it was up. If you look at BCT photos online you'll see a lot of the girls have their hair flying all over and filthy muddy etc... I was very worried about it - back then people were suggesting that the girls just cut it because there were issues with infected hair follicles from having the bun pulling all the time. However, D says that after you test and pass (so you keep your hair), you then loosen the bun a little so it is still neat and proper, but not pulling all the time. D also had heard the infection stories so she made a concerted effort to take her hair out of the bun as often as she could (at night in bed - i think she ended with it in a pony tail and the band a few inches off her neck) and if she had time to wash nothing else, she always had time to wash the nape of her neck. She kept her hair and never got an infection (at least not one that she admits to or remembers!). I bet there are some female cadets here that can chime in as well. I don't know how it was for 2012 but I have heard that most of 2011 and 2010 ended up with a hair cut.</p>
<p>Wow, I am incredibly glad that I don't have to worry about this....</p>
<p>HAHAHA matt! I thought you were a guy....I guess that Facebook picture was very misleading...... O! and your name isnt feminine at all either.........</p>
<p>Congrats as well to 2013-ers! From the mom of a female cadet, I highly encourage ponytail length hair or longer, or a "boy" cut. In-between lengths are hard to keep out of your face and off the collar. For the few we know that cut their hair before BASIC, they are all growing it back out now... Another thing, after BCT--even for those "not so girly-girls", you want to feel feminine again. I was shocked how my "not so girly girl" wanted earrings, nail-polish, bath sprays, etc...after BCT--anything to feel clean and rid herself of the dirty feeling of Jack's valley. My advice, keep the hair. The neatest style is all one length (no bangs) that fits into a nice little bun without pins or clips.</p>
<p>This was a major issue around our house last year as well. Now that my cadet has BCT and one semester behind her we know she made the right decision not to cut her hair. She has long straight hair and had not had it cut short since she was a toddler. She is very happy that she kept her hair long, it is much easier to deal with. Her roommate's hair was cut at BCT and it was a mess. She is now trying to grow it back out and it is quite difficult to make sure it is always within regs.<br>
Flymom,
You are so right about the female cadets wanting to be "girly". My cadet gets so frustrated when she is at an event in PC gear, and the upperclass women are there is their "real girl" clothes. At every opportunity she goes shopping at Victoria's Secret and uses make-up on a regular basis now.</p>
<p>I have been trying to french braid my hair, and then tucking the end up with bobby pins. Does anyone have tips for making it neat and flat? Also, it is possible to keep my hair this way all of BCT by braiding it every night?</p>
<p>Could someone post a picture of a "within regulation" bun? I sure do like my hair...</p>
<p>for it to be in regs, it needs to be smaller than 3 inches of bulk (sticking out) and it has to be a neat professional bun (not messy) with no strands coming out (for the most part). I cut my hair before Basic, to a length that would barely fit in a ponytail. this was nice for me because I never had to do a bun until near the end, and I just flipped my hair under. I'm now growing it out. Right now it's the longest it's been in probably 10 years!</p>
<p>you can put it in a ponytail, put gel and water on the ponytail, and wrap it into a bun. i'd recommend bringing gel i-day. lifesaver for me.</p>
<p>i put my hair in a ponytail, put the gel and water on there, braided it, tied the end of the braid, and wrapped it in a bun, securing it with 2 bands. then i slicked back the rest of my hair.</p>
<p>very attractive, to be sure! but it got me through without being yelled at ;)</p>
<p>Look around at the web page below for pics. As you'll see, buns seem to get "looser" as BCT progresses but to keep the hair, the bun has to be put up quickly, be well formed (no loose ends) and neat and very tight (won't come undone). Currently she uses 3 bands to keep it in regs but don't know if she was allowed to use 3 on the test in BCT, when I asked her she said, "mom - that was 18 months ago, what I didn't intentionally block from my memory was to insignificant to remember"). I get the feeling that for some classes the hair is a bigger issue than with others - It seemed that her class was pretty strict yet a friend in 2012 said it was not a big deal for them (2012's, true?) Maybe it is squad/flight dependent? Be sure to look at the 2nd BCT pics ... MUD seems to be the most descriptive word (though D has used more colorful words to describe it). </p>
<p>Cadet</a> Photos</p>
<p>Missmuff - it sounds like you didn't have to "test" to keep your hair? I know my D had to take her hair totally out of constraints and then put it up to regs ... 1st letter home described the stress of it and watching all the other girls get the chop ... lucky for mom, I had already found pics of her on webguy so I knew she had been able to keep her hair!</p>
<p>yeah, i'd heard from the girls on here that it was a big deal, but for our class it really wasn't.
in fact, it was a nice break on i-day. they led the girls into a room, and had us take out our hair, and asked us if we could put it up. if we didn't get it right, they'd show us how to do it correctly. one of my friends came with her hair in a french braid and they only asked her if she'd done it herself.</p>
<p>be ready for either situation, but the braid helped keep my hair from sticking out too much (and I still wear it similar to that).</p>
<p>2 girls in my squad french braided their hair every night before they went to bed, but i liked to sleep with my hair down and give my poor scalp a break ;)</p>
<p>i had the luxury since i am blessed/cursed with being a super light sleeper and i woke up about 10 minutes before we were officially awakened every day during basic.</p>
<p>wow - missmuff, I know a bunch of 2011's that got the chop - it was a sore spot for a very long time - at least until it grew back! Now that the hair has grown back, or they have grown to love their new hairdo, I bet it is not quite the issue it once was .... </p>
<p>Does 2011 or 2010 run the hair part of BCT this year? Might be interesting to see .....</p>
<p>I've said it before and I will say it again- if you want it cut, do it BEFORE I-day. Regardless of whether your cadre chew you out for the hair (and considering 2011's girls had girl cadre insulting them every few seconds in that room- remember "Little Princess" anyone?you may have that return for 2013) if the barbers cut it you will probably end up with really uneven hair. Also, if you've never had hair that short before, basic is not the time to find out how to where it. I ended up with hair not in regs after they chopped it, and so I put it up in a way that they told me to cut it for in the first place. Geez, if it looks like a bun, leave me alone...
And make sure it's a real bun/french braid if you want to keep long hair- not something flipped into a bun (or even better, come in with a bun).
To add to the regs- not only that above, but it must not touch your collar at all when in uniform. If it's down, the bottom must not touch the bottom of the collar. You could put on a polo shirt/any shirt with a collar and test it out like that.</p>
<p>Mike, I don't know what to even say for that.</p>
<p>Wow, I didn't realize that the year group "running" the female "hair room" basically has control over how it is organized. I see that their treatment may make a huge difference. If the class of 2011 (for example) had it rough during their Induction day then the class that they are the leadership of may too. We will hope, however, that the women leaders in that room would be sympathetic and supportive (as well as regulation oriented) towards the class of 2013.<br>
I am much appreciative of the class (whoever it was) who ran the "hair" room this past year for the female class of 2012. My daughter was in MCJROTC for 4 years in high school as well as a cheerleader. She didn't have the time limit requirement in high school. She got up way earlier on Thursdays for 4 years in high school. She is still military and presents that way, and is a cheerleader at USAFA, too. The hair was important, and was a small piece of keeping a personal identity in the face of basic. I send out a huge thank you to those leaders this past year. They were great leaders in my female cadets eyes.</p>
<p>It's not just that room. There were major differences in 2012's Basic Training from 2011's (of course, 2009 is a much different class than 2008). So, while every cadet's experiance will differ during basic, who's in charge can determine how things are run, organized, and what the cadre can make the new cadets do. I've seen pictures of classes in the past three years, and you can tell their experiances were all very, very different.</p>
<p>on that note can anyone somewhat predict what the cadre for the "hair room" this june (class of 2013) will be like? i'm not exactly looking forward to an uneven haircut haha and its 30seconds right no redos i assume?</p>
<p>For 2011, they had three chances on the clock to put it up in three minutes or so. For 2012, they just asked girls whose hair wasn't in regs to put it up in a bun, or if they wanted it cut.
Like has been said before, get your hair cut BEFORE I-day, or make sure you can do the bun in 60 seconds. I would say this even if I knew the cadre wouldn't be insulting you in that room. That's advice given to all female appointees, with good reason- girls who get their hair cut that day generally have a hard time keeping it in regulation unless they've had chin-length hair before. It's very, very short, to say the least, and the amount of time in basic is not enough for it to grow back to a reasonable length. In fact, they cut it two more times; once before Jacks' and once after you get back from Jacks'. Mostly to keep in line with the boys since they will need haircuts around that time. And trust me, if it's really not in regulations (i.e. it sticks out a ton, is three inches in bulk or more, is too long, etc.) they WILL cut it. Happened to a girl in my basic squad who though basic was a good idea to grown out her hair that was already barely in regs when she got here. My female cadre for first beast, who is one of the sweetest girls you could ever meet was the one who forced her to get it cut, because she noticed it wasn't in regs. Next thing we knew, she had a pretty ugly chin-length cut and all the hair she'd been growing out was gone.
Oh, and bring a brush/comb with you on I-day, and gel, if you need it. The stuff they issue sucks, and you only go to the C-Store three days in.</p>
<p>Wow, long post.</p>