<p>My daughter will be starting her 3rd year in ROTC. She’s starting to consider reserve and National Guard as branching options. I’m not very familiar with these options. What do others see as pros/cons of the reserves and national guard? Are the service obligations the same as active duty?</p>
<p>Yes. You can opt to do all 8 years commitment in the reserve. But you don’t get all the perks of AD. In other words, you have to find a civilian job. That is about as much as i know.</p>
<p>The decisions already came out so you probably know whether she got AD or RD. Bottom line your service as a reserve or Guard officer will be part time. The benefits, retirement, etc aren’t equivalent to AD but keep in mind it is a part time job and they are great. As a new Lieutenant you will be making approximately $10,000 per year after all of your drills and annual training. Couple that with a decent civilian job and you will most likely be earning more income than you would on active duty. </p>
<p>I am commissioning into the Guard this year also. I came into school/ROTC with the plan on going Guard the whole time. I have an awesome civilian job lined up due in part to my ROTC and Guard experience and can still serve my country and have the opportunity to deploy if need be. All in all I will be netting $60,000 with no debt as a 21 year old. Pretty sweet…</p>