The National Guard has authorized an Officer Recruiter in every state. This person is normally a Lieutenant, Captain or Major and they are typically part of the AGR program, a Technician, or work on ADOS. It is a full-time position. They work closely with the Recruiting and Retention Battalion. Their job is to find officers to fill unit vacancies across their state.
Typically, their job is to find new officers not already serving in the National Guard and to get them to join their state’s National Guad. The Officer Recruiter works closely with local R.O.T.C. programs, the OCS Battalion, and interviews officers looking to do an interstate transfer or transition from Active Duty into the National Guard.
Typically, they meet with the candidate, conduct an interview, pre-qualify or disqualify candidates, help them complete the required paperwork, and walk them through the “process” so they can transition into the National Guard. As a result, the Officer Recruiter spends a lot of time on the phone and doing one-on-one appointments.
When I joined the Maryland Army National Guard in 2005, I met with the state’s Officer Recruiter. She was a Captain. I met with her a few times to find out what I needed to do join the National Guard. She did an initial interview with me, making sure I met the basic qualifications, and then she gave me a packet to complete.
I had to assemble my DD Form 214, all of my old awards, prior evaluation reports, college transcripts, DA Form 1059s, proof of my security clearance and a few other documents. Once I did that, she scheduled a physical for me at the state’s medical facility. After I was medically cleared to join, she administered my oath of office and assigned me to a unit. Back then, the entire process might have taken me two weeks. She was very helpful and made the process go smoothly.
If you are currently an Officer and enjoy recruiting and/or sales, I think this would be a perfect job for you. You get to spend a lot of time helping people join the National Guard. I know that I would have loved to been an Officer Recruiter during my career.
The bottom line is that the National Guard Officer Recruiter has a very important job. They work closely with outside agencies to find officers to fill the ranks in their state. The job might not always be sexy or glamorous, but without them, the state won’t have the required amount of officers they need in the ranks.
On a side note, if you’ve ever spent time in this duty position, I would love to hear from you. Leave a comment below to tell us what you liked and disliked about the job.
Chuck Holmes
Former Army Major (resigned)
Publisher, Part-Time-Commander.com
Email: mrchuckholmes@gmail.com
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This question is a little bit off topic, but I don’t see anywhere else to post it. Why do the Armed Forces have an eligibility requirement relating to a maximum age? I think National Guard and Army Reserve Recruiters could do a booming business with folks in their 40s and maybe even 50s who want to bring some change to their lives and careers. Sure, the fitness and physical requirements still need to apply, but I think Recruiters could find a very willing audience with some very experienced and knowledgeable recruits.
I served with plenty of Soldiers in their 40s and 50s. It’s not all that common on Active Duty, but very common in the USAR and ARNG.
I believe that if you have served at one time in your younger years and you are willing to reenlist, the National Guard and the Reserves will consider you even if you are past normal recruitment age. I don’t think they will if you have never served, and usually that is because of getting through the rigors of basic training.
I am in my 50’s, and I would be willing to reup, but because of my health, I highly doubt I would be accepted.
There are still many other ways a person can serve their country without being in the military. I believe Chuck had made a post about that; maybe he can share the link here.
Most folks don’t associate the military with sales at all, but when you think about it, a National Guard Officer Recruiter is in a sense a salesperson! As a recruiter, you are presenting/selling the National Guard to officers, in hopes that they will join you to fill vacancies in your state. You seek out customers (ROTC programs, OCS battalions, active duty), present your product (the Army National Guard), and if there is interest the customer will start consuming the product (join the National Guard). The only difference might be that in traditional sales, you don’t interview each and every customer, whereas in the National Guard every candidate is thoroughly screened.
Everything is sales. The sooner people realize that the better!