Expert: John L - 1/7/2011

Question
John, I have a few questions about joining the guard, but wanted to give you a little background info on myself first, I'm 31, not married and no kids.  I was on active duty army for six years and was in the intelligence field and was approved to use a Top/Secret SCI clearance, I got out with an honorable discharge in 2004as an E-4. Since then my clearance has expired and I have maintained a clean record other than getting a speeding ticket every few years, I currently have debt, but always make my payments on time, when i pull my credit reports every couple of years the score ranges between 550-675..in the past I have had Abnormal pap smears and the cause has been HPV, however my past 4 tests have been normal and negative for HPV. At one point, I had a boyfriend who was unfaithful and ended up giving me Chlaymydia  I took the medicine for it and have been free of it since approximately 2006..The HPV and Chlamydia is documented in my medical records, and I currently have no health issues.  

I'm also around 165 pounds and 5'4..I'm currently thinking about joining the Army national guard or the Air national guard..and haven't sat down with a recruiter yet, so here are my questions

1)What are the weight and Pt test requirements? I would like to make sure I lose the weight and prepare myself physically before meeting with the recruiter..

2)Would I need to retake the ASVAB,and if so when is a good time to schedule it? I took it twice while I was on active duty army (The first time my GT score was 99 in 1998 and the Second time in 2001 my GT score was a 115,

3) If I wanted to go back into the Intel field, would I have to do the whole application process again for the clearance since I did have it for six years?

4) Will my age be a factor for not letting me in?

5) Do you know who I would contact to get a copy of my medical records while I was on Active Duty?

Thanks so much, I apologize for the long post but wanted to be detailed.

Answer
1.  64 inches max weight is 149 lbs or meeting the body fat standards is 34%.

2.  you do not need to retake the ASVAB since you have been out less than 10 years.

3.  You will have to redo your packet, which is done anyway at enlistment.  You would still be considered MOS qualified in your last job, and would be good to go after a clearance is granted,  As long as you divulge all your credit issues and show what you are doing to rectify, you will be ok.

4.  Age not a factor at all.  

5.  medical records while on active duty are not needed at all.  In fact, since your last pap smears were ok, and your chlaymidia is gone, I wouldn't even bring them up to the recruiter or medical staff, it will only cause issues, and they have no way of finding out about it unless you tell them.

Over all, unless you do not meet the bodyfat/wight standard, you can process pretty quickly and get a choice job you want.  

If you are in VA, let me know, I will hook you up, if not, visit www.nationalguard.com to get the process started by clicking the "apply now" button.

Good luck!!

new info to your response.

As far as credit, yes, they do run a credit check, and unless you just are not paying, there is usually not an issue with it.  

You can do ROTC, with an age waiver, even if you already have a bachelors, they allow it for those doing masters and such.  Any rule is waivable just about. OCS option might be better for you.

You can divulge the other things, just make sure you go get all the medical documents first.  It may disqualify you, but a waiver can be submitted.  At Meps, anytime you admit to something other than minor, it will usually disqualify you, and sometimes waivers are allowed, sometimes not.  I always choose caution.  But you should be ok.  Just get your last 2 paps and stuff about your STD is cleared.

Good luck