18x Medical Waiver/ Possible Recruiter Lie?

[TLDR20]

I don't think you have to be E4 before you can drop the SF packet. Just have to be 21 years old. My son entered as a 22-year old E3, and the SF liaison was on him all through OSUT and Airborne to switch his 11x-option 40, for the 18x.

That isn't accurate anymore. There was a time when you could go as a PFC, but it has passed.

You can however go as a PFC 18X...

 

[suaveflooder]

I don't think you have to be E4 before you can drop the SF packet. Just have to be 21 years old. My son entered as a 22-year old E3, and the SF liaison was on him all through OSUT and Airborne to switch his 11x-option 40, for the 18x.

That's awesome! I was going to be going in as an E3 as well. No idea if it was because of my age (I did not qualify for 18x), and I could find very little information other than the 18x program as far as actually joining. The two guys I knew who actually went through the program (or attempted to in one case) both went in as an 18x. My recruiter was telling me something similar to what is happening to your son. He told me to start the forms right after basic and get the physical done before I became an E4.

Hopefully someone who is SF will chime in here

 

[suaveflooder]

Well, there you go. I responded too late. Thank you for the information, medicchick and TLDR20

 

[TheKicker]

What requirements would need to be met in order to pick up 18x (or op40 for the ranger hopefuls out there) while in basic/ait? As in, if a recruiter was to come around and ask for volunteers in OSUT or if I was to ask for one, what prerequisites/ standards would I (or anyone for that matter) need to have exceeded?

 

[TheKicker]

And by going that route not require me to be an E-4? Is the E-4 requirement only for the guys who have finished their MOS qualification training and then decide they want to go SF? Thanks for the awesome responses everybody, y'all are incredible.

 

[Tiger87]

So if I piece together what my E3 son told me - the SF liaison at OSUT was all over him wanting to get him on 18x - with the info posted here that you have to be E4 once you're in...then I come to the conclusion that the "E4 waiver" will only work prior to OSUT graduation. The liaison "recruited" 8 of them in OSUT. None were E4. All were over 21 years old. Not sure about the others, but my son had already 18X qualified on ASVAB before enlisting. All the guys had qualified as Expert marksman, and all had maxed out 300 on APFT. Most of the guys had 11x option 40, and they stayed with that.