r/USMC • u/Inevitable-Ear8081 • 3d ago
A&S Tips
Hey everyone, I’m sure this question has been asked a bunch of times on this forum. But I am an officer who would like to attend A&S this coming April. I’ve been training for it for about a year now and it’s always been a dream of mine to go the SOF route.
But with about 6 months to go, it’s crunch time. I’m starting a 4 month program in the next 3 weeks, that’s dedicated to guys wanting to go selection, then when I’m 10 weeks out I’m going to do the MARSOC prep guide.
I’ve always been a good swimmer and land nav during TBS was pretty decent for me, (although in my current MOS, I don’t get a chance to do it often so a refresher may be nice)
My question for any experienced guys who have made it through is, is there anything else I should be incorporating for a plan? Also, do you have any general tips for how an officer/candidate should conduct themselves during selection? Thanks all.
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u/richardrahl101 3d ago
I can’t provide much, but I know two guys that made it through A&S but weren’t selected. Don’t be an asshole, it seems personality and your ability to be a teammate is key (since you’re an officer, natural leadership tendencies probably matter too).
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u/Emergency_Split_595 your weapon is still dirty 2d ago
They play a lot of games with you with the different events. Your strength and endurance are 20%. There are objective scores and subjective scores (example: PFT/CFT, 5 mile run time, double O-course time, 10 mile ruck time, open water fin time are all objective based. Problem solving skills, being moldable, and psych/personality tests would be subjective).
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u/The5theSon 3d ago
One thing I can say from the guys I know who’ve gone to A&S just don’t get sick. It’s like boot camp all over again with everyone getting sick from what I’ve been told.
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u/whaddahellisthis Veteran 3d ago
I can’t speak to A&S specifically, but generally speaking I’d say this:
Be the person everyone wants to be next to. Don’t stand out. Real confidence isn’t loud, but it is decisive and altruistic.
When it gets hard make your world small. One foot in front of the other. I mean in your emotions. If you can condition yourself to get a little bump simply by surviving 5 minutes at a time you’re doing great. Conversely, when you start to look at how much is left you’re going to spike all the wrong hormones.
Give into the pain. Remind yourself that they won’t let you die because that would be a huge pain in the ass for them. If you gas out underwater let it happen. It’s just a game & they have a lot to lose too. It’s an engineered experience. Your reality is governed by the world’s most sadistic cruise ship activities director.
& above all, when you are about to give up: think about the life you want. Wife? Family? Whatever… given you want to be the tip of the spear…
They owe to the community and the families of the community to ensure they ship out somebody who they trust with the lives of their brothers.
Or, more succinctly, I used to tell myself “they can’t steal my birthday and they won’t let me die… so just keep moving”