2 for 7 - Not actually 2yrs for 7yrs anymore

[Malachy Marine]

CurrentMid-

Thats actually partly incorrect. If you are a Ground Contract Marine, your clock starts ticking from your commissioning date (specifically, your Date of Rank if your lucky enough to have been commissioned in the months of May or June, meaning your DoR reverts to whatever the commissioning date for that service's academy was that calendar year). So if you hang out on TAD at USNA for six months, then six months of TBS, and 3 months of MOS school, you have successfully completed one full year of active duty. This does not apply to Air Contracts, as their clock does not start until their winging just like the Navy.

N.B. My ECC (End of Current Commission, same as an EAS (End of Active Service) but for officers) is 7 days short of 5 years from my commissioning date. Which encompasses my time at TBS, MOS school, and time in the fleet.

 

[Memphis9489]

I believe the legally binding document was signed when he entered the Naval Academy.

Any "2 for 7" document signed at any "2 for 7" ceremony is just that - ceremonious.

I don't know how they do it now - but it was made very clear to us that you were committed the moment you attended your first academic responsibility your 2/C (i.e. Junior) year.

We had no signing ceremony.

When you walked into that classroom on the first day of class of your 2/C year and the section leader called out your name ... and you said "Here!" ... you just "signed" up!

That's why some who were sitting on the fence with the decision would not attend class until they decided what to do. Sometimes it was quite comical the way the drama played out for some.

 

[Hurricane12]

It's not really that big of a deal. Your company is assigned a time during the day (it's just on the plan of the day) and so you just show up then. Most companies go down together. You form a line and sign the "Honor Scroll" and then file around to a table where your company officer and SEL are and they give you a couple of papers to sign. That's it.
Then a day or two later they have the "2/C commitment dinner" which is just a nice meal in King Hall.

For most people it's not a big deal. Everyone in my company signed. I do know some people who signed and then instantly regretted it or were very conflicted, but most people make the decision to sign or not at the end of youngster year or over the summer.

 

[Memphis9489]

First of all, aviators have a longer commitment. My (not too nuanced) understanding is that it's 5 yrs after you pin on your wings. Pilots and NFOs should be well aware of that. Still not a bad deal.

I believe that the reserve commitment is "Inactive" reserve, meaning that you are unlikely to be called up. Could be wrong about that as I got out at a time we weren't at war.

Thus, the "2 for 7" refers to the "general" commitment of non-aviators to active duty. If things have changed, I'm sure mids are informed of the new requirements before they commit. And, even if not, welcome to the military. Seriously.

One final note . . . unlike enlisted, officers serve at the pleasure of the President. Thus, you are never guaranteed of being able to leave the military even when your "commitment" is up or you otherwise want to. 99.9999% of the time, it's fine in peacetime. Probably (and I'm guessing here) 98% of the time during war. But it is something to consider.

If I recall, in my day (it still may be the case), if you are in the middle of a deployment, you had to finish it out. In other words, they would not allow you to separate 3 months into a 6-month cruise.

Also, sometimes they make strange rules. For instance, they were so desperate to retain carrier aviators in my day that you had a 9-month "waiting period" from the time you submitted your request to separate until your actual separation date. It didn't matter on what date your obligation was up - you HAD to wait 9-months. They used that time to entice you to "pull" your letter. The detailers got into your officer records and tried to find some hook and construct a set of orders that might entice you to stay.

For instance, having been an Aerospace Engineering major - they offered me an assignment to Test Pilot School in Patuxent River.

I could speak Russian, so they offered me a job in the U.S. Embassy in Moscow. Some pretty neat stuff. It nearly worked. But my wife would've hated that - even though they offered to send her through DLI (Defense Language Institute) in Monterey. Нельзя!

Plus, they were offering a $75,000 bonus if you would commit for an additional 6yrs. And that was back in the mid-80's - quite a sum of money.

My understanding is that retention is not much of a problem these days with the sad state of the economy and job market. Many are staying past their commitment.