GI Bill and Stuff

This week I have been "ACAPing." This is the Army Career and Alumni Program. I went to all these classes on finding jobs, writing resumes, and most importantly learning about what my benefits are. The most important part of this week was learning about the GI Bill. My first semester of school I use the old GI Bill, this GI Bill will pay me about $3,038.21 more than tuition costs at the University of Utah during the first semester. I pay the tuition at the start of the semester then I get a check each month. Then the fall semester the post 9/11 GI Bill kicks in. The new GI Bill will pay the school directly for the cost of tuition. It will also pay me the same BAH (Basic Allowance for Housing) that an E-5 Sergeant with dependents receives each month in Utah. That means I will get $1,101 each month. I will also get up to $1,000 per year in reimbursements for books. So with the new GI Bill I get $4,904 per semester more than tuition costs at the University of Utah. I can receive benefits from the GI Bill for 36 months. I am really looking forward to going to school, it's going to be nice to have the GI Bill so that I don't have to have a job. This will help me to better focus on school.

In other news, we are required to talk to a Reserve recruiter before we leave the Army. The recruiter I talked to had the same name as a certain client I used to work with who came to our house and ate a block of cheese. I didn't trust the recruiter once he denied being a recruiter. He was a civilian but his job was still to recruit people so I think me calling him a recruiter is accurate. I don't think that I am going to go to the Reserves. The one job that I have wished I signed up for ever since I did my training for MLRS Crewmember, has been an Intelligence Analyst. The training course for that is seventeen weeks. If there was some training for Intelligence Analyst that I could fit in a summer vacation I would strongly consider going into the Reserves. I wasn't really interested in other jobs he suggested such as Computer Technician and Human Recoureces. He tries to use the scare tactic about how I could still deploy if I don't sign up into the Reserves but if I sign up in the Reserves I at least get bonuses. This is because everybody that enlists in the Army signs an eight year contract, my first three were active duty, the remaining years I am in the IRR (Inactive Ready Reserve.) I'm not going to worry about getting called up, I don't think it will happen. If it does I'll just have to remember that God knew that that would happen when he let me know that I should join the Army.