Certainly. My Chemistry teacher (Marine Veteran) takes us all on the Batonne Death March (26 miles) each year near Ruidoso, NM. We do that fine, but then again we probably are not weighed down with same amount of gear as if we were doing it for real. My next question for you is when you are not training or PTing, will there be time enough to take "extracurricular" type activities like Martial Arts or Night School, while being in the infantry, or should I pursue some other MOS that would allow me enough time for schooling (then transfer to infantry once I finish)?

If your talking about college courses it's tough. Some guys like Hulk manage to get a few in. But the Infantry Training Schedule isn't conducive to it.

Originally Posted by 03USMC

If your talking about college courses it's tough. Some guys like Hulk manage to get a few in. But the Infantry Training Schedule isn't conducive to it.

12 credits, in 4 years, it would take me 10 years to get my BS/BA.....trust me, you will have sometime, but not much and it will be mostly via mail or maybe now online.

Don't forget your military training allows you to CLEP (College Level Equivelancy Program) alot of core requirements. I know of at least one guy in my old unit who CLEP'd about a year and a half's worth of credits. You can also challenge the course. Pay the course fee and take the final. If you pass the exam you get the same credit as taking the whole course. Many colleges allow this.

Originally Posted by Charge_7

Don't forget your military training allows you to CLEP (College Level Equivelancy Program) alot of core requirements. I know of at least one guy in my old unit who CLEP'd about a year and a half's worth of credits. You can also challenge the course. Pay the course fee and take the final. If you pass the exam you get the same credit as taking the whole course. Many colleges allow this.

Yeah, when I left active duty for college I CLEP'd the Math and Humanities requirements, acquired 23 credits and no humanities course requirements for my engineering degree. It is WELL worth it.

Thats awesome, I wonder if they would take an infantry Marine for MECEP or if they would shun them due to time constraints.

Yes They accept 03's into MCECP. But it's highly competative. And once again I have to defer to Hulks personal expierance with this program.

Originally Posted by CO5060.20

During the Cold WEather Training, I hear rumors that they make you jump in a hole in the ice into the water and recite your name, rank, social security number etc. Is there any truth to this?

Haha, that's pretty familiar with Finns who have been in the Finnish Marines, both my brothers did that, or they went with skis downhill with full gear into a hole in the ice and then they had to take of the skis and gear and crawl out of there.

Don't know why I didn't do that when I was in the Finnish Marines, allthough we had some similar training, it was in early November the water was about 5 degrees celcius, and we had to stay in the water a little under 10 minutes but the only gear we had was our marine west which keeps you floating...
For sure it was cold but the hole in the ice version would have been more exciting...

Originally Posted by 03USMC

Yes They accept 03's into MCECP. But it's highly competative. And once again I have to defer to Hulks personal expierance with this program.

Be prepared to compete like you are getting ready to go to warrant officer boards.....interview after interview after interview plus you are competing against many Marines that never left CONUS or were even in the fleet. If it is something you really want to look into, start preparing yourself now for the competion which will include a good dose of politics. It is a nasty street fight that starts with your Pro and Cons from Boot until you apply, most get the best chance within their second enlistment. IF you are willing, just be prepared.

Awesome thank you very much. So in order to start preparing now, what sort of things should I be doing. I am taking as many AP's as time will permit in order to get some college credit that I can put on the application, but other then that, I am not doing much.