MA Rating Info

[woodyj87]

does MA get or need a security clearance

[sweetmtn]

Originally Posted by woodyj87

does MA get or need a security clearance

I do know they need at least a Secret clearance, and for some jobs once you promote higher may required higher, especailly if over seas assignment.

[MA.Bitler]

yes MA's get a security clearance, its just basic though, not top secret or anything. Its just a bunch of paperwork when you get to your first duty station. It was that way for me at least.

[MA.Bitler]

OC SUCKS! below this thread in the MA forum i posted some pics of when i got sprayed in A school. (i titled it - A School was awesome) one of the worst times of my life! but all in all, school was a lot of fun.

[TrooperTaff]

I'm really hoping I get an MA rating. I see my recruiter tomaro and I'm going to tell him MA or I'm postponing till I can get the rating. My buddy is in the airforce for Security Forces and said the OC spray was hell lol

[Logicalchaos02]

When I was in MA was not all that great. I loved being military police but now I kind of wish I would have chosen another rate. It is really hard to move up as a MA and the rate is so backstabbing its crazy! But everyone told me the same thing and I still did it and I loved it! You just have to watch out for number one, no one is your friend when you are an MA. But good luck and I hope all goes well!

[TrooperTaff]

Originally Posted by Logicalchaos02

When I was in MA was not all that great. I loved being military police but now I kind of wish I would have chosen another rate. It is really hard to move up as a MA and the rate is so backstabbing its crazy! But everyone told me the same thing and I still did it and I loved it! You just have to watch out for number one, no one is your friend when you are an MA. But good luck and I hope all goes well!

I wanna get a good base and back round for my future law enforcement career lol but what do you mean "backstabbing"? and no one is your friend?? lol

[OS2Garza]

Originally Posted by woodyj87

does MA get or need a security clearance

yes they do dependant on what they are doing for their duty assignment.

[Logicalchaos02]

You have to get a secret clearance but if you guard the nukes then you have to get a top secret.

[TrooperTaff]

what kind of training/screening/processing do you have to endure for Top Secret?

[Haasino]

Originally Posted by TrooperTaff

what kind of training/screening/processing do you have to endure for Top Secret?

It's the same SF-86 background packet you filled out for a Secret Clearance, but with a few of the sections going back 10 years instead of 7. For a Secret, they generally just check national and local law enforcement databases for law violations or police contacts and check your credit... if there's something odd about your work history, they might call your employers to verify what you put.

For Top Secret, they do all that, plus you will met in-person with a background investigator who will go over your packet with you and ask additional questions... that investigator will then talk in-person to your family, neighbors, teachers, classmates, and visit each of your past workplaces to talk to former coworkers and bosses. The investigator will also talk to the friends you listed as references in your SF-86, but they know you would only list positive references, so they'll generally just note what they say and then ask that reference for several other references not listed whom they can track down and talk to.

[TrooperTaff]

That's intense

[F/S-MARodriguez]

I've got a few questions about MA's if ya'll got the time to answer them.

1- What exactly does an MA do? I've read the list of responsibilities on about.com about 200 times and still don't get it.

2- On ships, do we just stand around guarding areas and standing watch? Or, do we respond to disturbances such as contraband reports, fights, etc. etc.

3- At CONUS and OCONUS bases that are generally not in a war zone or near one (Spain, Italy, Greece) do we assume the duties of a civilian police officer or do we stand around a gate?

4- In the event we are deployed to a war zone or near one (Afghanistan, Bahrain) what would our job there entail?

6- Is the MA rate everything you thought it would be? For example, I've got the mentality that at times, it will be menial work guarding posts and areas watching paint dry and grass grows. I also understand that as I advance, I will get more responsibility such as law-enforcement and things of the sort.

7- If you could go back to the minute you chose your rate, all things equal, would you have chosen a different rate? If so, would it be because you hate the MA rate, or because you find the other rate much cooler/better?

Thank you all for taking the time to answer my questions. If these have been asked and answered before, I apologize (I used the search function, I promise!). I believe future MA's after myself could also use this information.