How to Enlist With the Army National Guard in Louisiana

You have to do four things before you are considered active duty.

Enlisting with the Army National Guard in Louisiana is the same for enlisting in the Army National Guard anywhere else in the nation. You must be at least 18 years of age and reasonably physically fit to pass certain test requirements. The Army National Guard does have certain height and weight restrictions that are now the same for both men and women. To enlist, you must first contact a recruiter who will then work with you throughout the rest of the enlistment processes.

Things You'll Need

• Phone
• School transcripts

Instructions

1. Contact a recruiter in your local area. Each area of Louisiana is broken down into zones, with recruiters being stationed in each zone. Call 800-GO-GUARD or visit nationalguard.com and you will be directed to a local recruiter near you. You will be asked to provide information on your application about past residences, prior convictions and career choice interests.

2. Take the ASVAB test. This stands for the "Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery" and helps determine career choices you may have access to when you finalize your enlistment. Most applicants take the ASVAB test before their junior or senior year of high school. If you have not taken the ASVAB or did particularly poor on it, you will be asked to retake it. If you do not know your original ASVAB score, the military has a way of looking it up for you.

3. Attend a session at the military entrance processing station (MEPS) as directed by your recruiter. These sessions last nearly all day and may last longer than eight hours.

   At MEPS, you will be required to undergo several types of medical examinations including vision checks and head-to-toe physicals, and you'll be asked to finalize your career choices. The MEPS session usually happens about two weeks after you have taken your ASVAB test. There can be delays of up to one month if there are any glitches in your paperwork or delays in verifying transcript and other background information.

4. Be officially sworn in. This is done at the end of MEPS once everything is finalized. You are now a member of the Army National Guard.

Tips & Warnings

• Have a general idea of what you want to do for a career choice while enlisted with the Army National Guard serving in Louisiana before you enlist. Study hard for the ASVAB test--the higher score you achieve, the more career options you'll have.

• Read your enlistment contract carefully. A normal enlistment requires six years active service performing weekend drills and yearly trainings, as well as two more years of inactive status. If you choose a specialized field, and the military cannot find another service member with your expertise, you can be called back to active status during your two years of inactive status period.

References

• Harry Anderson; Specialist, National Guard; Alexander, Louisiana
• Texas Army National Guard: Guard Glossary