Reservists In The US Coast Guard

Recently, Reservists in the US Coast Guard have been hit hard by the decrease in funding to America’s DHS departments. Loss of tuition assistance (TA) has several negative affects on US Coast Guard reserve members. Due to the recent financial climate the benefit of TA for reservists has been stripped away and has no sign of returning in the new future. TA once allowed a benefit of $4,500 per year for drilling reserve members to use towards college credited classes to pursue a degree. Reservists maintain some the same qualifications and required training as their active duty counterparts but receive far less benefits. The loss of TA has caused reservists: to have a loss of morale, decreased self-worth, and decreased retention of junior members. …show more content…
All this is completed with reservists only drilling two days a month and two weeks a year, or working 10% of the time that active duty members work. Currently, active duty members are entitled to a TA benefit $4,000 per year to complete a college degree; they are also allowed to use TA to pursue a master’s degree. This disparity causes Reservists to feel less valued as their active duty counterparts and to have a sense of low self-worth in the Coast Guard. Many Reservists signed up for the Coast Guard for the very reason of TA and that benefit has been wiped away from them. A reasonable solution would be for the Coast Guard would be to allow for a benefit of $2,000 per year for each Reservist. Year after year the issue is brought up and the typical answer is there isn’t any funding available. If funds are available for active duty members to use, especially for a master’s degree, then there is no reason it can’t be made available to …show more content…
The goals and motivation between younger members and senior members can vary greatly. Younger members are typically not in a secure financial position and the loss of TA can be detrimental to their financial situation. A real life example is of MK3 Ryan Jimenez who, when he signed up for the Coast Guard Reserves was afforded the benefit of TA. Ryan was an excellent performer, well qualified and had a great attitude when he arrived for drill weekend. He traveled 180 miles one way to drill on the weekends, he worked 50 hours a week in his civilian job to support his wife and himself. TA was taken away from him and he was forced to drop several of his classes and this delayed his graduation. Just recently his enlistment came due to expire and he chose not to reenlist due to the loss of TA. For Ryan, the low drill pay, time away from his family and long commute made it not worth his valuable time once TA was discontinued. This situation is happening Coast Guard wide in the Reserves and this organization needs to return TA to help retain valuable

Show More

American Veterans Research Paper

Anxiety Disorder and Millennium Cohort Essay

Reservists In The US Coast Guard

Related Documents: Reservists In The US Coast Guard

American Veterans Research Paper

Anxiety Disorder and Millennium Cohort Essay