What Provisions do the Armed Forces Make for a Single Mother Who Wants to Join the Service?

You cannot join unless you do some rather drastic steps.

Single Parents

With the exception of the Army National Guard, single parents are not allowed to enlist in the military, period. In the "old days," some recruits would try to get around this restriction by giving up legal custody of their child(ren) until after basic training and job school, but the military has wised up to this practice.

For example, in the Marine Corps, one must give up legal custody (by court order) of their child(ren), and then wait one year or more before being eligible for enlistment. In the Army and Air Force, single member parent applicants who, at the time of initial processing for enlistment, indicate they have a child or children in the custody of the other parent or another adult are advised and required to acknowledge by certification that their intent at the time of enlistment was not to enter the Air Force/Army with the express intention of regaining custody after enlistment. These applicants must execute a signed statement testifying they have been advised that, if they regain custody during their term of enlistment, they will be in violation of the stated intent of their enlistment contract. They may be subject to involuntary separation for fraudulent entry unless they can show cause, such as the death or incapacity of the other parent or custodian, or their marital status changes from single to married.

The military's refusal to accept single parents for enlistment is a valid one. The military is no place for a single parent. Due to a divorce, I spent the last six years of my military career as a single parent, and it is the singularly most difficult thing I have ever done in my life. In the military, the mission always comes first. Absolutely no exceptions are made in assignments, deployments, duty hours, time off, or any other factor for single parents. Single parents in the military are required to have a nonmilitary person (in the local area) on call at all times, 24-hours-per-day, seven-days-per-week, 365 days-per-year, who will agree (in writing) to take custody of their child(ren) at no notice, in the event that the military member is deployed or called to duty. Failure to comply with these " Family Care Plans" can (and does) result in an immediate discharge.

This is not like going to work for IBM or B of A.

SSG US Army 73-82

The air force will require a family care plan before she will be accepted. That includes not only day-to-day childcare while she is at work, but the legal custody arrangements and documents for while she is in basic and tech school, deployed, or killed. Due to these requirements single parents, particularly single mothers have difficulty joining the military.

definite they might, my cousin merely joined the Marines approximately 6 months in the past. She has one woman. She had to renounce non everlasting custody of her daughter whilst in Boot Camp yet now has her returned and is residing on on base housing. She has had to have a relatives care plan so whilst she is deployed or has to bypass on container routines somebody will take her daughter for the time she is deployed or at education.

Child care is available however single parents must have a family care plan in place for when they deploy or go to school or other training. The military is a very challenging place for two parent families - I don't know any single parents in the military. It would be difficult at best.

NONE...

Single Parents cannot enlist...anymore...

Must be Single...

No Dependence...

Minimum AVASB of 50

Minimum Education...

"High School Diploma...No GED's...

No Waivers...

The Military is Not a Social Program...

A single parent cannot enlist for active duty in the US military.

Only the Army National Guard will sometime accept a single parent for enlistment.

If I remember correctly she may have to sign away custody. Afterward she can try to regain custody. Tell her to talk to a recruiter and he will be able to answer all of her questions.

She has to give up custody while training and will have to have a plan for after that.