Why don't recruiters want applicants to get married prior to enlistment?

There is no extra paperwork: the recruiter is like me, and has seen WAY too many good Marines heartbroken (and financially ruined) by divorce at age 20.

Here's the deal, man: the vast majority of relationships end within a year of the guy enlisting. It's just the way it is. Look at some of the others posts on this board: you see how tormented the girls are at their men leaving? Pretty soon, that torment and anxiety turns to anger...and they'll need someone to 'comfort' them. A male someone, most of the time.

If the relationship is meant to be, then it'll survive the first few years. Get married then, if in the unlikely event that you are still with her.

This is the raw truth. Sucks, but this is the way it is.

Yes you can. There is a Married Couples program that tries to (but doesn't guarantee) keep the couple stationed together. So there is a chance you won't be assigned together. The bankruptcy shouldn't affect enlisting, but could affect security clearances that are required for some jobs. With the bankruptcy, you won't qualify as an Officer Candidate. As to the rest, check with a local Recruiter for the latest info. The animals will have to be taken care of by someone while you go through training, which can take several months. So either kennel them or give them up. They cannot go with you to training.

It's important to remember recruiters aren't ALWAYS looking out for your best interest, and are known to tell you what you want to hear to get your signature on the dotted line.

Now, that said, this IS NOT one of those times. The DOD publishes divorce rates for the different branches of the military, they're pretty high in the Marines.

Your recruiter is giving you advice based on what he's seen with his own eyes, and possibly lived through himself.

I don't know your situation, but if you're under 20 and enlisting, I don't think I'd get married if I were you.

Guys get CRAZY thinking about their chicks. Whether or not Jodie is screwing them at the moment gets to your head after a while. If you want to get SOME insight into how this affects Marines, I recommend the movie "Jarhead". It's not the best movie, but the way that the Marines depict relationships in the Corps is almost dead on in the movie. Fortunately, I was single when I enlisted so I didn't go through all that crap.

Many young people get married before going to boot camp and then it just does not work. Marriage is something that takes time, and with the very little time one will have from the start of boot camp until their first duty station, they will be away from their spouse for sometimes up to and over a year. Boot camp is alread a few months, then you have training after boot camp which camp be from a month and a half to up to six/eight months depending on your job. With that said, your time is not focused on your spouse because you will have limited time to see him/her. Then you find out where you first dity station is..say you are in the Navy, you may finish school, and then your squadron you are assigned to may be out on deployment....you get flown out there and start working. They may only be in their second month of deployment, and have four more to go...spouse is still at home by his/herself.

The thing is...if you and the person you are with are so committed to each other, then allow them to finish boot camp, training, and get used to their new surroundings. Once they are settled, both of you can analyze what's going on and see what the future holds.

well there is that BUT the other thing to consider is that YOU are the one they have allowed to join, shoving another person in via papers is not the best all round, for instance you would be a new recruit going through basic adda wife into the mix and she then has to be added to orders, you then get BAH, you then get tricare for her and any kids that you pop out etc etc.

Most of the recruiters I spoke to always said that if the female can wait out basic and trade with one deployment thrown in then she is a keeper...................

but I think it does boil down to paperwork on some level.

I was married shortly after basic training at 19 yrs old. Almost 11 yrs later I am still married. It can work. But honestly most of the time it does not. Most of the couples that were married when I was in are not anymore. Civilian divorce rate is like 50%. Military is more like 70%.

The emotional attachment. It's easier to train a recruit if they aren't crying about their "achin heart" ...