Sample Chapters
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Chapter 4: The Delayed Enlistment Program
- For a quick overview of getting out of the Delayed Entry Program, see The GI Rights Hotline fact sheet.
Criteria
A member of the Delayed Entry Program receives a physical, takes an aptitude test, is often given a choice of training options, and, most importantly, receives a date to report for active duty. The reporting date may be up to 365 days after the date of enlistment.
A person who signs an enlistment agreement and takes the oath of enlistment is a member of the military. While Delayed Enlistment Program members receive no pay or benefits and attend no drills, time spent in the Delayed Entry Program does count towards the eight year military service obligation. Members of the Delayed Enlistment Program are not yet subject to the Uniform Code of Military Justice, the body of law which governs military personnel. While required to report to recruiters any changes which could affect their enlistment eligibility, Delayed Entry Program members are not subject to military orders other than an official call to active duty.
Members of the military on active duty or in the reserves must meet strict requirements when seeking a discharge. In contrast, the process for members of the Delayed Enlistment Program is simple and relatively informal. Discharge categories for members of the Delayed Entry Program, many of which are not available to other members of the military, include a catch-all "other" category that can apply to any situation. The Army specifically instructs recruiters that a member of the Delayed Enlistment Program "may submit a request for separation even though his or her reason for it does not fall within an expressed category...."1
Delayed Entry Program members may be separated for:
- conscientious objection,
- medical disqualification or psychiatric disorder,
- marriage,
- pregnancy,
- drug use or criminal conviction (which may be termed a moral disqualification),
- personal hardship,
- dependency,
- acceptance of scholarship, or pursuit of higher education,
- religious training, or appointment as ordained minister,
- failure of high school senior to graduate high school,
- personal problem (including apathy),
- recruiting error,
- enlistment misunderstanding,
- refusal to enlist,
- not reporting on date scheduled,
- overweight or underweight,
- other reason.2
The pressure recruiters place on members of the Delayed Enlistment Program to report for active duty can be intense. Recruiters will contact a Delayed Entry Program member by phone or in person every two weeks, then weekly in the last 45 days before the recruit's reporting date for active duty.3 The recruiter will talk about the recruit's eligibility, referrals of potential recruits, and upcoming Delayed Enlistment Program functions.
Members of the Delayed Entry Program are rewarded when they refer their friends and acquaintances to their recruiter and encourage them to enlist. In the Army, a recruit who refers one or more people to the recruiter receives an award, such as an "Army" T-shirt or windbreaker.4 If three of a recruit's referrals enlist, the recruit is rewarded by entering basic training at a higher pay grade.5
Monthly Delayed Enlistment Program meetings may include the teaching of general military subjects (such as first aid and the military's phonetic alphabet), descriptions of physical training (PT) and suggested ways to prepare for it, visits to local military installations, guest speakers, and socializing. Awards and promotions are conferred at special Delayed Entry Program meetings, attended by family, friends, and peers -- and include special guest speakers, movies, videos, military displays, and other programs. Local Delayed Enlistment Program newsletters publish the names of new members, news of promotions for members who referred others who later enlisted, news of recruits now on active duty, and general military subjects. The meetings, awards, promotions, regular contact, peer, family, and community recognition are intended to build in the member a sense of pride and loyalty in belonging to the military "family."
Certain recruiting activities are expressly prohibited, and can be reported to the recruiting command at the local and national level. Recruiters have no authority to order Delayed Entry Program members to attend special Delayed Enlistment Program meetings or to recruit their friends. Recruiters also may not threaten recruits with involuntary activation. (See Failure to Report for Active Duty) Other activities that are not permitted include:
- firing weapons;
- riding in military vehicles other than automobiles;
- overnight hikes and outings;
- canoe trips, river-rafting, scuba diving, etc.;
- military maneuvers or marches; and,
- organized physical training.6