Currently in the Marines(Sgt/E-5). I’m beginning to weigh my options for other career paths. I’m single, don’t rate BAH or COMRATS (major contributor to why I’m fed up with the Corps, plus a myriad of other reasons). Considering firefighter/ EMT, eventually Paramedic (I did that for a bit before enlisting) if I get out. I’ve always been interested in rescue swimming. If I was able to secure an AST contract at the end of my current enlistment, I’d be coming in NREMT certified at 30 years old. I understand I’d probably take a grade reduction. I Just have some general questions:

1. At what rank/grade do single coasties rate BAH on average( I get it might change from command to command)?
2. If I come in as a diver (with a dive qual from NDSTC, basic scuba+mk16) does that change anything?
3. Can any other prior service dudes talk about the differences between USCG and other branches? (Mainly leadership)
4. How is quality of life? I’d imagine it can’t get worse than what I deal with now. Just wondering if the grass is actually greener.
5. How slow do ASTs pick up rank? I know it’s a sought after MOS. So I’d imagine there is a high re-enlistment rate and competitive promotions.
6. What’s the day to day life on an AST? I’d imagine a lot of maintenance on gear, swimming/finning/working out, and general training.

I’m still on contract for a good while, so I’ve got nothing but time. Any additional thoughts/advice you have are welcome.

Sincerely, a Tired Marine.

What is you enter AST training and are already a national register EMT?

Also, if you don’t complete AST school, what happens to you then? Are you allowed to attend again if you want? And if AST is just not going to happen for you, what do you do then?

Thanks!

I would like a pdf of a HARK manual does anyone have a copy they can send or email to me ?

I have a few question and would appreciate it if any one would answer them. I spent four years in the Marine corps in the infantry and have been out for a little over 2 years now. Right before I got out I actually talked to a coast guard recruiter and she said there is no guarantee I can go to ast a school is that true? Since getting out I got 100 percent disability and am wondering if that’d be a problem. Also I am actually from Elizabeth city NC and was wondering if you get leave or liberty while in a school?

Does anyone know how soon people are receiving orders to go to an air station once their name is placed on the waitlist? Just curious how much longer I’ll be at my unit before I get to move to an airsta to train more. Thanks

Does anyone know about the current state of Annex X? Looking at enlistment very soon and wanted to ask about RSMAPP when talking about contracts.

Currently in the Air Force, was flirting with the idea of going rescue swimmer. Does anyone know how that process works from going Air Force to Coast Guard? Another question was let’s say I commission then go in as an officer how does that work?Anything helps, appreciate it.

I feel slightly embarrassed even asking this question since it’s such a selfless job, but are enlistees eligible for the college credit bonus if they ship in the AST RS/MAPP program? I only ask because according to the CGs spreadsheet, they specify the bonus is for college educated non rates. Thanks to all for any information you could provide

If a third-class gets their change in rate forms approved and is put on the AST A School list, will they be released of their rate’s duties and sent to an AIRSTA a couple months prior to attending A School like the rest of non-rates in MAPP? Or does this not apply to petty officers?

How does training differ from before/after enlisting but before you get to A-school? Do people ramp up the intensity once they join?

Would someone please explain the wait times to me? I see that AST wait times fluctuate between a 1 and 1.5 years. Looking at the wait times for other rates as well, I see that the person waiting longest in the line could have been there for three years.

Every now and then I’ll look into wait times and there will be someone who’s been on the list for easily, four times as long as the estimated time.

I hope there’s some crucial piece of information I’m missing.

I received an 82 on the AFQT on the ASVAB yesterday. Based on what the recruiter told me, I should be qualified for AST in the CG.. However. I scored 155 out of 162 on the VE+MC+AS. One sheet I found online shows you must get a min of 65 on AFQT OR a 162 (VE+MC+AS), is this true?

My AR score is 59. Minimum is 52 far as I know.

question for the ASTs, how are the academics in A school? I know there is a ton of cardio, workouts, swimming but I know there are class days as well. Just wondering what thats like.

First off I made an account for this question so sorry if the format is suboptimal. I'm a little older (27) but fit, and would like to pursue this as a career but don't want to wait to get much older if I can. I'm in my final phases of recruiting and set to ship end of the month and go in as a non-rate where my loose plan was to put my name on the ast list and use the structure and resources available to me to complete physical training for selection properly. I have Stews book and have found it very helpful at illuminating the actual challenge and standards I'm up against.

I have a way to go fitness-wise for the job but I'm in good shape, healthy and highly motivated, my problem is having time to focus on real training and I don't even have access to a pool where I am and with my current work schedule so I mostly run and lift.

TLDR, My question: Is it feasible to go in as a non-rate in my situation and get in good enough shape to pass selection by the time my name is called up? Or is that a little bit of fantasy? Right now I believe the wait is 12-15 months.

Thanks for the help guys

Just had two quick questions

Can't seem to find clarification on this, will over/unders be performed withoit fins ever?

Second question, how do y'all practice buddy towing without someone to drag around, and does anyone have good info on form or videos performing buddy tows?

Dear Rescue Swimmers,

​

WARNING: This might be a bit long as I do have a fair amount of questions.

​

A little about myself: I am 20 years old and halfway through a bachelor's degree in computer engineering who does some lifeguarding and swim instructing on the side. Through the few internships that I have had in this career field, I am not finding the life satisfaction I thought I would. I feel like it lacks purpose for me. I have also always said that if money were no object, I would want to work SAR (specifically be the person jumping out of helos). And recently, I have begun to fall down the rabbit hole that is the coast guard. Currently my goal is to finish off the degree, then see about enlisting. Unfortunately, money is an object in life, so that seems like a good segway into Question #1.

​

Question #1: $$$. Being an enlisted rate, clearly this is not a job to chase hoping to get rich. And I'm fine with that. An excess of money does not interest me, I just want enough to live. Here is my question explicitly, does enlisted pay enough to where I won't be dirt poor while being able to setup retirement, investing, own a house, etc. What has been your experience?

​

Question #2: Career & Advancement. From what I've seen/heard/read, the coast guard, both officer and enlisted, is quite competitive when it comes to promotions. AST being a small rate, I imagine it to be even more competitive/stagnant. My ideal scenario currently is to spend maybe 10+ years as an AST then become a warrant officer (which also raises another question - how well does AST -> AVI?). This would require making at least E6 with good exam scores. How feasible is this or how long could this take? Another route I have been thinking of recently is getting a nursing degree while being an AST and then joining as a Healthcare officer. Again, how feasible is this/could this be? How difficult is it to make the next enlisted rank as an AST?

​

Question #3: Health & Physical Longevity. Is it reasonable to expect/set a goal of being in the AST rate for 10+ years given the toll?

​

Question #4: Family. How does taking leave work? As my grandparents get older, will I be able to take the time off to see them?

​

Question #5: AST vs HS. I have been watching the coast guard alaska series on the DangerTV youtube channel and was surprised to see that in proper medivacs where there is a known injured person, they will bring along a flight medic. Aren't ASTs also EMT trained like HS? Why are ASTs not practicing medicine like the flight HS? There was a chief who mentioned not being qualified to start an IV? - I guess a sub question to this is, is there a way to specialize/gain the qualification necessary to/practice a "higher" form of medicine or fully use the EMT training as an AST.

​

"Question" #6: Potential setbacks. I'm scared of heights. Like went on a ferris wheel once and really did not enjoy it scared of heights. I imagine the adrenaline + other people depending on me + exposure therapy during training will set me right, but was wondering if anyone else had similar feelings about heights before/after joining.

-Also, I have been previously treated for seizures. They are controlled now through medication and have not happened in the last 7 years. -Worried this would be a barrier for flight physical. I know I need to speak with a recruiter about this.

​

For those of you who read all of that, thank you. And for those of you generous enough with your time to answer some or all of my many questions, thank you much.

​

TLDR: AST is my calling, but have some questions^

Hi there! I am embarking on the journey to do an in depth research analysis into CGAS’s. How they operate, the hierarchy within them, the divisions within one, the command structure, the “shift” schedule, all the possible rates that operate within them, etc.

I am hoping that I can come to any knowledgable people, or better yet, active/retired swimmers that could assist me in obtaining this knowledge to add to my research. I am finishing out my degree in Homeland Security and we were tasked with doing an extensive in depth analysis of any DHS organization, so I decided to narrow it down to something I plan to pursue affer college.

For a more to-the-point section, below is a list of straight forward questions that I’d like answered. Thank you to everyone who helps me out!

Q1. What divisions are included at your average air station? Take CGAS Humboldt Bay as an example.

Q2. Within each division, what is the hierarchy like?

Q3. Specifically in the AST shop, how is this structured? Who is in charge of who? I’ve heard terms like shop chief, shop supervisor, blah blah blah, but never really knew where those fell in line.

Q4. Within the AMT/AET realm, how is that structured? Similarly to Q3.

Q5. Who do pilots report to? I understand they are “Aircraft Commanders”, so does that mean the swimmers and flight mech’s report to the pilots directly? Please expand on this.

Q6. What off-the-wall rates are operational within air stations? Rates you don’t think of when you think of air station.

Q7. How is the shift scheduled? Is it 48 on, 72 off, like a firefighter or what?

Q8. Any information on the ground crew for the planes and helicopters? Who they report to, what division they belong to, their hierarchy, what rates are involved, etc.

Any other information would be absolutely amazing. Pick a couple questions to respond to, or respond to all of them! Regardless, thank you guys in advance and I’ll absolutely credit anyone who helps me out that would like to be cited.

Just a question that popped up in my head earlier today. What would happen if you get a minor injury or the flu while in A school?

I know this sounds goofy, but I’ve been doing a new fairly heavy load of finning recently, like swim 5 days a week about 2500-3400M a day with about 1800-2000 of that being with fins. But I’ve found my runs have drastically decreased while doing this. My cardio feels generally fine.. but my legs are just super super tight all of the time, specifically quads/hamstrings. Has anyone else found this to be an issue? How did you overcome it? I went from comfortable 3-6 mile runs at 7-8 minute pace with a few low 6’s thrown in. To now I’m just barely breaking below 7 if I send it.

Would it be wise to have a companion during the AST pipeline? There is a girl i really like, and i’m 7 months from basic training. What should i do?

I would like to buy a team wendy SAR helmet to replace the one from my rescue company (that are literally kite surf helmet, even for night operations, helicopter, swim and high surfaces manipulations bruh) but i have few questions. -Are they worth the money? -Are they modular enough or should I buy a BUMP? -Are they mask-friendly for swimming, because are pretty huge? And another question that deals with night vision : we don't deal with that kind of technology due to lack of money (the national coast guard here is financed by donations) so we do man-over-board researches with flashlight or boat light, like in the 70s (bruh x2) If i had the opportunity to buy a night vision goggle, are they worthy? Have some of you used some and if yes, was it good and which model was it? 🤙

Hey all, Im shipping to basic pretty soon here. Been training for about 10 months with my primary focus in the gym being PT style workouts. Im finishing up Stew Smiths SAR swimmer program right now and have seen pretty sizeable improvements in all my PT test results except for pushups. I started at 40 pushups day one and 10 months later Im still hitting like 45-50 at best. My overall ability to handle pushups volume in a workout has improved a lot but my max is just stuck. I come from a strength training background but Im not a big guy thats getting weighed down by show muscle or anything. Ive tried grease the groove, Stews 2 week pushup increaser, taking time to lift, resting and probably some others Im forgetting. I just cannot get past 45 consecutive, my chest and arms get pumped out and im spent. Anyone else had this problem and found a way through it? Thanks in advance!

Also might as well ask, the standard is consecutive pushups right? Like you stop for any amount of time and wherever youve stopped thats your final number? No resting in the up position then squeezing out 5 at a time or something.

Main question : How many of you joined being at a low point in your life / not having a plan B?

If you didn’t make the cut what would you have done?

How many years did you plan on serving and how many did you actually do?

What is the hardest part to you about being a rescue swimmer?

So this is a topic I can’t find a lot of info on.. is the annex contract an initial 6 year sign or is it time to a school plus one fully duty station or is it 4 years with a 2 year add on if you complete a school?

For context I’m a 16 year old, half way through junior year. I currently have been running cross country for 3 years and go to the gym 6 days a week. I’m in pretty good shape and mix up my workouts with endurance, calisthenics and strength training but my one problem is I don’t swim. Now I know how bad that sounds, but I didn’t know what a AST was till 3 months ago. I have wanted to join the military since I was in middle school but couldn’t find a job that really gave me motivation to train for. There’s something about a coast guard rescue swimmer that has inspired me like no other job. So getting to my point, is there anyway to go from average to rescue swimmer in the pool in roughly 2-3 years.

I just took my AST/RS MAPP Test and have passed before shipping to bootcamp. Do I have to take this test once again in bootcamp?

Hey legends,

I’m an 18 year old lifeguard/emt who’s quite interested in becoming an AST. I’ve spent the past two years on and off researching and have covered (to the extent someone who doesn’t have the job can) most of my bases in terms of knowledge of the career/lifestyle etc. The main issue that’s preventing me taking a step towards becoming a swimmer is that I have a “psychiatric history”. Sounds gnarlier than it is. But basically I have been on low dose antidepressants for 4 years give or take. From what I’ve heard I shouldn’t go to a recruiter until I’m fully ready to enlist fitness wise(I’m a couple months out from my goal numbers), and I know that I need to be off my meds legitimately as well. Curious if anyone has any thoughts on order of operations or words of advice in terms of the waiver process as a whole? Thanks all!

Has anyone had any issues with lifeguards at a YMCA saying they can't train with a rubber dive brick? / does anyone think doing a bucket tow workout would cause a ruckus? I guess just tell them what I'm there for? No access to a military pool at or near my small boat station.. without driving a few hours..

Hey guys, I just passed the AST RS/MAPP physical test and am in the program now, I ship to bootcamp the 23rd. I got a 9:17 on my 500 yard swim after training very hard to bring my time down from 40 minutes when I started swimming and am very happy.

Im just wondering, how often will I be training with Rescue Swimmer mentors before A School, Do I have time to keep training apart from them if training is not frequent?

Is there any reading/study material that is beneficial in my down time? I am trying to juggle family, training to join USCG as AST, and working full time job at 33years old so when I finally sit down I still want to be productive. Maybe make things easier academically at A school. I found the COAST GUARD HELICOPTER RESCUE SWIMMER MANUAL, COMDTINST M3710.4D Nov 2018 online but was wondering if there is something more current. Anything EMT related would be helpful too. Any guidance is appreciated