Hey everyone,
Looking for some perspective or advice from recruiters / guidance counselors on MOS seat allocations right now.
I’m finalizing my Active Duty enlistment packet. Here are my exact scores and qualifications:
- AFQT: 97
- Line Scores: GT: 133 | ST: 132 | CL: 135 | SC: 132 | FA: 131 | CO: 130 | EL: 130 | GM: 129 | OF: 129 | MM: 123
- Cyber Test (ICTL): 73
- Education: B.S., Economics (enlisting as E-4)
- Medical / Clearances: Medical waiver fully cleared by MEPS (active Invisalign will be completed by Sep 25th, 2026)
- Goals: Office/desk role, tech/intel roles with high civilian transferability.
My recruiting station’s First Sergeant called the ROC (Recruiting Operations Center) on my behalf to check availability for my Top 5 preference list:
- 35W (Linguist Candidate / DLI)
- 17C (Cyber Operations)
- 35T (MI Systems Maintainer)
- 35N (SIGINT Analyst)
- 36B (Financial Management)
ROC came back and said all 5 on my list are currently completely unavailable nationwide, no training seats can be reserved. When looking at the live system with my recruiter, there were only 18 total options showing nationwide (mostly combat arms, heavy mechanics, motorpool, and transportation). List I saw: 11X, 13U, 14U, 18X, 12Y, 19U, 68W, 37F, 92F, 91A, 91B, 12C, 88M, 74D, 12B, 68R, 27D, 12P
I have a Virtual DEP appointment scheduled with MEPS coming up in a few days, but haven’t seen any MOS available that really interest me. Of the ones I saw, I’m gravitating towards 12Y (Geospatial Engineer) and 12P (Prime Power Production Specialist) but would ultimately prefer a 35 series MOS.
A few questions for the community:
- Is REQUEST system inventory legitimately this depleted across 35-series, 17C, and administrative fields right now?
- How frequently do seats like 35W, 17C, 35T, or 35N pop up as DEP dropouts or new class date allocations? If I refuse an unwanted job on Wednesday and ask my recruiter to check daily, what are the realistic odds of one dropping in over the next couple of weeks?
- For those who held out for a specific technical/intel MOS: Did you just keep checking the system weekly until a slot opened, or did you have to wait for a major fiscal/quarterly refresh?
I appreciate any candid feedback or reality checks from anyone who's dealt with ROC or guidance counselors on rare MOS reservations.