Lad, you are not only not going to see them a lot and even when you are with them they will see more of you than you will of them because you will be crashing to catch up on your sleep. The good news is that this will condition them for what lies ahead once you are on a team and not only will they not get a chance to see you but they won't often know where you are or what you are doing.

What happened to the PCS for training, no family moves that was the standard in lthe past. It wasn't meant as a punishment, but as a way to focus the guys on the mission at hand - the "Q".

Guys- what you volunteered for is NOT FAMILY FRIENDLY, for training or for team time - you better let your significant others know that little fact, and you better realize it too.

My G-2 is a little dated, but in the early 90s once you were selected, you went back to your home station and awaited PCS orders. I had to fight with some civilian back then, who "remembered and interperted" the reg like you do. I finally had to pull out the reg and show them it was not TDY(temporary duty) for Training and return, but that it was in fact a full PCS to Ft Bragg, even though the outcome was far from certain.

I would tell anyone who is about to undergo the Q course with a family in tow: Make sure that your wife is of the pioneer spirit. She better know how to navigate the post beauracracy, and be able to function completely on her own. This will be good training for what's to follow because Team life is even rougher on a family, and a clinging vine dependent will cause a load of problems.


I survived with a wife and 3 small kids. When I was in AIMC, when I would come home at night and pull out the leg key to practice, I had to let the kids play with it for 15-20 minutes (basically till they got tired of it) before I could get my licks in. My youngest ( now 18 and 5 inches taller than me) can still tell you what Z is in Morse code.... Don't ask me why but "Dah-dah-di-dit" really made em laugh. Thats what memories are made of.

It can be done, but don't sugar coat it, it's gonna be tough on the family.

The current SFQC layout has family time available during Phase III and Language School.

You willl not see your family (or your house) much, if any, during Phase IA, I, II, PLDC, BNCOC, SERE, or Robin Sage.

At the same time, if you think you are going to remain in the Bragg area after the Q Course or just want to have your family in the area for moral support, AD students should be able to PCS the families with you when you return for Phase II.

Note that the Army will not support two homes for you simultaneously, nor will they normally give you BAQ for your family and provide you with quarters on Bragg (to include barracks space).

The main reason to PCS the family is, IMHO, to remove the financial and emotional burden of trying to maintain two separate households simultaneously. Even if you are sharing an apartment with two or three classmates, the phones, water power, cable, internet access, cars, food, etc. quickly add up, and your better half may not be especially understanding when rumors of young ladies leaving your apartment during the wee hours arise, even if you know they were there visiting your single roommate.

Obviously, each situation is different, and is affected by wife, kids (if any), in-laws, financial situation, special needs, etc.

Good luck.

TR

I want to add: at least 50% of my class was married with kids. Our class bonded pretty early and we had some good "take charge" wives that knew how to run a family support group. We also had some great class parties that let everyone blow off steam, and let the wives get to know each other. Some of the friendships are still goin strong... at least in my case.

It ain't easy, but it can be done, as long as you prepare the family for what lies ahead.