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Part-time service: What you need to know before you join

For those leaving active duty, joining the reserves is a way to keep some military benefits and work toward retirement. All the services, including the Coast Guard, have reserve components, and each takes veterans from other services as well as their own alumni.

Before applying for a reserve post, make sure your paperwork is in order. The most important document you need to enlist is Form DD 214, which details your discharge from active duty or a reserve component. Before you leave either, make sure the information it contains is correct.

Look carefully at your total time in service to ensure it includes all active and reserve duty. Active-duty time is critical in computing retired pay.

Be sure your military schools and job codes are listed accurately. Both can determine what position you might be offered in the reserves.

On the bottom of your DD 214 is a re-enlistment code —a numerical representation of your discharge. If this code is wrong, you will not be able to re-enlist.

Save copies of your discharge physical forms SF 88 and SF 93. They are good for two years after discharge, and having them can save time in enlisting.

For those who want to continue in the same service, most installations have transition services that will help you move seamlessly into the reserve component. For those looking for the quickest path to retirement without risking the loss of pay or rank, this is the best option.

In most cases, those who have been discharged for more than 90 days will have to retake the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery. ASVAB scores are valid for two years. Members who transfer directly into the reserves from active duty or affiliate components within the 90-day window do not have to retake the test.

In July 2004, the Defense Department decided to re-compute the ASVAB norms using a group that took the test in 1997. The scores of those who took the ASVAB before 1997 are “grandfathered.”