Do I get paid as a chaplain candidate?
As a chaplain candidate, will the Army pay me while I’m in seminary? The short answer is “no”. Chaplain candidates belong to either USAR or USARNG. No Reserve or Guard Soldiers are paid except when they train. USARNG chaplain candidates are paid when they drill, attend CHBOLC, or participate in candidate training practicums. USAR candidates [...]
Face of Defense: Future Army Chaplain Answers Call to Serve
WASHINGTON – Army Reserve 2nd Lt. Alec Scott felt a higher calling at a young age that led him not only down a military path, but down a religious one as well. Scott is studying to be a Catholic priest at Mount St. Mary’s Seminary in Emmitsburg, Md., while also preparing for a career as [...]
Chaplain Candidate Appointment Process
Perhaps one of the most difficult steps of becoming a Chaplain or Chaplain Candidate is finding a recruiter to speak to face to face. Not because recruiters do not want to talk to you or give you information, recruiters typically go out of their way to get you information you need, but because the typical [...]
Charleston officials provide dignified transfer training for Army chaplains
CHARLESTON AIR FORCE BASE, S.C. (AFNS) – More than 170 Army chaplain candidates gathered on the flightline here July 14 to receive training in the honors given to fallen servicemembers during dignified transfers of human remains. Last August, officials at the Army Chaplain Center and School at Fort Jackson, S.C., began coordinating with Charleston Air Force Base officials to [...]
Chaplain Candidate series to be expanded
Probably the most popular articles on my website are those about the Army Chaplain Candidate program. I began writing the articles to help others learn more about the chaplain candidate process, something I didn’t know much about when I first became a candidate. The series has been on hold for a while because of my [...]
CHOBC. Part 1.
All Army chaplains must complete the Chaplain Officer Basic Course (CHOBC). This course takes place at the U.S. Army Chaplain Center and School (USACHCS) at Fort Jackson in Columbia, South Carolina. I am frequently questioned by civilians whether chaplains go through basic training. No, chaplains do not go through basic training (boot camp), as enlisted [...]
I’m a Second Lieutenant. Now what?
Okay, you’ve been through the paperwork and your packet went before the chaplain candidate appointment board. You were approved and you’ve received your appointment packet, sworn the oath of office, and mailed the papers in. You’ve received your commission and your letter of appointment to the IRR. Now what? Education The most important thing you [...]
The chaplain candidate appointment process. Part 2.
One of the most critical pieces in the chaplain candidate life cycle–and in the chaplaincy in general–is the ecclesiastical endorsement. For chaplain candidates, this is actually referred to as “ecclesiastical approval” instead of “ecclesiastical endorsement”. You will get nowhere as a prospective chaplain candidate/chaplain if you do not have an ecclesiastical approval/endorsement. What is an [...]
