Hello and good evening all,

Within the next 72 hours I hope to have my seat reserved for the 7 Feb DSS at Jackson. My only remaining speed bump is my phase 2-3 BNCOC waiver which the DS integrator in DC sent off today. (should not be a problem, I’m NG and just got off mob orders 8 Aug and I tried to get to BNCOC phase 2-3 but all dates conflicted with DSS, memo says this)

Anyway, I can’t say how happy I am to be able to follow this goal and get back in uniform. I just want to absorb all information from this forum to help prepare myself and ultimately my soldiers. Any advice is appreciated.

For tonight my questions are:

1) Is there a cadence ban list? (or recommended list for that matter). I don’t want to memorize cadences I can’t use.

2) What can I expect for personality “tweaking” during this course? I’ve heard stories of students having to verbally reprimand trees for 5 minutes. While I actually need to change my personality from going well out of my way to help someone to something a bit harsher, I just wonder what’s in my future.

Thank you,
SSG S

Try this site for some information and POC's for the school:

http://www.jackson.army.mil/dss/index.htm

No off color cadences will be tolerated, no profanity. Some examples of off color cadences that will be barred in school are ones like "My girl's a vegetable, she lives in a hospital" things like that.

I'm not sure if they are still modulating in DSS anymore (doing the D & C modules) some say they are, some drills out of school said they weren't. I think it is changed from cycle to cycle. You won't modulate on the trail regardless.

You can look forward to pretty much re-visiting basic and being treated very much like a private. Lots of heavy classroom work early on in red phase, lots of regs and manuals to study and some dry classes.

Get some good cadences for running and marching committed to memory, get leading standardized PT committed to memory and be able to run. You'll probably do three PT tests there, one initial, one 1-1-1 assessment midway through (student led) and one final (student led) toward the end.

PT standard for graduation is 70% in all events.

The tests aren't bad and just be happy that you are going there as an E6, E7s have a much harder time there. E5's and E6's seem to get a bigger break when they mess up.

Oh, a few more things; Have the following memorized for day ONE:

Soldiers Creed
Drill Sergeants Creed
Army Values
General Orders

You WILL be asked one or all of those within minutes of meeting your DSLs, trust me...know them!

Good Luck!

Thank you for your inputs. CCMSG, I combed through that site yesterday finding anything I could. The modules for D and C look painfully drawn out, but I will spend some time on them. Unfortunately the clothing requirement link is bad, but I should get a POC soon to square that away. In looking at that page I noticed lodging will be paid every 30 days, does that mean students will not be living together in open bays? (I hate hospital corners)

SSGGunbunny, I realy needed that info. Thanks again. As for the creeds, my bathroom here and in my old barracks have long been decorated with the soldiers creed at standing level and the NCO creed at sitting level (you can probably guess why I chose the longer for sitting…) Once I get my printer up again the DS creed will join them. (No disrespect to the creeds, it’s just the best time management I could think of!). For the classroom stuff is it primarily student lead or do the instructors do most the talking? As for the regs, I’m good with them, my soldiers accuse me of being a computer sometimes. I am unfamiliar with the 1-1-1 assessment for half way through the course.


Is there any big event or breaking point in the course I should prepare for? General advise during the course and for when I’m training the troops?

Thanks again,
SSG S

quote:

In looking at that page I noticed lodging will be paid every 30 days, does that mean students will not be living together in open bays? (I hate hospital corners)

I am 99% sure that you will be in barracks and there will be lots of hospital corners to be had. I know that guys that graduated this past summer were in barracks. There are very few wall locker inspections, I think they may have one or two if you piss off the commandant.

Initial classroom stuff is DSL led, students led classroom training comes toward the end. Classes like Conduct Gender Integrated Training, IET Policies and Procedures, Enforce Leadership in IET...etc.

You probably won't be locked down, however the first few weeks are supposed to be like red phase basic, so free time will be limited then.

The 1-1-1 assessment is the same test given to recruits out of reception (it is 1 min push-ups, 1 min sit-ups and 1 mile run) purpose is to let the drills see where a recruit is. It is a familiarization test for you in school to see how one is run.

I can't think of any real surprises, it's very much like a suped-up WLC/BNCOC hybrid. You will also get to revisit some old memories as a participant again like the Bayonet Assault course, Obstacle course and the Night Infiltration Course! Of course, lots of ranges and the FTX Victory Forge. There will be a couple of road marches and that's pretty much it.

Just like in BCT, around week 2 you will get issued a rifle and IBA, which will stay with you through almost all of the training.

Don't sweat the modules, everyone thinks that they are going to fail them but almost no one does. Be familiar with the three stationary ones (Position of Attention, Rest Positions at the Halt and the Hand Salute). If you do modules, you will HAVE to do those three. That will start in your second week probably. If you have to do anything more than those three, you usually roll dice to see which one you will pitch out of a section.

quote:

Is there any big event or breaking point in the course I should prepare for? General advise during the course and for when I’m training the troops?

Yes, never lose anyone! Accountability is probably the most important thing you will have to make sure happens every day in both school and on the trail. If you are missing someone in your formation, you had better know where they are.