The two symbols mean courage and strength…and they are on my forearm.
The military does not want "sleeve" tattoos, or, those that are visible with a short sleeve short on. I wouldn’t be surprised if they say no.
Neck tattoos are also not accepted.
I want to join the US Coast Guard but since I have two japanese symbol tattoos…the recruiter says maybe no?
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February 11th, 2010 at 8:14 pm
i dont blame them one bit
have you forgoten pearl harbour
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February 11th, 2010 at 8:58 pm
That’s great. I hope they don’t take you unless you have the tattoos removed. There are consequences to having tattoos.
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February 11th, 2010 at 9:14 pm
They will ask you what the meaning of your tattoo is and what it means to you. As long as it isn’t "I like pain, and every time I am depressed I get a tattoo" or "These tattoos represent my hate for (insert race here)", they will simply note that you have the tattoos in your medical record and move on with it.
Another sticking point would be if the tattoos were in odd places such as your neck, face, or hands. But they’re not, so it’s ok.
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February 11th, 2010 at 9:32 pm
maybe the navy will take you
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February 11th, 2010 at 10:05 pm
Walk down to the ARMY recruiter you should have no trouble at all getting in. If you only have two and there on your forearm.
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February 11th, 2010 at 10:12 pm
The military does not want "sleeve" tattoos, or, those that are visible with a short sleeve short on. I wouldn’t be surprised if they say no.
Neck tattoos are also not accepted.
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February 11th, 2010 at 10:31 pm
They changed their policy on tattoos a couple of years ago and unless it’s been changed since then it should still be current. If your tattoos are between your elbow and wrist they cannot be more than 25% of the area. Content is also considered. They cannot be racist, indecent, or extremist.
http://www.uscg.mil/hq/G-W/flagvoice/fv252.htm
Good Luck.
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February 11th, 2010 at 10:57 pm
I dont think it’s so much of a matter of what it means or what they look like, it’s the location of such. Of course if you had something offensive on any part of your body, you would be denied, but these symbols apparently aren’t offensive or obscene in nature, so it can’t be that. I think it’s because of the location, right on the visible portion of your upper body.
You need to understand that the military wants their personnel to look professional, tattoos on the hands, forearms, neck, face, etc etc, show a deficency between you and the guy standing next to you.
If your wearing a uniform, and a tattoo can be clearly seen, it’s usually a no-go. Of course there are always the possibilities of exceptions, I know the Army can usually grant more waivers for such because they are the biggest branch and need to meet the biggest recruiting goals. Branches such as the Coast Guard can be more selective and dont’ usually allow people in (with such circumstances) because they don’t presently have the need for a lot of recruits, thus, they may take the guy without the tattoo over yourself.
Good luck, hope all goes well.
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