Would I be eligible to join...

[lanternslight]

I am 25, no criminal history, I have a BA in Psychology, and I am in very good shape.

The only problem I have is that I have owned a business for the past three years and it just went under. I have lost everything and my credit is horrible. I am in default on several things. I've tried to avoid filing bankruptcy, business or personal, because I prefer to pay my bills. Problem is you can't start a good career most places with bad credit...I'm finding out this is true about the military is well. So I may do a bankruptcy at some point. If I you would have run a credit check on me a year ago I was 800+!

Would my credit make me ineligible for all positions or only positions that require security clearance? If I can join, just not security clearance positions...could you tell me some that I would qualify for?

Any info on this subject would be great.

Thanks,
Patrick

[SPC_Nelson]

Patrick i know for one that doesnt require a security clearence and that would be a 19k which a a Abrams Armor Crewmen (M1A1 Tank Crew Member)

[matthew.ritchie]

The majority of jobs do not require a clearance. As long as there are no criminal proceedings (e.g., fraud), then a bad credit rating per se will not prevent you from enlisting.

A bad credit rating will certainly hurt your chances of obtaining a clearance, but will not necessarily prevent you either. Whatever you do, disclose everything up-front! Hiding information will definitely ruin your chances. The OPM investigators may be slow, but they are thorough -- if they find out something you didn't tell them, they get quite suspicious about what else you're hiding.