First a little background...

I'm preparing for my next "permanent change of station" move (that's how we in the US Army refer to reassignment to another base/post). I've been a Major now for almost 4 years and have only 2-3 more years before my next expected promotion and I have not yet attended my mandatory military education course required as a Major...so I have known that school will be my next assignment now for the past couple of years. They typical course attended by most officers is a course called ILE (intermediate level education) at the Command and General Staff College at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. This school is a year long Army school. Most officers who have not already earned a Master's Degree also take this time to take courses on nights and weekends in order to earn a degree as well...but this, of course, has a cost in both money and free time which could otherwise be spent with your family. For the past 3 years or so I have been hoping to attend the Naval Postgraduate School (NPS) program at Monterey, California instead of taking the standard Army School. The NPS program is open to all officers, but Special Operations officers, such as myself, have preference...but getting the Army to send you there is a competitive board process. Two years ago I didn't apply because I had been promised a much desired position at Fort Bragg, NC...and then got unexpectantly reassigned to Fort Drum NY. Last year I submitted my paperwork to the NPS and got my "conditional acceptance" letter (meaning that I was accepted academically on the condition that the Army decides to pay my tuition and assign me to attend)...so I contacted my assignments officer. I didn't get an answer right away...and then after a series of emails back and forth found out I had missed the deadline for the board.

So to the present...
I delayed my start date with NPS and made sure my application packet was in for the Army selection board this year. The board was supposed to have met in July but got delayed a month...ugh I can't handle this waiting!!! The board finally met about 2 weeks ago. On Tuesday I received a standardized email from an Army school enrollment system notifying me that I had been enrolled in a 2 week preparatory course at MONTEREY CALIFORNIA!!! I take this to mean that I was selected by the board...

The hesitant part is two-fold...the date of the course is June 2011...I was planning on starting this December. I tried to contact my assignments manager only to get an "out of office" response saying that he was gone all this week...so I'm still in limbo about when I'm going.

I also have not receive any official email or letter saying "Congratulations, you were selected"...just that enrollment email....so I'm still stuck waiting...but I'm rather confident that I will be headed to California at some point in the next 9 months to be a full time graduate student...YAY!!!!

PS...sorry for the novel!!!