Pros
Professional leadership, experienced NCO’s, and high performing soldiers all around. Deployments! If you are seeking out overseas experiences, this is the place for you. The state has pushed their soldiers (from every Battalion) overseas to the Middle East (including Syria, Jordan, Egypt) at least 4x within the last 6 years. Recruiters put you exactly where you want to be. State Leadership is absolutely excellent.
Cons
Battalion and Company Leadership rotates in cycles of a few years. It can either be insanely good, or frustratingly horrific. (If you’re a veteran, you understand this) Soldiers under the oversight and leadership of a (bad) command team are often micromanaged, constantly overworked, and made to wear equipment that’s 15 - 30 years old. (Kevlar has a life cycle of 5 - 10 years before it’s needed to be replaced) The current IHPS helmets being issued are ballistically subpar compared to premium items on the market. (They’re basically made of hardened plastic compared to Aramid Kevlar) God help you if you show up wearing Barry compliant, professionally made and personally procured equipment. (Not items made in China) Even though it’s clearly an improvement.