Say I'm a skilled auto mechanic or amateur radio operator and have received my draft notice into the US military (circa WW2 to Vietnam), would I likely wind up in a maintenance unit or as a radio operator? | AskHistorians Archive Observer

Say I'm a skilled auto mechanic or amateur radio operator and have received my draft notice into the US military (circa WW2 to Vietnam), would I likely wind up in a maintenance unit or as a radio operator?

by boringdude00

Were existing professions and skills taken into account at all when handing out assignments?

PachydermicTidalWave

If you had a particular skill, yes. (I.e. if you were a surgeon, you were going to a field hospital)

As for which one you'd end up with, I guess it'd be which one you piped up about. If you're a mechanic by trade that's more likely, though.