joining the military in the middle of college

Student Lounge College Life
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<p>Early in my college search, I considered looking at the Naval Academy. I ended up deciding that I didn't have what it took to be in the military, and ended up applying elsewhere.</p>

<p>I've just finished my freshman year, and an ROTC programme is looking rather appealing. </p>

<p>The past semester has been very rough for me. It started with a very difficult breakup, and I've found myself lonely, unmotivated, lazy, and empty. By the middle of the term, it was hard for me to muster the motivation to take care of the things I needed to do for school. I feel like I need something different. Some folks would take time to volunteer in a developing country or go exploring around the world. I'm looking at the Navy.</p>

<p>One of my buddies from class (currently 26) found himself doing nothing and going nowhere in college during sophomore year, so he decided one day to leave school and join the Marines. He's gone back to school after being discharged as a sgt. and having served 2 tours in Iraq. I didn't know him before he went into the Marines, but from all I can tell, it's helped him become an outstanding individual. The path I'm looking at is not as drastic, but I'm nevertheless finding it increasingly appealing.</p>

<p>There is a Naval ROTC battalion at a nearby campus. While I need to do a lot more homework on this topic--along with some serious soul-searching--and would need to get in substantially better physical condition, I could see myself doing quite well in the military. I would not have to worry about having a job coming out of college, I would likely get help with paying back my student loans, military service would be a great boost to my career prospects in the field I'm looking to go into (International Security/foreign policy analysis), and I think I'd get a lot from being in an institution which places a high value on honour, integrity, and a firm handshake. Moreover, my impression is that military service tends to bring out more drive and motivation in people, and also brings a certain military camaraderie. </p>

<p>Is it relatively feasible to get into an ROTC programme (preferably getting a scholarship) in the middle of college? What does one have to do after graduating (other than, of course, several years of service)? Is it difficult for questioning and intelligent individuals to be happy in an institution where one has to take orders from superiors, no matter what one's opinion of the superior officer is? Is the military a poor solution to one's life being empty?</p>

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<p>My parents took my college funding after one semester so I decided that it was high time for me to get out of my house so I enlisted in the Air Force. Best choice I have made :slight_smile: it has helped me get some bearing on my life. Not only is does it have good job security and pays decently but they will also pay for any classes that you may take during your time in. Plus after they will help pay for college, I am not saying that it is the best thing for everyone but if it is something you want to do and commit to then go for it.</p>

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<p>IBfootballer,</p>

<p>I am currently in an NROTC program. All you need to do to join the program is go to the captain of the unit and express your interest. If it is early enough in the semester, enroll in the naval science class. Show up for EVERYTHING, even the optional stuff. This is ESPECIALLY important if you want to do Marine option. As far as getting a scholarship, you would have to apply as a college programmer, and they are EXTREMELY competitive. I am not even sure if any were given out at all this past year, and for my school, there some extremely capable applicants for it.</p>

<p>The military is full of intellectuals. Just because one takes orders does not mean they are unintelligent. They just know how to work together with a team, which is an important skill for a person to have. Just from the people I have met in one year through this program, it is a rewarding experience and people from all walks of life have found great enjoyment in it. You make friends with an excellent group of people with morals high above that of most. </p>

<p>I can give you more information if you like. I am not exactly sure what answers you’re looking for. However, feel free to message me. ROTC is an amazing program and I have never regretted my choice for taking part in it. I am excited to be a part of it. I have only been in one year but I have learned quite a bit.</p>

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<p>The military and rotc are two completely different things.</p>

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<p>^No not really, ROTC will generally pay for college but then after you have to join for a certain number of years on active duty and a certain number of years reserve. The only difference between ROTC and enlisting is ROTC starts you as an officer.</p>

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<p>My father went to college for a semester then joined the Marine Reserves (not ROTC). He came back a semester later and basically the Marines helped pay for his education and he ended up graduating a semester late… so it didn’t really hurt him at all.</p>

<p>He ended up sticking with the military and ending up switching to the Air Force after six years. He decided to go to law school and the Air Force paid all of his student loans except for about $17. Yeah. $17.</p>

<p>He really enjoyed his time as an enlisted person and even though he could have been an officer (O4 for an attorney), he chose not to, just because he really enjoyed his work as an enlisted person. He still reaped a lot of the benefits too.</p>

<p>If you want to do it, I say go for it. I heavily considered joining the military myself, but my father really didn’t want me to and I chose not to fight him on something like that. I don’t think I could ever forgive myself if something happened to me and he tried to stop it. =/</p>

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<p>@DrewCollins</p>

<p>Are you serious? You need to do some serious research or maybe it’s just the lamebrain rotc mindset I’ve come to notice, for rotc you’re getting paid to play soldiers, you aren’t in the real military. What the hell is enlisting? Do you mean enlisted? You start off as a cadet in rotc not an officer. </p>

<p>A very good example of that is in the real military you are under contract and the only way to get out of that is to be discharged, served the required time, or to go AWOL but for rotc there is no commitment even if you do have a rotc scholarship. I know a guy who quit rotc after two years and he had a scholarship with them that he didn’t have to pay back at all and two years at my school is about thirty-eight thousand for in-state tuition (which is a load of ******** if you ask me). </p>

<p>I’ve served a couple years active and I can tell you for a fact that rotc officers are the worst leaders of the military. There is a reason why the call them the ■■■■■■■ of the colonel it’s because they’re basically a highly paid private who don’t know ****. If you want to be a good officer do a couple years enlisted to get a little experience because they basically teach out of date nonsense in rotc classes and then do OCS afterward and actually learn from experienced leaders. You will have more respect from your troops that way. Ask any military Enlisted and NCO members what they think of rotc officers and you will get the same consensus as me.</p>

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<p>^This I know because I AM one of the many enlisted that don’t like RO types, and yes I know you start off as a Cadet while in college but AFTER you start as an officer. As for the enlisting/enlisted deal, one can’t be enlisted while in the process of enlistING. Enlisted is past tense while enlisting refers to the process of becoming enlisted. And if you PAY ATTENTION while they are giving the RO scholarship spin they SAY that you have till your second year to leave the program with out accruing any form of commitment to the military. Once you pass that THEN you have a commitment to the military and have to do the time in service. I DID pay attention and do my research, while it is obvious you did very little. Oh and by the way I am an E3 in the USAF not some lamebrain RO officer type.</p>

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<p>That really bothers me that no one respects ROTC grads. However, most officers usually come from ROTC so I am guessing that there is not much respect for the higher ups in general. Too bad. You’ll still have to follow their orders. </p>

<p>Respect or no respect.</p>

<p>Also, in the Navy ROTC, which is the program the OP wants to join, you are a midshipman, not a cadet. If you are on scholarship for Navy, you only have one year to test drive the program. If you decide you don’t want it after that you can leave and you accrue no debts or service obligations. If you continue on, you must either pay back the money the military has paid for your tuition, or enlist and serve a certain amount of years.</p>

<p>There is a degree of “playing soldiers” but we ROTC cadets/midshipmen are held to higher physical standards than that of enlisted and are required to do field training exercises or go on a summer cruise with the navy every summer during their tenure as a student. Doing ROTC is more than just “getting your college paid for.”</p>

<p>Simply put, it takes ROTC cadets/midshipmen four years to learn what you guys learned in boot camp. We spread out this knowledge so we can get our degrees and commission as officers.</p>

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<p>For ROTC scholarships, there are a couple of different options. Some students earn four-year scholarships that can be used anywhere. Then colleges that have ROTC programs have some type of in-house money that they can use for currently enrolled students. This year, some of that money was not available and current ROTC students got a nasty surprise about scholarship money for this fall. Be sure, OP, that you check into what options are available at your university.</p>

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<p>Officer Candidate School (OCS) is probably the path your father took, CollegeBoySwag. Sometimes that is the route taken by enlisted soldiers who show promise and may have some college. They used to call OCS officers ninety day wonders–I guess because of the length of the program. They usually complete their undergraduate degrees while on active duty after they are commissioned. I do not know how popular it is in today’s military, but if you are enlisted, it is probably not really easy to become an officer in today’s military.</p>

<p>And the military paying for med school is something completely different. When your brother finishes and is commissioned, he will have a military commitment.</p>

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<p>Just make sure you WANT to be in the military. Quite a few people join to help develop themselves, but the ones who do well also want to serve.</p>

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<p>thanks for all the responses, folks.</p>

<p>the career I’m looking to go into would involve doing something like working in the DC area doing foreign policy/national security work. I envision myself (optimistically) ending up at DoS, DoD, or intelligence.</p>

<p>I talked to some guys from Annapolis at a conference earlier this year, and they said that they’re required to spend two or so years afloat. Would this be the same for ROTC folks?</p>

<p>I’m under no delusions that I’d be required to serve after college. That’s kinda the whole point. </p>

<p>Are ROTC folks thrust right into service, or do they have to go through boot camp and such like folks who just join up?</p>

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<p>Intelligence is a difficult career to get involved in. Keep those grades up and really get yourself in peak physical condition. There is heavy competition for that field and you need to jump into it right away to be competitive. And officers don’t go to boot camp. Depending on which pipeline you choose, you will go to a training school after you graduate and commission (say if you chose aviation, you would go to flight school upon graduation). </p>

<p>For Navy, you are required to serve five years active duty and four years reserve duty.</p>

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<p>ROTC cadets attend summer camp while they are in the program.</p>

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<p>I don’t like the military because they yell at you. I hate when people yell at me and bark orders at me because it gets me very angry.</p>

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<p>Haha, DreamingBig. Don’t join. After a 28-year marriage to an officer, I would say that I would not join because I cannot follow orders.</p>

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<p>Intelligence is a much harder field to get into nowadays. Not to say it isn’t possible, just really competitive. And a 3.5 is a really good GPA after four years in college. That shows dedication and the ability to get the job done.</p>

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<p>When students go through ROTC, they choose a branch of service (infantry, armor, artilllery, etc.) during their senior year. Military intelligence is a branch in the army; I am not familiar with how the other services work. Branch, however, is not guaranteed. So cadets, whether ROTC or academy, select several branches and rank them. Not everyone gets his/her first choice. Officers do change branches sometimes as well as they move through their careers. For example, foreign area officers (FAO) are not assigned that branch right out of college. It would take some years to go into that branch specialty. The OP might want to really sit down and talk to an officer about branches because it isn’t as easy as saying, “This is what I want,” and that is what you get.</p>

<p>I know an officer from years back who wanted to be in hospital administration or something like that but because of his biology degree, he was placed in the chemical corps where there were shortages. You don’t always get what you want in the military.</p>

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<p>I think I have reason to believe that I would be very competitive for getting into national security/intelligence work. I’ve done some pretty comprehensive strategic analysis work that I’m quite proud of, and I think would impress military folks who looked at it. By the time I graduate, I hope to be fluent in Russian.</p>

<p>That, of course, would not come for quite a while.</p>

<p>CBS, how restrictive is the checklist for disqualifying physical conditions? I didn’t think that simply having asthma would be a disqualifier. Additionally, while there is something I can do about getting to a good weight, there is little I can do about my 6’4" stature, no matter how much my CO would object.</p>