<p>ok if i enlist in the military after high school (when im 18) then get out 4 years later (when im 22) what are my chances to get into a good college? lets say my high school class rank is in top 10 percent and my SATs are 2000-2200? will i have the same chance to get into johns hopkins, rice, vanderbilt as i did in high school? or will my chances decrease? if they do decrease, by how much? thanks</p>
<p>I’d say your chances would increase. You wouldn’t be just another high school senior, but instead a disciplined vet.</p>
<p>I think your chances of getting in are good provided you have the stats. But I think your chances of actually going to college will decrease. </p>
<p>You join the military and start earning a living. Pretty soon you meet some cute person of the opposite sex, and next thing you know you’re married with responsibilities and a kid on the way. You now have to keep working to support the family. College quickly becomes more of a fading dream than a practical reality.</p>
<p>Think of it in terms of taking a gap year. Taking one gap year to work and gain experience won’t hurt and may even help you realize your college dreams. But taking four gap years in a row is a lot riskier. It’s going to put you out of the school and studying mindset for a long time and will substantially increase the chances that circumstances will overtake you and make it harder for you to get off the work treadmill and go back to school.</p>
<p>^ Not neccessarily true because joining the military does not mean taking a 4 year gap from education. Lots of servicemembers take online classes while they’re in the military specifically to position themselves to apply to college after they leave the service. So being on the work treadmill does not neccessitate being off of the school treadmill. Nor does going into military service guarantee you’ll meet someone or have a child. And having a family doesn’t mean you can’t go to school either. I know lots of servicemen and women, especially ones whose partners were not in the military, who had a partner stay home and look after their kid while they were in the military (usually deployed) and when they got out, the stay at home partner went to work so that the military member could go to college and get a degree so that they could better support and provide for their family. </p>
<p>It’s tough, but it’s not impossible. If nothing else, being in the military should teach you to set and pursue goals even if they’re difficult.</p>
<p>For more ideas on how this can work, you may want to read some of the threads in the Veterans sub-Forum. You can find it in the College Admissions Forum in the Specialty College Admissions Topics section. Here is a quick link: [Veterans</a> - College Confidential](<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/veterans/]Veterans”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/veterans/)</p>
<p>All I can say is dead people don’t make very good college applicants.</p>
<p>futurenyustudent, what an ignorant response! Way to add to the professionalism of this board. The OP was asking a legitimate question and you respond with that? Find a life!</p>
<p>To the OP, going into the military prior to college can be a wise choice. As was already mentioned, keep your eyes on the goal. It is easy to get settled into a military career, get married, start a family, etc which can then make it tough to go back into the starving student mode of college. On the other hand, 4 years in the military is a great way to gain maturity, build some cash and take advantage of the tremendous educational benefits of the G.I. Bill. You can then go on to college, and finish debt free about the time futurenyustudent is starting to pay on his huge six figure student loans.</p>
<p>You chances would increase. PLUS - you would be eligible for the Post 9-11 GI bill. This includes full tuition (highest in-state), book stipend and monthly housing allowance.
If you attend a “Yellow Ribbon” college they will pick up the difference between what the VA pays and what they charge.
A bright, motivated 22 year old veteran with a clean military record trumps an 18 year old in college admission any day.</p>
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LOL - it’s a win!</p>
<p>No wonder people call us “the crazy liberals”</p>
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<p>This guy is thinking about defending your freedom to go to college and earn a good living. Please show a little respect to those a little more selfless than yourself.</p>
<p>My understanding is that the military has agreements with over 700 universities throughout the country for automatic admittance of military personel and all you would have to do is fill out a simple form. Easier admission, generous GI bill that you do not have to pay into anymore and real world experience. You will also receive college credit from training and the schools are mandated to accept it. Win - win situation all the way around. </p>
<p>Now, a friend of mine who is a retired Navy Captain told me last week he would only recommend new recruits to join either the Navy, the Air Force or the Coast Guard because the other two areas have high casualties. Personally, I don’t have any stats to back that up, but it wouldn’t surprise me if they exist. These above three areas also require the highest ASVAB score and even though the “official” ASVAB score required is in the mid 30 range, my son’s recruiter told him and other recruits that the demand to join is so high they are not taking anyone with less than a mid 50 range. If you are college material that shouldn’t be a problem. My son said the test was really easy, but he did score as high as you can on it (99). He is going to boot camp with the Air Force next month and then will be trained in Intellegence gathering, something far away from combat so I am happy.</p>
<p>If you are in the top 10% of your class and can pop a 2000+ on your SAT, you should visit the recruiter to apply for ROTC or NROTC. If you have the calling to serve your country in uniform, serve as a lieutenant. You can get money for college and get more management training and experience than any MBA program in the country.</p>
<p>And ProudMom, not all intelligence gathering is “far away from combat.”</p>
<p>AND Futurenyudork - I guess that means the terrorists that OP caps won’t be making it to Al Qaeda U.!</p>
<p>We know a young man who was sort of a wildish screwup on in high school. (Not the great grades and stats of which you speak.) He joined the USMC out of HS. He is now doing FABULOUSLY at a large state U. </p>
<p>The funny thing is that his dad is so darned proud…of course, I think that in reality, the dad was responsible for raising the wildish screwup and the USMC is responsible for raising the fabulous student, but there’s nothing wrong with a dad being proud of his kid!</p>
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<p>Of course not, and I didn’t say it did. I said going in the military for four years will increase the chances that these distracting things will happen, and I stand by that. I know that getting an education after serving in the military is not impossible. Heck, my own father-in-law went to college when he retired at age 38 after 20 years in the military. He then earned his bachelors, masters, and PhD. So I know that these achievements are not impossible. But they are rare. Much more typical is the plight of my own dad who went in the military first and took some college engineering courses on the side while he was in. But he got married and started having kids and then never had enough time or money to quit and pursue his education fulltime. I’ve known dozens of guys like him.</p>
<p>I have the highest respect for the military. I was literally born and raised on military bases. But if you want to maximize your chances of getting a college education you should burden yourself with as few detours and distractions as possible.</p>
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Not if you deploy twice in four years.</p>
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<p>I highly suggest you sit down and have a conversation with your son.</p>
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<p>I didn’t say anything patently false. I’m reminding OP of the very realistic possibility of being discharged in a coffin.</p>
<p>And btw I’m fully funded through law school. Don’t ask me how but I’ll finish law school with zero debt.</p>
<p>As for MI/liuguists, my mom used to teach those guys. The Arabic students get sent to Iraq all the time.</p>
<p>Coureur: I think you might be correct that going in the military does not make it impossible to get to college afterward. I understand there were several dozen Americans who did just that on the GI Bill between 1946 and this morning.</p>
<p>futurenyustudent -
more teenagers are killed in car accidents every year than the total number of service members who died in the 8 years of war Iraq and Afghanistan.
Better take away the car keys.</p>
<p>glido ;)</p>
<p>There is no other extracurricular activity that shows the seriousness of your dedication to your community as serving in our armed forces. Whatever your chances are now, they would be multiplied tremendously if you served. The veterans that I’ve met who are students are among the most serious students and have a purpose and determination that simply can’t be matched by high school kids. </p>
<p>Thank you for serving.</p>