Should I join the military

Umm, first you need to be selected for OCS. One thing at a time, dude.

Do both! Join the Reserves and keep your current job.

I'd go with Air Force though.

Also, if you do decide to serve then a big Thanks to you.

Make sure you get your OCS selection in writing before you enlist.

Marine OCS you don't sign an enlisted contract, so if you don't make it through you aren't still under contract.

I've attended Marine OCS and would be willing to give you any advice. Although others have come on here seeking advice but haven't followed up.

Check out MarineOCS.com has more than enough information for you.

im pretty sure to be an officer in the marines you need to have a BS in marine biology

That is so true.

If you want to serve your country become a school teacher, police officer, or fire fighter.

You'd only be serving elitist interests and imperialist ambition if you were to join the military.

Art VanDelay always wanted to be a marine biologist.

To the OP: this sounds like something that requires a lot of deep, meaningful thought. I wish you luck in your endeavor.

I think it's a nobel desire to serve your country, and as long as you are in a position to pull up roots and move freely I say go for it. you just need to weigh the personal and family costs of your joining Vs. the personal gain that you may achieve. Good luck, I've had the same thought cross my mind but now that I have a family and am settled into a decent, comfortable job it's pretty much out of the question.

Former high school teacher; enlisted last summer at age 34. I felt the same way as you seem to - I wanted to do my part in the War on Terror rather than sitting around someday wondering why I let my country down when I was fully capable of serving. I enlisted in Armor (tanks) but was assigned to an Infantry unit in Fort Lewis, WA. We are getting ready deploy to Iraq soon although I can't give an exact date. It seems like most of Lewis is deploying right now - 3rd Brigade to Iraq, 4th Brigade to Iraq, 5th Brigade to Afghanistan, 17th Fires Brigade to Iraq, I Corps to Iraq, ... if you enlist in any combat arms branch to fight rather than shuffle papers behind a desk you WILL deploy. Nearly my entire company is looking forward to the coming year in the Sandbox, with a few exceptions who just returned from a deployment last year, a deployment that saw them lose six men.

Basic is not as hard as some will have you believe (Army perspective; I've heard Marine Basic is worse). Certainly try to be an officer as life will suck in the Army at your age if you are not an officer and not married. I was too old to go to OCS so I enlisted and entered as an E-4. Problem is I am not married so I was assigned to live in a barracks with mostly 18- to 24-year-olds who often times do not act much more mature than junior high students.

When you are in the field training, life is better than anything you could ever do in the civilian world. If you like living in the outdoors, eating shitty food, working hard all day (and sometimes all night), learning to function on little sleep, etc., then you will love an infantry unit. The comraderie developed during the challenging times is unmatched and you will only get closer once you arrive in the Middle East.

One thing to consider in your unique situation is what to do with all of your belongings. Unlike most new recruits, I had a large apartment full of belongings. I ended up selling all my furniture along with some other things once I found out I would be in a barracks rather than an apartment. Most of my things are in a 4x8 storage facility off post right now since I can't fit them in my room. After I get promoted I will have the option of getting an apartment and actually having all my belongings on hand.

If you feel the "need" to serve, then do it. If you don't you will regret it later. Even if you only do one 3-year tour, you'll end up deploying and doing your part. My company commander is preparing for his 4th deployment in 8 years in the military. If more young people would do their part and sacrifice just a couple years of their life for their country, we wouldn't have so many soldiers doing so many deployments. It's tough on families when Daddy is gone for a year, home for a year, gone for a year, ...

Nobody could say it better than General Patton on the eve of the Normandy Invasion:

"There is one great thing that you men will all be able to say after this war is over and you are home once again. You may be thankful that twenty years from now when you are sitting by the fireplace with your grandson on your knee and he asks you what you did in the great World War II, you WON'T have to cough, shift him to the other knee and say, "Well, your Granddaddy shoveled shit in Louisiana." No, Sir, you can look him straight in the eye and say, "Son, your Granddaddy rode with the Great Third Army and a Son-of-a-Goddamned-Bitch named Georgie Patton!"

dont join

stop it.

what purpose?

agree with teacher doctor, etc

I am currently an Officer in the Marine Corps. It is truly a fulfilling job and I could not be happier with this career route. With that said, it is not for everyone. If you have any specific questions let me know and ill try my best to answer. I would be leery of responses from people who are not in the military or those who are not Officers, they tend to have limited and often times incorrect information to pass. Good luck to you!

Semper Fi

Went in the Navy after 2 years of college. I never had officer aspirations, mainly because my father was Navy enlisted. Maybe I was just trying to be like him. Don't know. Anyway, I spent four in and was in the first gulf war. Personally, I enjoyed it. I grew up around enlisted guys so I knew a little about what was coming, but it was probably one of the best things I've ever done. I left because I had spent my whole life around the military though and just wanted to step away and see what civilian life was like. My father was right though, I've always missed the camaraderie I left behind. It's just not the same on the outside. Anyway, I realize you're looking into being an officer but I thought I'd just give another viewpoint.

"However, I have this feeling that I need to serve."

That, by the way, is the main reason I went in. Growing up I always felt that even if I just did four, I needed to do it. I am glad I did. It changed my life completely. Good luck.

Kinda old to be joining the service. Even as an officer your going to be treated like a kid again for a while.

Don't do the Navy unless you like being away. Hopefully no wife and family involved.

The cut-off age for attending OCS in the Marine Corps. is 28 years old. You may (very slim) have a chance to get a waiver for this if your physical quals. are very high.

If you really want more info on the Marine Corps. officer programs google: Marine Corps OCS foundation portal. Here all your questions will be answered by people who actually know rather than just speculation. It is a good way to get valid info without talking to an actual OSO office.

good luck!

I think you are getting close to the cut-off age to become an officer in the Army, so you may want to check on that ASAP. The good news is that there appears to be a waiver for everything in the Army, if they need people.

I was an enlisted man in the Army for 3 years, so I can only speak about that experience. If you get denied OCS because you're too old or for whatever reason, don't enlist unless you are a good team player who is tolerant of many different types of people. I was what some called an individual. It's not because I didn't want to work with others; it's because I have a very low tolerance for lazy people, liars, stupid people who do not try, or that only try when they're trying to impress someone, or they wait until they're being watched to do anything.

There are a lot of good people to work with in the Army, but there are enough dirtbags, too. I couldn't stand the dirtbags, but I worked well in small groups of motivated soldiers. If you enlist, just sign a 2 or 3 year contract. I worked with so many soldiers that enlisted for 5-6 years, and all many of them would talk about is how they wished they'd done 3 years like I had. Of course, after those 3 years or 6 years are up, you can still get re-called for up to 8 years after you sign the initial contract the first time you go to MEP.

Ivy edumacated former Librul.

Best thing--the VERY best thing--I ever did was to serve.

A) Learned more about myself than I ever thought possible (or, in some cases, wanted to know).

B) Grew to understand forgotten--or ridiculed--concepts such as DUTY, LOYALTY, HONOR.

C) Learned what it means to be a leader--whether as a follower or as a commander.

D) Made some of the best friends ever (somehow I do not think my college roommate would have died for me--nor I for him; however, I now understand the concept).

E) While not a goal at the time, it turns out that my resume is now pretty much irresistible to corporations. My family much appreciates the tangible benefits this brings.

Just one man's opinion.

A few questions for Stackhouse and anybody else who has served ...

1-A piece of advice you hear from a lot of people is "get it in writing" ... what types of things (i.e. wording of contract) should people watch out for in their contract?

2-Can you talk about your experiences with Army/Navy/Airforce/Marines bureaucracy? There are a lot of benefits to joining, but how hard is it to navigate all the red tape that can come along with that?

3-When talking to recruiters, a lot of times they'll throw out "you can always submit the paper work to change careers" ... how easy is it to do that? How likely is it you'll get this job? For example, if I went in E-4 and later on wanted to go to OCS, or if I went in as a CTI and wanted to go to Ranger School later on?

Thanks so much for your help on this one!

Question!? wrote:

3-When talking to recruiters, a lot of times they'll throw out "you can always submit the paper work to change careers" ... how easy is it to do that? How likely is it you'll get this job? For example, if I went in E-4 and later on wanted to go to OCS, or if I went in as a CTI and wanted to go to Ranger School later on?

I can only speak to the USMC side of things, but if you want to be an officer you would need to contact an Officer Selection Officer, not an enlisted recruiter. The recruiter will try to steer you to the enlisted side (which isn't bad, but it is a problem if that is not what you are looking for). I'm not sure if the other services bifurcate their recruiting between enlisted/officer in a similar fashion. However, if you do choose to enlist, there are programs that allow enlisted Marines to gain selection into OCS, and there is a good chance you would change MOS (military occupational specialty), but there is absolutely no guarantee as to what your new job would be (unless you are selected for the law program where the Corps pays for you to go to law school and later serve as a JA).