Enlistment question, Army or Navy?

Question

At 33, with a 2 year degree, female, will the Army or Navy actually WANT to take me in, I know they will, but would I be an asset? How would I fit in with the other recruits?

Answer 1

You will be an asset if you decide to be an asset! With your age and experience in the real world, I'm guessing that you would definitely be an asset. Just keep in mind that military service in the lower ranks doesn't involve a great deal of abstract thought, but rather a great deal of following orders.

It's true that with that 2 year degree (60 credit hours) you can enter the Army as an E3 Private First Class. I'm not sure about the Navy. I went in to the Army at age 27 with a 4 year degree and got E3 (could've gotten E4 but didn't know this), and I know it placed me far ahead of the curve as far as being able to learn things thoroughly and quickly.

That said, it wasn't as intellectually stimulating as I would have liked it to have been sometimes, but Army life more than made up for that. It can definitely be stimulating, to say the least!

I think the oldest recruit in my class was 41, with a master's degree, 5 kids, and a huge mortgage. I can't tell you the respect he got for leaving that behind to serve his country in the Reserves. He did say it was pretty damned hard physically, but psychologically he had his **** together more than any of us.

So the long and short of it is yes, you'll do fine if you want it bad enough. In retrospect, it wasn't that hard at all. As for which branch, look at what kind of job you think you'd like to do and ask people who have done it. In the Army, for example, you won't be able to do a combat arms MOS like Infantry or Artillery or Cav Scout. Still, there are a lot of good MOS's in the Army. I recommend Army Green for you! Hooah!

Answer 2

I joined the Navy at 30 without a degree. I've been in 15 years now. Best thing I have ever done. The added age gave me an advantage over the kids :-)

Your degree will allow you to come in at a higher paygrade also.

Answer 3

im thinking about enlisting to..

but im going to do the marines.

im a senior in highschool and im also female.

if anything you would be an asset. alot of experience in life.

and pluse your a women, we rock at anything we do :)

but between the army and navy i would go with the army.

goodluck.

Answer 4

a 2 year degree would be only good for advanced paygrade..I think you can get E3 with it..maybe only E2.  

only YOU determine how much of an asset( or not) you will be to the military.  at 33 you are dangerously close to the age cutoff for Navy.  Army will take you up to 42.  

your ASVAB scores determine what jobs you qualify for.  

Answer 5

Whether you are an asset or dead weight rests solely upon your shoulders.... the military is what you make of it. I did have someone at 35 that joined and he helped many people thru basic training with his positive attitude. In fact it's been twenty eight years and I remember his name still - John Arnie.

While you are in the military you can continue your studies too....

Answer 6

You would do fine in the Army or the Navy. How well you can contribute to team work will be the deciding factor on how well they see you as a "sandbag" or an asset.

If you join the Army with your degree you can (or should be able to at least) join up as an E-3/PFC or maybe a E-4/SPC. Your education will allow you to be able to submit promotion points once you are able to pass the Sergeant/E-5 board. Giving you one foot ahead of your peers in awaiting promotion to the ranks of NCO's.

Good luck to you and pick your job (mos) wisely

Answer 7

Whether or not you would be an asset is up to you.  Being a little older, the other recruits would most likely look up to you for guidance, especially when the going gets tough.  You have to show your maturity in those situations and be a leader because there are always going to be a lot of other immature recruits.  Also, you would be older than a lot of people there but I guarantee you wouldn't be the oldest.  

Answer 8

Baring any health conditions, only the US Navy or US Army will take you. All other service have a late 20s age cap. Ignoring specific career fields, you will probably deploy a little less in the Navy-- almost certainly for less time (~6 months vs. 15 months)and under more comfortable conditions too (boat vs. desert).

A two year degree won't gain you much upon enlistment. Maybe an E-1 to E-2 promotion. However, if you do well during the first few years of your enlistment it would be a huge advantage if you decided to apply for a military funded-education program.

As far as fitting in goes you would surrounded by people 10-12 years your junior for a while. You will also potentially lose a lot of the personal freedoms you have become accustomed to (eg) not being allowed to live out in town until you earn a certain rank. Serious. Aside from those things your maturity would likely be an advantage. If you worked hard, didn't give your boss trouble, and happened to be in a job field that had promotion opportunities you could see advancement quickly.

If you chose the military your best bet would be to get in good shape prior as well as have a lot of humility and patience because you will be need it the first couple years.

Attached is a link to age caps.

Answer 9

If you want to do it right, then join the Marine Corps