Which Route, Navy or College?

Question

It's my final year in high school, and I am still completely unsure on what the h**l I'm going to do... The navy has many benefits, free food, free housing, free school. But... it has its downfalls, higher chance of dieing... less girls, less parties, less fun. As far as college goes, I have no idea what classes i would take other then general for the first 2 years. I was just wondering if someone, with some experience, information and an opinion could enlighten me on what route is more sensible...?

Answer 1

i say navy, but if you do well in school, you should go to collge then go to officer school if you are still interested in it by then

Answer 2

Because you are undecided the best thing for you to do now is join the Navy. By the time your first enlistment is over you will have figured out a direction for your life. It will also get you college money with the MGIB later.

Less girls ? Less parties and fun ? I don't know where you get that idea. I had plenty of parties, girls and fun while I was in the Navy for 23 years. Plus I partied all over the world. Philippines, Thailand, Hongkong, Spain, italy France, caribbean and the list goes on.

Go ahead and experiance life and other parts of the world while you are figuring out what to do with your life.

Answer 3

im 16 and in the reserves and if your talking about the us then navy for sure im in the candian reserves but have a good deal of respec for the us navy, but if your reffering t canada and your marks are good then do both, the royal military college in kingston, ontario :D

Answer 4

Well I'm only 14 and a Sophomore in High School but I already know what I'm going to be doing. But from what my parents have told me (both parents siblings and cousins and nephews and nieces have gone into the service) the military isn't all that it says it is. I've been told the military is great and I've been told it isn't. From talking to friends and people that come to my school that have been/are in the military tell me that at first you'll be excited and then after a couple weeks you'll want to get the f*ck out of there... It's really up to you. Just find something you like and if you want to go to college then try to do something in that field. You could always talk to a guidance councilor or someone to figure out interests and possible jobs that would be good for you.

I don't know... It's up to you bro.

Hope this helped.

--Brian

Answer 5

To clear things up, recruiters are NOT paid "commission" for hiring on recruits. They DO have a quota, and can be reprimanded for not reaching it, but are not paid by recruit.

And let's take a look at a study by MSU, Michigan State.

Out of 150 students randomly selected across the country from random collages, 37 of those remained after the end of 1st semester.

Out of those 37, 12 got degrees.

Out of those 12, only 2 got a job in a field related to their degree.

This is a study by a university, remember.

Yes, you will have less "fun" in the Navy, but would you rather have "fun" at parties and pull a 1.9 GPA like many collage students and worry about what flavor of Top Ramen you'll have today, or have a steady pay check and learn some actual discipline.

Any military branch has several ways to get a degree you want, and they don't care what degree you spend their money on. The Navy is just one way.

And as for your higher chance of dieing, i think you would have a higher chance of death from all the drunks and druggies at the parties rather than some of the best trained people in the world with the safest, most reliable equipment.

Answer 6

Don't go talk to a recruiter. They get paid by how many people they sign, so they won't care what they think is best for you. They'll try and get you to sign at any cost. If you're considering the Navy as a career, then go through the officer training. Talk to them about that. They pay for your college, and they pay you while you're in college. If you're considering the Navy because of their benefits, don't do it. I have a lot of friends who did it for the same reason, and they all regret it. And by the way... when you were saying the whole "less girls, less parties, and less fun" thing is definitely not true... seamen get plenty of girls, and do far more partying than they probably should... and they have fun, but I'm pretty sure the work outweighs the fun!

Answer 7

I know this isn't the answer you are looking for, but you have to go with what feels right, go talk to a recruiter then go talk to a school counselor and do a pro's vs con's for both situations, get all the info you can and just decide from there, personally it will be cheaper to do military before college, however once you get in you can't get out unlike college if you aren't sure about school and it's not for you, drop it go for the military and you can probably get a good enough sign on bonus to pay off any debt

Answer 8

First, remember that your future is not limited to those two choices.  If you are still unsure about which route to take, you can always work until you figure it out.  I have had family and friends in the military.  The impression I get from them is that the military is not what it used to be.  If it were so great, why are they hurting so bad for new recruits?  Recruiting numbers have been declining, and I don't think the fear of being sent "over-seas" is the only reason.  As for college, I went to college right after high school with the attitude you have now (not sure of major, so I'd just get my generals out of the way).  Well, 2.5 years and a couple of thousand dollars later, I quit and went back to work.  Just remember...life moves on after high school...the possibilities are endless!

Answer 9

Serving in the US Navy and attending college courses, are not mutually exclusive.

I served for 20+ years in the US Navy, and I completed an A.S. degree, a B.S. degree and a M.A. degree.

The US Navy will pay for a portion of the college tuition. A higher portion for low pay-grades, and a lower portion for higher pay-grades.

So as you begin your Naval career, the Navy will pay for almost all of your college tuition. As you climb up the ranks the navy will pay for smaller portions of the tuition.

The US Navy also offers the CLEP program for free!

This can not be over stated. It is a great program that most folks ignore. You can get a textbook, and read it in your spare time, then take a CLEP test. If you can get a passing grade on the test, then you get a college transcript saying that you have completed that course. It is a sweet program!

Go Navy!

In the Navy you can receive far higher pay than you could in any other service. If you choose your rate correctly, you are set!

Also the in US Navy it is possible to be tax-exempt for almost your entire career. I did this myself. Whereas in the Army, AF, or Marines they are only tax-free while they are in combat. Check it out!

This can be an immediate raise in your take-home pay by as much as 30%.

Good luck :)

Answer 10

Hmmmmmmmmm, well people who come out of the navy get a lot of respect which helps you go places.  The navy will take you places without a doubt.  That's one reason I thought about doing it.  Plus it makes you really tough.  It also depends on what you want to learn I think.  I'm sure some things you can learn only in college.  S you probably want to decide on what you want to study and then figure out which one is best to study it.  It isn't all true that there's less fun in the navy.  They still party hard and you have the navy angle to work on the women.  If you want to study something both college and the navy offers, it's just the style of learning you need to pick after that.  Outside of the classroom, the navy will definitely be different.  You probably won't be as independent in the navy.