Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I like the path my grandson chose,thru high school and after trained as EMT and volunteer fireman.He enlisted in Air Force and since has worked in Philly with EMT's on the street,then to hospital in Germany and now will be stationed in Japan working Medivac between Japan and Afghanistan,also told he would be doing humanitarium work in Afghanistan,his goal is to be a RN.He had already served 9 months in Afghanistan.For me his head is in the right place.
Last edited by DanBev; 04-05-2014 at 06:42 PM..
Reason: spelling
It very rarely works out like that so if his goal is to be an officer, tell him to go to college and participate in ROTC or get an appointment to one of the service academies. He can serve on the front lines as an officer.
This. I've met good prior-enlisted officers and poor prior-enlisted officers, and a lot of excellent officers who were never prior enlisted. But there are a lot of things that can go wrong if he varies from the path he really wants to travel.
Yes this is true, and it may actually be me pushing him a little to go to O school. It just seems that if you want to be set for life, retiring as a Major is a good bet. But again, if he wants to be a grunt, I'm going to let him decide. I would like for him to speak to some grunts, to get the feel for what's involved. Going to the VA was a really decent idea, I will check on how to get in to speak to a few of them. This is a man's decision, he's only 16, but has really had his heart set on serving his country since 2nd or 3rd grade, so, this will probably be one of the first real "man" decisions he makes when he turns 18. I want him well informed while I have time to educated him still....
Yes this is true, and it may actually be me pushing him a little to go to O school. It just seems that if you want to be set for life, retiring as a Major is a good bet. But again, if he wants to be a grunt, I'm going to let him decide. I would like for him to speak to some grunts, to get the feel for what's involved. Going to the VA was a really decent idea, I will check on how to get in to speak to a few of them. This is a man's decision, he's only 16, but has really had his heart set on serving his country since 2nd or 3rd grade, so, this will probably be one of the first real "man" decisions he makes when he turns 18. I want him well informed while I have time to educated him still....
A question that might make a difference........what percent of people entering the military as enlisted re-enlist and stay until retirement vs the percent of people entering as officers and staying until they retire.
A question that might make a difference........what percent of people entering the military as enlisted re-enlist and stay until retirement vs the percent of people entering as officers and staying until they retire.
Good point, I'm sure there's a website that could provide that statistic...
Good point, I'm sure there's a website that could provide that statistic...
I don't know the numbers, but officers do retire at a greater percentage than enlisted. I don't believe it's a huge percentage difference, but notable.
Either way, via OCS or up from the enlisted ranks, it's getting harder and harder to qualify and it has always been harder to go from being a non-com to an O-1 than from University ROTC or OCS to O-1.
The life of a grunt is not a bed of roses. He will be better off in a technical rating and have a wider range of options once his first enlistment period is over.
Either way, via OCS or up from the enlisted ranks, it's getting harder and harder to qualify and it has always been harder to go from being a non-com to an O-1 than from University ROTC or OCS to O-1.
I don't know for sure about the Army, but that is certainly true of the Air Force...and for reasons I'd think would apply to the Army.
The enlisted person who is applying for officer training must do so through his military record and achievements, and with glowing reports from his chain of command--in direct competition with other soldiers with the same records, achievements, and endorsements. It is a very rough competition, and it's very easy for a soldier in a "sexy jobs" to look superior to a soldier in a more mundane occupation, even though the first may be a mediocre leader and the second may be an excellent leader.
Civilians can pretty much go into ROTC just because they maintain decent grands and want to. Civilians going into OCS are competing with vague civilian resumes against other civilians with vague civilian resumes.
It's very much tougher to become an officer from the enlisted ranks than from the civilian community. You'd think it should be the other way around--the enlisted soldier has at least demonstrated that he has adapted to military culture. But at least in the Air Force, that's not the case.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
