Free college, enter as a officer if sign up for the Military?

[kirby]

Is this true? I keep hearing this over and over. And I took my Asvab (got a 86 on it, just using it to get out of class basically) and I have the damned recruiters calling me everyday. "offering me a free lunch if I'll hear them out" and stuff.

But basically I heard that this was possible, 4 years college and in return you have to give up 6yrs to uncle same.

[Salsaface]

Go for the free lunch and ditch the recruiter.

[P_R_Deltoid]

Who's Uncle Same? Did he touch you?

[HARDMAN]

I'd take that free lunch, man.

Just go to the lunch and show interest and at the end tell them "Oh yeah, and I have a heart murmer, I hope thats not a problem?"

Works for every recruiter I've ever had hassle me.

[Trueborn]

You *cannot* enter the military as an officer if you don't already have a 4-year degree. You *do not* receive free college if you already have a 4-year degree.

However, you can enlist and, while in boot camp, you can apply for a non-OCS commissioning program (in the navy, it's called STA-21) and the taxpayers will cover 100% of your tuition, books, and lodging while you go to school to get your 4-year degree. While you're attending school, you're advanced to E-5 and are paid at that rank. When you finally get your degree, they send you to "fork and knife school" and then you become an officer.

But there's a catch: you have to be accepted to the program. It's *not* 100%. And once you've been in for two years, your chances of being accepted drop to 20%.

[Animal Farm Pig]

See if you can get a pack of smokes off the recruiter while your at it.

If you value freedom and the democracy in your everyday life, don't join. If you don't give a fuck, sign your life away.

[New Wave of Thought]

But there's a catch.

Let me see if I follow… you start this process in BT, if your lucky enough to get selected you start taking college classes, at this time are you no longer training but just studying to become an officer? After which you have to serve your country for how long, considering you just got the equivalent of a four year degree? Do you get to choose your bachelors degree or is it selected by the military for your career as an officer?

[Irukanji]

Sign up, get 4years free college, get to be an officer instead of some cannon fodder, spend year and a half in officer school, then 4.5 years getting paid to run around and kill talibans? Sounds like fun.

[Trueborn]

Sign up, get 4years free college, get to be an officer instead of some cannon fodder, spend year and a half in officer school, then 4.5 years getting paid to run around and kill talibans? Sounds like fun.

That's not quite how it works... I already explained it above.

Besides, officers do more paperwork than anything. That's one of the reasons I've mostly decided against it.

[Mor3BL7]

i smell something in the air thats making me high

[Trueborn]

Let me see if I follow… you start this process in BT, if your lucky enough to get selected you start taking college classes, at this time are you no longer training but just studying to become an officer? After which you have to serve your country for how long, considering you just got the equivalent of a four year degree? Do you get to choose your bachelors degree or is it selected by the military for your career as an officer?

You can start the process as early as basic training. But you can also start it any time after that. Even if somehow you're selected during basic, you have to COMPLETE basic in order to begin the commissioning program.

You can pick your degree, but you must attend a university that has an ROTC for your branch of service. So you can pick any bachelor's degree program from any school that has one of those.

You can also pick what type of officer you'd like to become, but in the commissioning programs, you must pick a line officer (as opposed to being a doctor or a chaplain or supply corps... There's special programs for becoming staff officers.)

Once you get your degree, they send you to military customs school, a.k.a. "fork and knife" school. Far less intense than boot camp and ridiculously less intense than OCS. Once you finish that, they send you to specialized training based on what type of line officer you chose to be.

[HARDMAN]

I suggest you read One Bullet Away: The Making of a Marine Officer by Nathaniel Fick. Just copy everything he does in the book and you will be on your way to being one badass combat commander.

[kirby]

I suggest you read One Bullet Away: The Making of a Marine Officer by Nathaniel Fick. Just copy everything he does in the book and you will be on your way to being one badass combat commander.


Consider it done!

As for the other posts, thanks! :) I'm rereading them to make sure I understand them.