Your decision to join the U.S. Military will have life-changing
implications. The lessons you learn in the military about yourself
and the world around you will make an indelible impression on you for
life. Below are a few facts, observations, musings, and more to help
you in your decision about joining the military.
Background
The U.S. Military is charged with protecting the United States of
America, and protecting the interests of the U.S. worldwide through
the use of military force and persuasion. By joining the U.S. Military
you will be part of that effort.
The
military, of course, is not a civilian job. If you join, you should be
prepared to take up arms against enemies of the United States. For
example, the basic mission of the
Marine Rifle Squad is "TO LOCATE, CLOSE WITH, AND DESTROY THE ENEMY
BY FIRE AND MANEUVER, OR REPEL THE ENEMY'S ASSAULT BY FIRE AND CLOSE
COMBAT. Not exactly like working in a cubicle! Many reservists and
military personnel in support roles are finding out in Iraq that you
don't have to be in a Marine Rifle Squad to find combat action.
Featured Service - U.S. Army
A Soldier's personal decision to serve demonstrates collective
strength: strength from within himself/herself, strength from
within his/her family and strength from those who influence this
important war-time choice for our nation. The Army and its
Soldiers are strengthened by those who understand and support
the decision of their loved one, friend or employee to serve our
nation and elevate his or her future.
More info...
Reasons for Joining
There are many good reasons to join the military:
Duty to Country
The anti-communist writer Robert Heinlein, in his
book
Starship Troopers (the original book, not the movie), commented on
the differences between a citizen (civilian) and a soldier: "The difference lies
in the field of civic virtue. A soldier accepts personal
responsibility for the safety of the body politic of which he is a
member, defending it, if need be, with his life. The civilian does
not."
Personal
Development
A Marine recruiting poster says it best:
"MARINES MAKE MEN - BODY, MIND, SPIRIT."
Get an Education
The military academies provide a college degree
free of charge. Enlisted personnel can earn up to $50,000 in financial
assistance towards a college degree and other post-high school education.
Benefits
VA home loans, veterans' franchise programs and other
benefits will help you throughout life.
Travel
A popular U.S. Navy recruiting slogan says "JOIN THE
NAVY -
SEE THE WORLD."
Career
Join at age 18, serve twenty years, and retire at age 38!
Career
Development
Gain valuable experience for civilian jobs.
From military police to space science applications in the U.S. Air
Force, you can gain valuable job experience in a wide variety of
fields. Many officers use their
military experience as a springboard to the corporate world or
specialized government positions such as those in the ATF, CIA, FBI,
State Department, etc.
Learn
Life Lessons
Thomas E. Ricks, a civilian reporter for the Wall
Street Journal, followed a group of Marine recruits from boot camp to
graduation. These experiences formed the basis of his book
Making the Corps. He found that the military does a better job in
teaching life's important lessons than does for example the average
American high school:
-
Tell the truth
-
Do your best, no how trivial the task
-
Choose the difficult right over the easy wrong
-
Don't pursue happiness, pursue excellence
-
Money isn't the measure of a man, a person's real wealth is his
character.
Preparing for the Military
One of
the many words of wisdom you may hear in the military are the "Seven
Ps": "Prior Proper Planning Prevents Piss Poor Performance." This
statement should certainly be heeded in preparations for the military.
A few hints:
1. Find the right military job for you. There are hundreds of military
occupational specialties to pick from. Do your research, then talk to
a recruiter. And then get it in your contract.
2. Realize that military jobs are military jobs, not civilian jobs.
Remember Pauly Shore in the movie
In The Army Now? His movie
character's experience at cleaning swimming pools in civilian life
didn't exactly translate into his military job of water purification
in the desert!
3. Double-check the info you receive from your recruiter with someone
you trust who has served in the military. Recruiters have been known
to "stretch the truth" from time to time. 4. Prepare yourself physically. Don't waste your time, and the
military's, by reporting to boot camp or military school out
of shape. If you are too out of shape to train with the others you
may be placed in a separate remedial physical fitness program. In boot
camp, placement in such a program will delay your graduation. Boot
camp is generally not a fun place to be, and you will want to graduate
in the shortest possible time. 5. Prepare yourself mentally. To maximize your opportunities in the
military you will want to score as high as possible on military
entrance examinations such as the ASVAB. Many jobs in the military
require certain minimum scores on these exams. There are many study
guides available - do your homework before taking the test(s).
Surviving Basic Training
Seven tips to help you make it through boot camp:
1. Have a positive attitude. Your time at boot camp will be one
of the defining moments of your life. Make the best of it. Make
yourself proud - do the right thing and you'll have something positive
to remember for life. Moreover, inevitably there will be a few who
develop bad attitudes about the situation. Don't buy into their
negativity.
2. Just do it! Believe it or not, there's a purpose for every
silly thing you do in boot camp. Diligently comply with all of your
instructor's commands. U.S. military drill instructors/sergeants are
consummate professionals - the best in the world at what they do.
3. Remember, it's not personal. Your drill
instructors/sergeants will find some of the most obscenely funny
things to say about you. But they don't really mean it, usually. At
first, you will probably hate your instructors/sergeants, not
believing that God could have created such vile persons. However, by
the end of training, you might just have a grudging admiration for
their efforts.
4. Don't eat anything you have been ordered not to eat, or you'll be
eating a lot of it! Example: A private was caught eating the candy
bar from an MRE (Meal Ready to Eat) during field training. Since the
recruits had already been ordered not to eat candy bars, and the
forbidden candy bars had already been collected by the drill
instructors, there was a ready supply at hand for punishment. "So you
want to eat candy, well here's a few hundred bars - start eating." The
rest of the platoon had to watch while the poor guy had to eat candy
bar after candy bar until there was chocolate oozing from his mouth
and running down his khakis. After that, he was known simply as "the
candy man."
5. Don't draw undue attention to yourself: Unless you're a
glutton for punishment or like living on the edge, do not volunteer for
anything. (Attention at basic training is rarely good.)
6. Help your buddies: In basic training, you'll probably hear
about the importance of teamwork in the military and that a chain is
only as strong as its weakest link. If your buddy is struggling in a
particular area, give them a hand.
7. Don't Worry: Though basic training may seem impossibly hard
at first, remember that it is a process that has been successfully
completed by millions of other people before you. In fact, as hard as
it may seem, the drill instructors/sergeants want you to
succeed and graduate - the military needs people and they don't bring
people to boot camp just for harassment. Also, some people prior to
boot camp are worried that their fellow recruits will all be six foot
four inch blonde Marine killing machines. Although there is sometimes
such a person in each recruit platoon, you'll be relieved to know that
most recruits are average Americans - short, tall, overweight,
underweight, country, city, bright, dumb - and most of them will be
just as scared or concerned as you are about what faces them at basic
training.
Joining the Military
63 Days and a Wake-Up: Your Survival Guide to
United States Army Basic Combat Training
ASVAB
for Dummies
Kaplan
ASVAB 2007 Edition
America's
Top Military Careers
What
to Expect in the Military
Honor,
Courage, Commitment: Navy Boot Camp
Into
the Crucible
Guidebook
for Marines
Airman's
Guide
Coast
Guardsman's Manual
Army
Basic Training
To
Benning and Back (From Army Basic to OCS)
Army
Officer's Guide
The
Naval Officer's Guide
The
Bluejacket's Manual (Sailor's Guide)
The
Ultimate Basic Training Guidebook
Background
Thomas E. Ricks, a civilian reporter for the Wall
Street Journal, followed a group of Marine recruits from boot camp to
graduation. These experiences formed the basis of his book