Do i have to go to college if i join the army?

Question

I just graduated high school. Will i be able to make a living if i join the army for about 5 years and then leave? You think i will be able to get a house and start in the real world. I wanna join the army but i dont wanna start college late.

Answer 1

if you are not planning on making the Army a career, then chances are you will not get anywhere withjout a college education, since any of the jobs that are paying require that degree as well as high tech training.

PLENTY of people serve a term in the military and then take advantage of the GI bill to attedn college afterwards. you might find the extar years of maturity stand you in better stead than your fellow 18 year old partiers and you end up doing better than they do.

Answer 2

First
- No, you don't "have to" go to college at all.
-Maybe, depending on your MOS, your job while you are in the army, you might get out in 5 years and be able to get great job. Something that converts into the civilian sector would be ideal. Perhaps something in the electronics or medical field. Infantry may not get you a great paying job on the outside.
Your best bet if you want to join the military is to do college while you are active duty. You can CLEP most of your GE credits. That means you don't have to take the class, just study the material they give you and take the test. In 5 years you can get your associates and then use your GI Bill to pay for your bachelors. Or, if your really ambitious, get your bachelors in 5 years and use your GI Bill to pay for your Masters!
Second
If you want to be guaranteed time for school, look into the Air Force, even the Navy. The Army and the Marines, though they do advocate college, the physical activities required to maintain their standards will leave you exhausted at the end of the day.
The AF and Navy don't necessarily require group PT. However, it does depend what your job there is too. Navy Seals, Divers, Red Horse and Seabees structure their PT similar to the Army and Marines.
Also, I know the AF and Navy have programs where you can enlist, then have them send you to college full time while you are still active duty. Its a very competitive program and it usually applies to certain MOS. I dont know alot about it, keep asking around.
Military can be alot of fun but if you really want to make the bucks on the outside world make sure you get an MOS that gives you the most college credit in the field you want to work when you get out. You will also need to be VERY focused and dedicated to getting your college education while on active duty.
Word of warning! Dont take everything out of your recruiters mouth as the untarnished truth. Research everything yourself. DO NOT SIGN ANYTHING WITH OUT READING IT.

Answer 3

Go to college. If you cannot find a job you can alway be an officer. If you will make about 900 a month and be deployed constantly. Serving in the miltitary does not help that much on the outside because employer do not care. Get a job as a security guard. If you work at night you can study and then go to school in the day time. Most employees have tution asstances. at my job from midnight to about 4 am everyday I can study because no one is there and the place is locked up . I just make my hourly checks. My boss does not care because he know I am not sleeping if I am studing to be a nurse.
If ET were getting 90000 year base pay I still would be there.

Answer 4

Do both like I did.

Balancing a military career and college can be tough - especially in the Army. You might consider the Air Force where more jobs are the typical 9 to 5 kind which allows you to go to night school.

In four years I had my associates degree and after that I had $10,000 in GI Bill money for my four-year degree.

Consider that the military pays for clothing, food, shelter, everything...so your paycheck is really 100% disposable income - save that for five years and you should have a nice downpayment for your house when you leave the military.

And be sure you select the job that best prepares you for civilian life - typically most companies aren't looking for a marksmen shooter, so try to sign-up for a job with marketable skills when you get out.

Answer 5

The Army will be enough to get what you want out of life if you choose the right career field in the Army. The person above who says you need college is wrong. I have no college and joined the Navy as an ET and make a base pay of $90,000 plus bonus in the same field I was in in the Navy. Try to get into a field with a security clearance and the jobs will come to you when you get out.

Answer 6

Join the Army, get married and your wife will be able to live comfortably on a Veterans widows pension, you dont think someone with your money led ethos will survive in a Military environment do you. Think man do you hunt, is it a big thrill when you kill a Deer, or shoot an eagle at 3000 yards, that is why one joins the Army, because one enjoys killing and because for 7 generations ones ancestors have served with the regiment. There is proper soldiering to be done at present, but remember Who dares survives, fortune favours the brave, the Army is for the living and if you die at least you will get a decent Military burial, and that is priceless.

Answer 7

using the army as a booster is a good idea you can with a little balancing and alot of hardwork be able to get your degree while still in, try to get a MOS that has a civilian sector counterpart, and as a previous poster said a security clearance (it cost alot of money to get a cleareance, that some places aren't willing to pay for you to get, the army pays for it and you can carry it into a civilian job)