While this video only shows Navy Bootcamp, the other branches have similar basic training. If you decide to join, you will be challenged. You will have to make sacrifices. You will have people yelling at you, telling what to wear, even how to fold your underwear. You will have to be ready and willing to take orders, wear a uniform, and go to war. It is a lot to ask. And it’s certainly not going to be for everyone here. But before you dismiss it as an option, let’s talk about why you might still want to go through all of this. There are benefits that are important for you to know about, so that you have balanced information, and can make an informed choice.
There are five different branches of the military, each one with a unique mission within the overall mission of U.S. security and peace.
- The Air Force is the nation's source of air and space power. The primary mission of the USAF is to fly planes, helicopters, and satellites.
- The Army is the nation’s dominant land power. The Army generally moves into an area, secures it, and instills order and values before it leaves. It also guards U.S. installations and properties throughout the world.
- The Coast Guard's mission is primarily with domestic waterways. The Coast Guard does rescues, law enforcement, drug prevention, and clears waterways.
- The Marine Corps is known as the U.S.' rapid-reaction force. They are trained to fight by sea and land, and usually are the first "boots on the ground.“
- The Navy accomplishes its missions primarily by sea, but also by air and land. It secures and protects the oceans around the world to create peace and stability, making the seas safe for travel and trade.
- The Space Force was established within the Air Force with a mission to organize, train, and equip space forces to protect the U.S. and allied interests in space and to provide space capabilities to the joint forces.
Although members of the Guard and the Reserve services wear the same uniform as active duty members, they only train part-time – it is not considered a full-time job, and the pay rate will therefore differ. In addition, the three are controlled by different entities. The reserves and the guard are both federally controlled, but the guard is also controlled by the state that it is found in.
It’s important to distinguish between what it means to be a military officer and joining the military by enlistment. Both directions have a few shared qualifications, but the differences between the two aside from these few similarities is enormous. Though there are many programs allowing individuals to enter the military to become officers, we’ll focus on a few of the basic qualifications and a few of the duties and responsibilities of the military officer.
Qualifications: The biggest difference between officer candidacy and enlistment is found in the preliminary qualifications. In order to join the military as an enlistee, you must simply acquire a high school diploma, GED, and pass the ASVAB. These factors determine what jobs you may get as an enlisted individual, and so forth.
As a military officer, you must not only have acquired a high school diploma and pass the ASVAB, but also must have successfully completed a four-year college degree.
Training: Enlisted personnel complete basic training (sometimes called “boot camp”) while officers complete Officer Candidate school.
Duties and Pay: The biggest differences between officer and enlistees, of course, comes down to what each does from day to day, and what compensation is provided at the end of each pay period. In the vast majority of circumstances, you can safely call officers the managers of the military. They will very frequently be assigned supervisory roles-making sure that what needs to be done gets done. As such, accountability from the top of the hierarchy falls on their shoulders should something go wrong, whereas enlisted personnel will be the ones “in the trenches”, staying more focused on the doing, instead of the supervising.
In the past decade, the GI Bill has helped more than 2.3 million veterans pay for college. And did you know that there are actually several options for educational benefits under the GI Bill? There's the Montgomery G I Bill for active-duty and select reserve service members, as well as benefit programs for disabled veterans. There's also the Post-9/11 GI Bill, which offers more than just help with tuition and fees. It also offers a living allowance, money for textbooks and even the option to transfer education benefits that service members don't use to their spouse or children.
Many service members are also able to get their degree while on active-duty. Then there's the ROTC (the Reserve Officers' Training Corps, if you're unfamiliar with it), which trains college students for future service. About 120,000 people have benefited from ROTC scholarships in the past decade.
Like anything else, when you leave one way of life for another, it can be a transition. Moving cross-country. Leaving home for college. Those all represent a big change, but people adjust, and it's no different for veterans.
Sure, there's definitely a transition period when you leave the military, but there are several programs that help service members with transition and separation, including the Hiring our Heroes program.
And if you're thinking that your job skills won't transfer, that's a myth, too. People forget that the military has all sorts of opportunities – from cooking to doing scientific research to public affairs – and a lot of those skills are extremely transferable. Not only that, but in the military, you get a crash-course in things like dependability and reliability, teamwork and team-building, leadership, handling stress, decision-making and critical thinking, just to name a few. All of those qualities are highly valuable to employers in the civilian sector. So, just like any civilian who might transfer from one job to another, people with military backgrounds can do that, too.
Need help with your civilian resume, or tips on how to interview? The military has that covered. And if you're looking for a career change when you leave, as we've shown above, there's lots of help to get you where you want to be!
”Deployment" refers to activities required to move military personnel and materials from a home installation to a specified destination. For service members and families, it has come to mean much more: the preparations and personal needs that need to be taken care of at home before, during and after deployment.
The President of the United States is the Commander in Chief, who is responsible for all final decisions. The Secretary of the Department of Defense (DoD) has control over the military and each branch - except the Coast Guard, which is under the Dept. of Homeland Security. With over 2 million civilian and military employees, the DoD is the world's largest "company."
The armed services involves a willingness to put one’s life on the line. The ASVAB is used to determine your suitability for certain assignments, so it may be the most important test you ever take.
Why might you want to go into the military? While the military can be challenging, it offers many benefits. Some of those benefits are listed here. If you want more information about any of these benefits, you can talk to our WBL representative or a military recruiter – you will be given contact information for them at the end of this lesson.
One of the biggest benefits the military has to offer is the one that we will be exploring today training. Today we will be looking at the different kinds of training you can receive in the military – training that could lead you towards your ultimate dream occupation. Before joining the military consider the following;
Be sure of your motivation for joining. Joining the military just because you have nothing better to do can lead to a miserable experience.
Make sure you understand that going to boot camp or OCS with the mindset that it is the military's job to get you in shape is going to lead to failure, injury, or even being dropped from a program. You need to be able to surpass the minimum fitness standards before you sign with the recruiter. This means finding out what the fitness requirements are and practicing those events.
Research what is important about your future profession. Where could you be living after basic? Where could you deploy to? How long are the deployments? Learn the geography of the area you are likely to deploy to and its customs and culture. Learn about current events around the world – they affect your potential travel.
If you think you are interested in the military, call your local recruiter and make an appointment to meet. Sometimes getting him or her on the phone may be difficult, but try to speak with someone to set up a time to meet. Walking in cold typically results in you leaving to track down your SSN card, birth certificate, other IDs, transcripts from high school and college, and more. Know what you need to bring and what you want to do in the military before visiting. Going in and asking what you qualify for could place you in a position that you are not interested in occupying. Once again, focus on initiative – do your homework and do not leave it up to the recruiter to find a job for you. Also, seek advice from other adults/mentors that know you well, and can offer their perspective on whether they think this might be a good fit for you.
The military will screen you medically, but if you have any prior surgeries, broken bones, or major illnesses, they need to know about it and file the proper paperwork as some of these may require medical waivers. Yes, you may be able to get a waiver. Know the ailments that are disqualifying.
Learn how to take this test. Take a few practice tests and read a book on tips and strategies for taking the ASVAB. There are many ASVAB study guides in bookstores and online. Your score on this test can determine where you will live and what you will be doing in the military.
Your criminal record will be checked in a background investigation, and it can be an issue in your attempt to join depending upon the reason for your arrest. Inform the recruiters of any arrests – they will find out one way or another, and an omission on your part may be detrimental to progressing further.
If you have issues with dealing with authority, you must know that you will be disciplined and forced to change your way of doing things, especially in basic training. Learn to suck it up, learn from the negative feedback and move on. Soon, your deeds will be what separates you from your peers which can lead to speedy advancement within the ranks. But you have to do your time at the bottom.
Expect to be gone from home and family while training and deploying throughout the year to just about anywhere in the world as there are hundreds of bases throughout.
There are many educational opportunities available in the military from occupational training courses to full college tuition paid in undergraduate and graduate programs.
Joining the military is a big commitment - by both you and the military. This commitment is not to be taken lightly. Most first-term enlistments require a commitment to four years active and two years inactive (IRR). But the services also offer programs with two, three, and six-year active duty or reserve enlistments. It depends upon the service and the job that you want.
Get it in writing. Upon enlisting you sign an enlistment contract. This contract determines your initial commitment, bonuses, job training guarantees and other incentives; make sure it's right.
Training commitments. The military offers a variety of advanced training programs. Some of these programs require additional service commitments. Some commitments run simultaneously with existing commitments; some require additional active duty time.
Re-enlistment. You will have plenty of opportunities to extend your stay in the military. Services offer an additional bonus to people who re-enlist with high-demand skills. The re-enlistment commitment will also vary in the size of the bonus.
Officer commitments. Like all other commitments, they vary. A standard commitment for service academy graduates who do not receive rated follow-on training is five years. Graduates who accept pilot training are committed to active duty for nine years. ROTC also generally requires a five-year payback while other active-duty commissioning programs usually require a minimum of three years.
You can serve your country without making any full-time commitment and receive many of the same benefits. In the Reserves and National Guard, your obligation is generally one weekend a month, plus two weeks of active duty a year.
Leaving active duty or getting out of your commitment. Getting out of a contract is difficult. The amount of difficulty varies with the needs of the nation and the availability of talent in your chosen career field. Simply put, you should plan on fulfilling any commitment you make.
Of course, you will not be paying to be in the military – rather, you will be paid to be in. In order to calculation the cost in dollars, you will need to compare the military pay with what you might be paid in a comparable civilian entry-level.
The initial monthly salary here is as of 2017 for the initial 4 months. There are increases so the annual salary is an estimate. Moreover, while the annual salary may seem low, the following bullets show how additional allowances cover most of your basic needs.
When determining the pay for the military, you cannot just consider the “basic pay,” which is the pay received by all and is the main component of an individual's salary. You will also need to consider the other pays, such as special and incentive pays for specific qualifications or events. For example, there are special pays for aviators and parachutists; special pays are also paid for dangerous or hardship duties. In addition, you will also need to consider allowances, as they are the second most important element of military pay. Allowances are moneys provided for specific needs, such as food or housing. Monetary allowances are provided when the government does not provide for that specific need. For example, the quantity of government housing is not sufficient to house all military members and their families. Those who live in government housing do not receive full housing allowances. Those who do not live in government housing receive allowances to assist them in obtaining commercial housing.
The most common allowances are Basic Allowance for Subsistence (BAS) and Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH). Much of the force receives both allowances and, in many cases, these allowances comprise a significant portion of the member's total pay.
Most allowances are not taxable, which is an additional imbedded benefit of military pay.
All of this should be considered when determining if there is a cost in dollars for joining the military versus getting a comparable civilian job.
Each military branch has its own minimum ASVAB score (lowest score is 31) and varies based on demand. This is important in your Job Corps academics and CTT training, because it will help you to score higher even for enlistment. High ASVAB scores help determine where the military will assign you in your duties and where you would be stationed.
- You will need to complete national background check
- No prescribed medications, major mental health issue, or legal charges. Some waivers can apply but very difficult to obtain
- No debts exceeding $500
- Maintain satisfactory behavior on center
- Student can’t be receiving federal payments (e.g. social security payments)
- Some restrictions on tattoos (if visible and what content)
- If under 18, need parental consent to enlist
- Meet physical requirements based on height and weight measurement formula
- Minimum completion of 675 hours actual CTT training and attainment of either a Tier 1 High School Diploma or a Hi-Set GED. If you are going into the Marine, the branch requires a Tier 1 diploma
