Stay Enlisted or go Officer?

[CLEP101]

Clep101,

If you do not mind answering these questions.
Did you break your back prior to enlisting or was it after enlisting.
What is a permanent record ?

My youngest son age 15 wants to be in the military, but I have always believed due to the rods in his back he would not be eligible.

Peace123

Sent you a PM.

[JanusthePhoenix]

Does the Army have a Limited Duty Officer program like the Navy? In the last place I worked, nearly every officer from the assistant division O to the Department Head was a LDO. The department head was an O-5, coming up for O-6 when I left, and I believe he had 25 years or so in, all the way from E-1 to E-9 before he started on the officer ranks.

[HawkGuy]

Does the Army have a Limited Duty Officer program like the Navy?

Nope. The closest thing the Army has are Warrant Officers.

[HawkGuy]

Well, as I was reading the OCS application, I discovered that I qualify in everything except in one area. I have to be able to run, and not have a permanent profile. As I have a busted lower back and a permanent profile, I cannot do that. So now, I think I will go Direct Commission route. I have to bust my butt to finish my Masters in Public Health so I can go into the Preventive Medicine field. I talked to the Officers in the field and said that a Masters in Public Health will get me picked up. I'll be doing Occupational Health and Safety type work. We'll see how it goes.
Thanks again for the feed back.

If you're able to pass a commissioning physical, you should be alright.

If you haven't yet, check out armyocs.com. There's a lot of great information on there, plus a few of the moderators are in USAREC and AMEDD as current or former recruiters.

[CLEP101]

If you're able to pass a commissioning physical, you should be alright.

If you haven't yet, check out armyocs.com. There's a lot of great information on there, plus a few of the moderators are in USAREC and AMEDD as current or former recruiters.

Thanks, I think I'll check out AMEDD and see what they're requirements are for the field I'm looking at.

[marean]

What do you guys think?
I've been in the Army 13 years and will finish my BS this March. I am also getting promoted to E-8 Master Sergeant in the next couple of months.
I have been debating whether or not to apply for Officer Candidate School and get my butter bar. I can apply now and go Officer in the next few months I think, or finish my Masters in Public Health and get a direct commission in a about 1 1/2 years.
What to do, what to do?

Simple, Warrant Officer. Did it after 18 years as an enlisted Soldier. Spend another 19 years as a Warrant, got out as a CW4.

[cookderosa]

I respect the advice of you guys here, and since this is something I know nothing about I'm really enjoying reading this thread!
Ok, so here is my question- if you were a young man starting over, what route would you take?? If you wanted good job security, respect, and a nice pension- what IS the road to get you there?? And where do degrees fit in to the plan??

[JanusthePhoenix]

I respect the advice of you guys here, and since this is something I know nothing about I'm really enjoying reading this thread!
Ok, so here is my question- if you were a young man starting over, what route would you take?? If you wanted good job security, respect, and a nice pension- what IS the road to get you there?? And where do degrees fit in to the plan??

If you mean military options only, the route with the highest potential is to get a 4 year degree somehow and apply for OCS in whatever branch and specialization you would prefer. Within that option, the best career choice would be to attend one of the military academies. That's where most of the big wigs came from. I personally would not opt for that one though...that's like 4 years of boot camp/A school. :eek:

[taylor]

I've never been in the military nor am I an expert on this subject. I would've thought becoming an officer would be a no brainer, but hearing views from the inside is insightful. I had never heard about the lack of respect thing within the military of officers going through OCS, this is a first for me. However, I believe in the world outside of the military an officer in the armed forces is looked upon with a lot of respect. I personally respect the enlistees too but I know a lot of people who don't feel the same way. My HS friend is a Major or Colonel (I forget) in the Marines and my other HS friend's brother is a Colonel in the Air Force. When they walk into a social event with their uniforms on, they do get a lot of "oohs" and "aahs". Good luck with your decision.

[HawkGuy]

Ok, so here is my question- if you were a young man starting over, what route would you take?? If you wanted good job security, respect, and a nice pension- what IS the road to get you there?? And where do degrees fit in to the plan??

Knowing what I know now, I would have done better in HS and tried to get accepted into West Point. Failing that, I would have gone to a good school and done ROTC. That way, I'd have come out with no student loans, a degree, and a job for the next 4 years. After several years in the service, I'd apply to a top 20 business school and earn an MBA. After the MBA, I'd follow it up with a 20-30 year career, then use my B-School connections to land a sweet job on the outside to supplement my already sweet pension.

Good job security, check. They can't fire you haha.
Respect, check. Military officers were among the most respected professions in a recent survey.
Nice pension, check. Retire with 20 years in as a MAJ and take home 48k/yr. Put in 30 years retiring as a LTC gets you 121k/yr. After taxes.

Edit: Degrees are important because they get you to where you want to go. You can't be a military officer without a bachelors degree. Most senior officers have masters degrees too. I would recommend a B&M school over online to any young person simply because of the people you meet and the friends you make. A college roommate can becomes a lifelong friend. Online classmates, probably not so much.