So I really want to join the Navy, however, my parents are so hell bent against it that I don't even know how to tell them

Im currently a CRJ major at EKU, but I am so terribly bored with that that it isn't even funny, I have though about military my entire life so last week I went and talked to a Navy recruiter.

Im going to take the ASVAB next week and also have my physical, however I am still dumbfounded at what to tell my parents.

Any help is appreciated.

Why are your parents so against it?   Why Navy?   What MOS are you interested in?

why not finish your degree, commission, then get paid more.

Looking to either go for armorer or something along those lines, I plan on volunteering for VBSS when the opportunity arises. I really have no idea why they are so hell bent against it, I think mainly because my dad runs a corporation. They already threw a sissy fit when I told them I had no interest in doing anything in business and told them I was going LE

The Navy because I figured my parents would take that a little better than Marines or Army, I also have some friends in the Navy and they love it.

Im tired of school, not currently making the grades I need, and feel like Im wasting my time and money going at the moment, I plan to return after I grow up and mature some more(which Im hoping the Navy will help). I honestly feel like Im wasting my life away at school.

Whatever you do, stay out of the nuclear field.

Do not join the military based on "emotional reasoning".  Just because you're bored/pissed off/whatever now doesn't mean the military is the right path.  Finish what you started -  your degree.  The military doesn't need quitters and you don't need to mess up finishing a degree that will benefit you for the rest of your life.

Having said that, your reasoning for joining the Navy is also flawed.  Your friends saying they like it and more importantly, your parents disliking the Army/Marines is NOT solid reasoning to choose a branch.  Also consider this, if you finish your degree you don't have to go the officer route, you can go enlisted if that suits your interest.  Think of the thousands of military personnel that are scraping by on their GI-bill trying to earn a degree, there's a reason for that.  These men and women have learned just how important a degree is.  Learn from there experience and finish.  Again, the military doesn't need a quitter.  

I'm certainly not advising that you not look further in to the military.  However, the military will be there when you graduate and you will be in a better place to find the position that will suit you the most both in the military and within your family.  Having followed through with your collegiate commitment will only make you a better soldier/sailor/airmen, ect.

Why do you say that?

I signed up for the Guard (not via ROTC) my second year of college, not really because I was bored but because I needed to do something more. My parents were hell bent against it but I did it anyway. Had to take a quarter off for BCT/AIT but still got my degree. Thankfully I wasn't deployed until after I graduated however.

the best advice.

Yep.

Because it is a living hell, an amazingly high-stress environment run by nerds with no leadership or even interpersonal skills who have been promoted way too fast.





 

OP check your IM's

Now let me give you my story.

17 years old, just graduated high school.  Wanted badly to enlist and go into the military but my dad talked me out of it so I went to college instead.  It's a good thing too because was a little shit who thought he was tougher and knew more than anyone else, I had completely the wrong attitude back then.  2 years later I'm 19 years old, I hate the school I'm at and it's to late to transfer without tacking on another year to my college career which I don't want to prolong any more than necessary.  I start thinking about dropping out and enlisting, talked with my dad about it and he talked me out of it again.  His reasoning was I spent 2 years there and do I really want to quit just because it's tough and I don't like it, and have absolutely nothing to show for it.  The answer for me was pretty easy, granted I wasn't pleased with the answer but it was pretty obvious.  For the next 2 years I kept thinking about the military and there were times still where I was pissed off and I'd say things like "fuck this place, I hate it, I'm wasting my time here, ect".  So here I am at 21 years old, about to graduate college in 3 weeks and I'll have my degrees in hand.  Yes I still hate my school and no the last 2 years weren't full of fun and adventure, in fact they were rather boring and full of bullshit and/or drama.  However I learned some valuable lessons about embracing the suck and making the best out of it, somethign that I think everyone in the military can agree is important to know how to do.

During my search for jobs after graduation I had a few possibilities come up but all of them felt like they were missing something.  I kept gravitating back to the military because it seemed to me to be more fulfilling of a career choice than any of the local, state, or federal law enforcement jobs I was applying for.  So I started looking into it and did my homework before even setting foot into the recruiters office.  I talked with my recruiter for probably 3 weeks before I finally said OK.  It wasn't a super easy decision and I had a lot of apprehension and nervousness about it at the time.  I knew for a fact that my parents wouldn't agree with what I was going to be doing nor would they understand, but this is my life to live and you eventually have to cut that umbilical cord.  Telling them was a pretty hard thing to do, my mom tried to guilt trip me and my dad refused to speak to me about it.  They basically didn't want to hear it or think about it for about a month, and they kept trying to have me change my mind by sending me job listings and news articles.  After a month I had enough and told them that we could either talk about this like adults or they could keep this up and I just won't talk to them.  Am I proud that I had to say that, no not in the least, but it needed to be done in order to get them to at least listen to me and for me to listen to them so we could talk like adults.  The conversations went back and forth for several weeks, sometimes I'd feel like I was making ground, other times I'd feel like I was losing it.  Even now they're still not behind me 100% on this decision, but they have at least come to the realization that I've done my homework on it and I"m not going in blind or with a head full of smoke and mirrors.  I choose to go the enlisted route first and then later on go to OCS, and I have my reasons for it.  You need to do your homework on the advantages and disadvantages of both career tracks and decide which one is best for you.  I do wish I had a later ship date to BCT seeing as I leave exactly 1 month after I graduate and I won't get to go on that one last family vacation trip that my parents were hoping on.  I may try to get my ship date moved because of some medical problems my mom is going through but if I can't get it moved or if the next one isn't for another year I'm going on my current one.

I will tell you this.  If the reason you want to go into the military right now is because you're fed up with school it's the wrong reason and you need to fix your attitude and outlook on your situation before you make this decision.  Get your degree and have something to show for the time you put in towards; it only opens more doors for you in the future both in the military and in the civilian world.  The military will still be there when you graduate, if you still want it then as bad as you want it now then by all means go ahead and do it.

Call the Coast Guard recruiter instead, they (the parents) will take that news better than any of the services.  Also finish your degree and look at OCS.   The CG has a large LE mission, the MLE Academy is co-located at FLETC Charleston.

+1

Guys with cats for avatars know about the nuclear field

Uh huh.

The navy has armorers?

Yep, they are called "Civilians" and they work at NSWC-Crane.  

take your time. no need to rush such a big decision. armorer jobs are crap... more like cleaning weapons and storing them. my advice if you enjoy weapons is to pick a mos where you get to handle them daily. nothing beats going to the  range and blasting uncle sugars ammo all day! back in the day at the end of the fiscal year they would send machinegun crews out to the M60 range with 100k or more of ammo. ( i never saw a barrel get red hot but i saw smoke pouring off like it was a smoke grenade) if the combat arms gig isn't for you thats cool. the coast guard  looks pretty sweet to me.  for the most part you would be stationed CONUS. get something that your going to enjoy and remember the rest of your life. good luck and keep us posted.

AIRBORNE ALL THE WAY!!!

easy jump for you

I used to have that attitude, it's no good guy.  I am 23 now about to get out of the Army with not a whole lot to show for it (Two tours in Iraq, EMT-B cert and not near as much college as I should have.) If you have parents that are willing to support you while you are in school take advantage of it. A degree will pay off so much more in the long run than just military experience alone. If I could go back and do it again I would have put my college education first and gone the officer route. The military will always be there, suck it up and finish geting a well rounded education that will pay off in the years to follow.

Stay in College, graduate, join the Marine Corps, don't tell your parents... write them a letter from OCS.  Even the ugliest dude makes panties drip in USMC Dress Blues, they'll forgive you when you graduate !

OP: are you living for your parents, or for yourself? I don't have any more to add to that, just popped my head into the forum and read your post. That was the first thing that came to mind.

Chase45- if you want to join, then quit pussy footing around and just do it.  You are a grown man and you can do what you see fit.  

I was always interested in joining the military but I let my folks and friends talk me out of it a few times.  No parent wants their child to join up for fear of having them come home in a box.  But, thats the risk everyone who joins up takes even if they realize it or not.  

I finally got my shit together and joined up.  I don't regret it a bit.  My parents were quite upset with me when I joined but after they saw me doing well, they couldn't have been prouder.  Whats funny is after I did 9 years they didn't want me to get out.  

You have to do whats right for you even if it disappoints someone else.  So if you want to sign up, do it.  Never second guess yourself.  Even if it turns out you hate it, you can leave after your enlistment is up.  At least you served.

If you're over 18, it's your choice, not your parents'. They may be mad at you at first, but once they see you in your uniform, they'll be nothing but proud of their son.

Personally, I would not join the Navy, and especially not Coast Guard. I'd keep it with either the Army or the Marine Corps.

I love it, this advice from a guy who reports to boot camp for the Army National Guard in a few days on the 19th.  (and going to be an 15F Aircraft Electrician)  

I earned E-7 in 2002 and CWO2 last year, this comment just struck me funny is all.  

Strive for the best in any service you chose, we're all on the same team.

How exactly does my MOS have anything to do with anything? But anyways, I said it's my personal opinion, and I'm just speaking from what my best friend who just graduated Coast Guard AIT has told me about it and I was saying that the CG or Navy would not be for me.

Your opinion is worth just about as much as mine And I sure am allowed to voice mine, just like you are.

You both have the same right to voice your opinion, but the opinion of someone who has BTDT outweighs that of someone who just heard some stuff secondhand.



Seriously, that's just dumb. Save yourself tons of grief and never do that again after you set foot on the bus to bootcamp.
 

+1 fly under the radar young soon to be brother of mine.