Well I'll be turning 18 next month and graduating highschool.  I am in a bind whether or not I should go to college or go into the Army/Marines.  My parents are obviously against it, and they would like me to talk to people that have expierenced it.  So I figured out here I would get truthful answers.  Thanks for the feedback!

Don't forget to post in the forum for service-members and vets.  www.ar15.com/forums/forum.html?b=1&f=77

There's less traffic in there, but obviously a ton of exactly the type of knowledge you are looking for.

Go to school first, unless its a financial issue.  Or you could try the reserves and go to school at the same time.  However if you went that route you would likely be activated and deployed depending on your mos choice.

Well like, 2 days into boot camp, I regretted going in.  Our DIs were mean as snakes and there was some mix up about the barracks we were to be housed in, and we didnt' sleep for about 48 hours.  All of us kept falling asleep during class, and it was cold cold cold.  (Navy bootcamp in Great Lakes Illinois)

But after that it got better.   =)

I was 17 when i signed up, and my dad had to sign also so that I could go in.  

It is what you make of it.  The military offers lots of opportunities educationally that you can use to find a good job or you can also make a career out of it and retire in 15-20 years.  Just make sure to take advantage of all the opportunities and dont' blow all your weekends on women and wine.  

And college is the better way to go.  Do some ROTC while in college.  Officers fare a lot better than enlisted.

The Gideons give a pocket Bible to you at MEPS.

You'll know yourself a lot better. It's about service. You'll be a small, important part of something huge. When you feel good about yourself, you'll know why.

Unless you have a lock on college and a job afterwards, it won't hurt you to put some time in the service.

Quoted: And college is the better way to go.  Do some ROTC while in college.  Officers fare a lot better than enlisted.

Yep, officers get higher pay and superior living  conditions. But, you might not be able to stand going to college nowadays. It's full of liberals, the classes are boring/useless, too much crime in/around the campus, and you might figure out you're smarter than your professor or the teaching assistant.

Talk to the recruiters who handle officer recruiting and find a route where you can get a degree and join the service at the same time, preferably at a military (or a military friendly) school instead of going to college as a civilian. Pick a major that is difficult which will land you a high paying career, or an easy major to get into a high paying career that is difficult.

They give you a puppy when you first get in then when you graduate basic, you have to kill it and eat it.

Quoted: Well like, 2 days into boot camp, I regretted going in.  Our DIs were mean as snakes and there was some mix up about the barracks we were to be housed in, and we didnt' sleep for about 48 hours.  All of us kept falling asleep during class, and it was cold cold cold.  (Navy bootcamp in Great Lakes Illinois) But after that it got better.   =) I was 17 when i signed up, and my dad had to sign also so that I could go in.   It is what you make of it.  The military offers lots of opportunities educationally that you can use to find a good job or you can also make a career out of it and retire in 15-20 years.  Just make sure to take advantage of all the opportunities and dont' blow all your weekends on women and wine.   And college is the better way to go.  Do some ROTC while in college.  Officers fare a lot better than enlisted.

Same thing happened to me at Great Lakes..  They do it on purpose, sleep deprivation..  There wans't any mix up.  They were just fucking with you..

Quoted: They give you a puppy when you first get in then when you graduate basic, you have to kill it and eat it.

Then when you are on your ten day leave after graduating you have to kill a family member.

I dunno how much it's changed, but when I went in (Mar 18, 1985 at Ft Sill, OK), it went like this:

First, you'll arrive at the reception center where you get your clothes taken away, new and much uglier clothes given to you, your head shaved, medical exams, etc etc. The Drill Sergeants at RC are pretty cool, too: when you're waiting in line for chow, they're like "Ok, guys...just stand in a straight line, and don't talk real loud".

After 2 days of thinking "Well hell; this ain't gonna be shit", the buses arrive, to take you to your training unit. Your apprehension level will rise as you see the grins on the faces of the Oh-so-amiable reception center NCOs as you depart.

When the buses pull into the parking lot of your unit, you will see a bunch of guys in BDUs standing around. They, like the DSs at the reception center, are also wearing DS hats. UNLIKE the DSs at the reception center however, none of them appears to be too amiable. Before the bus even comes to a halt, one of the DSs will climb on board displaying a wild-eyed visage that would cause lucifer to piss in his pants with terror, and begin screaming nearly unintelligeably...something about unassing his bus in less than 5 seconds...and at a volume you never would have thought possible from human lungs.

After successfully unassing the bus (keep in mind that you will have your luggage (a duffle bag & 2 laundry bags) in hand the whole time, you will discover that your mind has gone into a coma while you were wishing you were still at home, and you will thus have no fucking clue of that you should do.

*hint* IF you were paying attention as the bus pulled in, you may have noticed that there are yellow "footprints" painted on the surface of the parking lot. Pick a set of them (right up front, don't be a pansy), and IMMEDIATELY make a beeline for them, and drop your shit at your sides, and stand at attention. Do NOT look around at the other clueless assholes that are doubtlessly doing push-ups to the point of muscle failure. *tip* Get that damned duffle bag of your back, and do it as fast as you can!!!! If you don't, you WILL be doing push-ups with it ON your back if you fuck up, trust me.

Anyway, if you're lucky, nobody wearing a "round brown" will notice you. If they DO, they will stop and stare at you, trying to get you to look back. If you have anything resembling a self-preservation instinct, DON'T unless you want to get your upper body in shape in a real hurry.

If you're REALLY lucky, there will be some assclown that thinks he's hot shit, and he'll draw attention away from you. Drill Sergeants love to put the smackdown on tough guys, but they'll have him chewed up and spat out pretty quickly, so mr assclown will be only a temporary reprieve, at best.

Once the Drill Sergeants have had their fill of terrorizing you all, which may take awhile since they seem to enjoy it so much, you'll have a roll call (answer up quickly and LOUDLY), and you'll be split up into your platoons. After that, it's pretty much just getting settled, although with an air of...shall we say...hostility....on the part of the Drill Sergeants.

After that first day though...it's a blast, seriously!

More tips:

Don't bother learning your left from your right, because you're going to forget it anyway, the instant you are required to march anywhere.

Don't get your head shaved before you leave for basic.

Drill Sergeants are kinda proud of their hats, so don't call it a "bigass beanie with a brim".

They will kiss your ass until the point you sign the papers, then they are sort of nice, until you get to basic, then they treat you like shit, until you get out of basic, then they are sort of nice, until you are about to get out, then they kiss your ass so you will re-enlist, then...  well... don't know 'cause I got out.  Now I have a $60K college fund.

Seriously, take the ASVAB first, then talk to each service to see what they can offer you.  Be careful what you ask for, 'cause you may get it.

Every morning starts with coffee and doughnuts in the break room.  

Quoted: Quoted: They give you a puppy when you first get in then when you graduate basic, you have to kill it and eat it. Then when you are on your ten day leave after graduating you have to kill a family member.

I offered to kill more than one of mine, but they said only one was required.

 (you'd have to meet my family to appreciate the sick joke)

Quoted: Seriously, take the ASVAB first, then talk to each service to see what they can offer you.

Yep. The US military is the ludicrously high-tech compared to the rest of the world. So the DoD wants to know how much you know and how well you can solve problems while under time pressure.

Quoted: Quoted: They give you a puppy when you first get in then when you graduate basic, you have to kill it and eat it. Then when you are on your ten day leave after graduating you have to kill a family member.

I only beat my family into a coma. Thats why I was never senior gunner on the Space Shuttle I tried to get a waiver but the board did not approve.