Paying for College Final 2# revised
College prices are on the rise, and more kids are unable to go to college because of the price, or are scared of the loan that comes after college. Also, more students are worried about getting jobs after college because of the economy. There is one thing that can solve all these problems. The Army is an alterative way for a student who is in debt and jobless. What most students do not know about the Army is that it gives three ways to serve their country. The three ways are Active Duty Army, Reserve, and National Guard. Some people believe that Army ROTC is a fourth way to serve, but it is only a different way for someone to join the army and become an officer.
Matt Martinez who is in ROTC said, “My parents were never in the military and I had no way of paying for college without loans. I really did not want to talk loans and worry about paying them back after I graduated, so I looked into Army ROTC and saw that they will pay for your school and gives you a job afterwards. So I thought what the heck lets do it, so I signed up and I’m happy that I did.”
A second way in joining the Army without going through ROTC, the individual have to go to basic training, which is a ten week course that breaks a person down and will build them back up. Joining the National Guard, Reserves, or active duty, a person that joins one of these have to go through basic training but in ROTC does not. The difference between these three is the commitment you have with the Army.
National Guard and Reserves are very similar in the way they work. Soldiers have to work one weekend a month with the Army to make sure they maintain the skills in the job they are trained in doing. They also spend a month every summer doing full-scale training event. With these two you need to have another job to make a living for yourself. The differences between these two are the jobs that are contained within them.
The National Guard is made up of units that are more combat-related, so the infantry, combat medic, and combat engineer will fall under National Guard. The Reserves is the opposite of National Guard. The units that fall under Reserve would be aviation, signal, and medical. So joining these two would allow you to serve your country and have a civilian life also.
A University of South Dakota Student named Ryan Bartholomaus joined the National Guard right after high school. “Joining the Army after high school was a great experience. I got to go to a lot of different states to because of training and to see new things that most 18 year olds would never see. I had in my contract that I wanted to go to college, so I had to do my entire training first before I could enroll in classes. Even though I’m not on the same track with the kids I graduated with, I am still happy I joined. I get most of my school paid for, and that’s worth it,” He said.
Active Duty Army is for the person that wants to be in the Army full time. The only difference between a full time Army job and a full time civilian job is that a soldier can be working weekends and holidays and you can’t call in sick. This way is different from any life style that most people are use to, unless you been around the military. With these three ways the individual can have in their contract that they want to go to college and want college paid for. The Army will not pay all of it, but they will pay for most of it and the individual will also get money every month for being in the Army to help with school.
Students that are graduated or about to graduate can still get loans paid down by joining the Army. Different amounts of money are given out to people that need loans paid back. Now you know more about the Army and what they can do for you. You can now make a better choice about joining the Army to help with all the debt that comes with college.