College & Marines

[Alisium]

True story. Marine Corps will not magically make you a man.

That's what Phuket, Thailand is for.

[thesaintkevin]

Thanks for the responses everyone! I've decided to attend college for a year before enlisting in the Marines.

P.S. Will the credits I have earned in UCSB freshman year expire after my service is up? My friend told me I'd have to repeat freshman year, but I'm not really sure if that's correct. Any insight on this is appreciated!

[Alisium]

It would be best to ask the school these questions.

As far as what expires, who knows. I guess it would depend on how perishable those skills become. If you take vector calculus, then I guarantee four years later you're going to need to redo it.

On the other hand, if you take some cheese-dick art history class to satisfy some gay prereq, that should stick for the long term.

The main question you should ask yourself is this: "Why do I want to go to a major four year university, spend a crap-pot load of money, just to quit a year into the program to go active Marines?"

You'd be better off either waiting all together until you were out. Join the reserves and go to UCSB while you're in the reserves. Go to UCSB and get your commission or just hit a JC for a year or two until you get whatever is on your chest off.

Don't try to put too much on your plate right now. Decide one direction to go and do that at 110%.

[commdog7]

I'm taking college courses right now through American Military University, it's all 100% online. The Marine Corps will only let you take 2 classes per semester using tuition assistance, and in an infantry unit during a predeployment workup like I'm in right now i'm having a really hard time finding the spare time to work on my 2 classes, if you're in a pogue unit it'll be no big deal. I've got 34 credits just for BEING a Marine, all the schools i've gone to, experiences, MCI's, etc. over the past 2.5 years i've been in the Corps have translated into 34 credits so now I don't have to take any elective classes in college.

We are both enrolled in the same college. I'm shooting for my BA in Homeland Security, what are you going for?

The Corps has let me take 3 classes at a time, but my command has to approve it first. Three has been a challenge, but it lets me double time to my degree- I should finish my degree this year. It takes a lot of discipline to complete online courses, time management is the key to succeeding with the school.

Tuition assistance pays for $4500 worth of classes each fiscal year (normally 6 classes), if you exceed that, then you either have to tap into your GI bill or pay out of pocket. The Corps is a good opportunity to build an education. Depending on the college you go to, most credits will transfer between colleges- just make sure they are regionally or nationally accredited.

[JWDevilDog]

Hey dude I'm in the same city as you and I went through alot of the same problems as you about the whole college thing or Marine corp especially the part of dealing with Asian Parents and actually my sis goes to the same high school, by any chance are you in there NJROTC?

Hey, dude, just wanted to let you know that it is Marine Corps, not corp. I have no idea what a corp is, but it sure as h*ll isn't my Corps! You should know that, being in NJROTC, probably.

[Meanmarine]

You'd be better off finishing college before entering the Marine Corps if you can afford it. Apply for an Officer billet after you get a degree. You'll make more money and have more responsibilities at age 22. The Marine Corps use to have an Officer program where they helped with your tuition. You'll owe them 4-6 years of service afterwards. Check into it. They may still have it.

[Accord]

We are both enrolled in the same college. I'm shooting for my BA in Homeland Security, what are you going for?

The Corps has let me take 3 classes at a time, but my command has to approve it first. Three has been a challenge, but it lets me double time to my degree- I should finish my degree this year. It takes a lot of discipline to complete online courses, time management is the key to succeeding with the school.

Tuition assistance pays for $4500 worth of classes each fiscal year (normally 6 classes), if you exceed that, then you either have to tap into your GI bill or pay out of pocket. The Corps is a good opportunity to build an education. Depending on the college you go to, most credits will transfer between colleges- just make sure they are regionally or nationally accredited.

I'm getting my B.S. in International Relations with a minor in Military History.

I tried to take 3 classes at a time but the counselor at the education center told me i'm only allowed to take 2 at a time... I think it may just be a 2ndMARDIV or IIMEF policy and not Marine Corps-wide though.

[commdog7]

I'm getting my B.S. in International Relations with a minor in Military History.

I tried to take 3 classes at a time but the counselor at the education center told me i'm only allowed to take 2 at a time... I think it may just be a 2ndMARDIV or IIMEF policy and not Marine Corps-wide though.

When I was in the fleet, the education center told me I could only take 2 classes at once, but I convinced them that I could do 3 without any problem. If you have been taking two classes now for a while, they should let you take three (if you have been keeping up with the school-work), otherwise you can get permission from your chain of command. I am on a special duty right now, my command lets all the Marines take up to 3 classes, but if a Marine wants to take 4 classes, then they have to get permission from the officers.

As long as you can keep up, it is a good thing to take as many as possible, you can finish your degree much faster. Good luck with your courses!

[blackshirts]

True story. Marine Corps will not magically make you a man.

Which option will more than likely make you into a man.

Option A: Go to college where all your friends are going. Drink loads of beer and have fun like a normal college kid. Get so-so grades and sluff off and have hardly any responsibilities besides making it to class for 2-3 hours a day and studying for a little here and there.

-OR-

Option B: Go through Marine Corps boot camp, widely known as the most challenging thing any young man can go through. Be asked to do things never thought possible. Be lean and fit, and make sure you stay that way through hard work. Go to the fleet, have bullets flying at you. Have responsibilities 99% of people never dreamed of having. Knowing that if you screw-up, people could die.

[Books]

Which option will more than likely make you into a man.

Option A: Go to college where all your friends are going. Drink loads of beer and have fun like a normal college kid. Get so-so grades and sluff off and have hardly any responsibilities besides making it to class for 2-3 hours a day and studying for a little here and there.

-OR-

Option B: Go through Marine Corps boot camp, widely known as the most challenging thing any young man can go through. Be asked to do things never thought possible. Be lean and fit, and make sure you stay that way through hard work. Go to the fleet, have bullets flying at you. Have responsibilities 99% of people never dreamed of having. Knowing that if you screw-up, people could die.

Don't be so narrow.

It could just as easily be:

A) Go to college. Get a great education, have fun, meet knew and interesting people. Be insipired by something that causes you to take a sincere interest in something worthwhile. Set yourself up to live a successful and happy life as a wiser, more knowledgeable human with good credentials to join the workforce.

B) Join the Marines. You hate your MOS. You can't leave, so you're depressed. You drink too much and you get into trouble so you never gain rank. Maybe you take up smoking/dipping. You don't remember anything from boot and your NCO's don't care because they're just mediocre/uninspiring and you're a ****up, and probably, you don't have too many responsibilities, and unlike the college kids, you get paid for being a ****up, so there is no motivation to do any better. Then you get out, hating the decision you made, so you're bitter. You don't remember **** from high school so college is even more difficult and you flunk out. Then you decide to find a clocktower...

[Accord]

You will because not all of those 34 credits will transfer for you. The Marine Corps will tell you that but, it's not true at all. It's up to each individual college and your major to determine what does transfer and for what reason. e.g. Some schools require some kind of woman's studies or race relations course for your baccalaureate core. There simply is nothing of the sort, in any MCI or any formal Marine Corps training.

Actually, you're wrong. It's called a SMART transcript, you can get yours from the education center, and it has all your military training, schools, etc. translated into college credits approved by ACE, which is accepted by virtually every school. This isn't "the Marine Corps telling me lies" AMU accepted all my credits and almost every regionally accredited school will accept everything on your SMART transcript as elective credits. If a degree requires a woman's studies course as a core requirement for the degree, well no **** it won't be accepted towards that because those courses are not electives.

[blackshirts]

Don't be so narrow.

It could just as easily be:

A) Go to college. Get a great education, have fun, meet knew and interesting people. Be insipired by something that causes you to take a sincere interest in something worthwhile. Set yourself up to live a successful and happy life as a wiser, more knowledgeable human with good credentials to join the workforce.

B) Join the Marines. You hate your MOS. You can't leave, so you're depressed. You drink too much and you get into trouble so you never gain rank. Maybe you take up smoking/dipping. You don't remember anything from boot and your NCO's don't care because they're just mediocre/uninspiring and you're a ****up, and probably, you don't have too many responsibilities, and unlike the college kids, you get paid for being a ****up, so there is no motivation to do any better. Then you get out, hating the decision you made, so you're bitter. You don't remember **** from high school so college is even more difficult and you flunk out. Then you decide to find a clocktower...

Did you see me dog the college route like you so eloquently did to the Marine route? No. I may have said "get so-so grades," but I didn't go off on a tangent like yourself. I could have said go to college, get terrible grades, flunk out, start on heavy drugs, abuse alcohol, and windup at Mickey D's, but I didn't.

Bottomline is, you will grow up in the Marine Corps whether you want to or not.

Narrow-minded? Don't be a hypocrite. You're calling me narrow-minded for an opinion. There's two sides to the story. Mine just happens to be the more logical answer.

I find it hard to believe that all the Marines in this forum will tell you that it was "the best choice they ever made" if it didn't help them grow as people. Go ahead and try to find one Marine that says he didn't grow and mature from being in the Corps.

[Books]

Did you see me dog the college route like you so eloquently did to the Marine route? No. I may have said "get so-so grades," but I didn't go off on a tangent like yourself. I could have said go to college, get terrible grades, flunk out, start on heavy drugs, abuse alcohol, and windup at Mickey D's, but I didn't.

Bottomline is, you will grow up in the Marine Corps whether you want to or not.

Narrow-minded? Don't be a hypocrite. You're calling me narrow-minded for an opinion. There's two sides to the story. Mine just happens to be the more logical answer.

I find it hard to believe that all the Marines in this forum will tell you that it was "the best choice they ever made" if it didn't help them grow as people. Go ahead and try to find one Marine that says he didn't grow and mature from being in the Corps.

"You're calling me narrow-minded for an opinion."
- ... Opinions tend to fall into the category of things people usually get called something about. I don't really see how something that isn't an opinion could be narrow-minded.

My way of putting things at an extreme was to point out your divisiveness, not to show that I sincerely think that my description of the Marine Corps experience is a common one, or the one I hold.

Of course you'll "grow", whatever that means. You will "grow" in college too, maybe in a different way. I know that 20% of college kids haven't developed PTSD or some psychological disorder from their experiences, never mind become physically handicapped, or, dead. So actually, your growth could likely be hampered, set back, or completely stopped in the Marines Corps with more finality and probability than college.

[Alisium]

Actually, you're wrong. It's called a SMART transcript, you can get yours from the education center, and it has all your military training, schools, etc. translated into college credits approved by ACE, which is accepted by virtually every school. This isn't "the Marine Corps telling me lies" AMU accepted all my credits and almost every regionally accredited school will accept everything on your SMART transcript as elective credits. If a degree requires a woman's studies course as a core requirement for the degree, well no **** it won't be accepted towards that because those courses are not electives.

I know what a SMART is (the transcript is superfluous you don't need it), I was fap'ed out to the education office for a while and got to know those pretty well. And good onions for you and AMU.

How many free electives do you think you get in any degree? If a program requires 180 units, do you think you're going to skate with almost 40 free electives?

I'm telling you, with real world experience to back me up, outdoor orienteering isn't as versatile as your education counselor wants you to think. Don't believe me, fax over your transcripts (SMART and AMU) to a civilian school of your choosing and watch them pick and choose what credits they'll take. You don't even have to do that. Check out a civilian school's website and look at their different programs and their list of required classes. Compare those to your transcripts.

Hell, when you're transferring from civilian school to civilian school, you're going to lose credits or even if you just change your major. Ask anyone else here who has been to college.

Every school has a very specific curriculum they want you to take. When the government says something is ACE certified, it's true but, schools aren't going to give you credit for credit's sake. It has to be applicable to your program. Some will transfer, some will transfer as free electives and some wont transfer at all.

All I am saying, is don't expect everything you're doing to count towards your degree if you transfer into a regular civilian school.

And here's another tip. Most good schools have online programs, like AMU, that allow you to earn a degree through them or just take classes that you know are safe, if you plan to transfer in a year and a half to that particular school.

I love, love the Marine Corps but, when I left I was wholly unprepared for what I was facing and my Marine Corps generated misconceptions ran deep. Just trying to help.

[blackshirts]

Well, ya got me on the narrow/opinion part, but anyways...It's like I could have called you narrow for your original post after having seen only a very small percentage of Marines come back somewhat the same (on the surface). I didn't feel the need to.

Of course you can grow in college, too. I've been in universities for 3.5 years and know what the hell I'm talking about. Although, if you can't see why there would be strong opinions that someone might learn more life lessons in the Marines rather than going to a cushy college and drinking beer like water than the conversation shouldn't have went longer than, "I disagree" because your too thick-headed.