>junior in college for a mechanical engineering degree. >also want to try to become a SF officer after college

>junior in college for a mechanical engineering degree
>also want to try to become a SF officer after college
I know I shouldn’t, but I almost can’t stomach being a desk jockey in some random factory.

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  1. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    if it makes you feel better, SF is the only place in the US military right now where you'll see action. There are a handful of guys deployed to combat zones and it's 100% SOF.
    If you wash out, you'll be returned to your unit and have a 0% chance of seeing combat.
    So think hard about your chances of making it in vs making tons of money doing something you're good at.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      don't even bother, you won't make it.
      Be happy with what you've got

      I know I shouldn’t do try and commission because I know it’s less than a 50/50 shot of making it. I just can’t stand the fact at best as a mechanical engineer, I’ll be a glorified office worker. I can outlift and out preform all my friends that enlisted though

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        Why didn't you just get an education or training in a field you actually enjoy working in?
        That is a lot simpler than four years of unnecessary education and then hoping to go live in a hole in the ground while you shit in plastic bags.

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          I didnt know what to do, I never did. My dad just said "be an engineer like me or you're gonna be one of the poors." I just went along with jt

          • 2 years ago
            Anonymous

            Your dad was 1/2 right. Work a few years, get your mba and then run things.
            Or start your own biz now and skip the F500 bullshit.
            T M Engr with mba, running own biz and effectively retired.

            • 2 years ago
              Anonymous

              I'm not actually OP, but that's what my dad tells me. I'm just not smart enough or dont have the resolve to go to school and do all that.

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          I like engineering, but I always wanted to be a physicist, but I’m not going to be getting a doctorate. I wanted to be a helicopter pilot when I was younger, but my piss poor vision and astigmatism prevents me from doing that.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        if you're posting on PrepHole looking for affirmation you're ngmi

        your "friends that enlisted" actually enlisted. you can sit here on PrepHole and talk about how you can outlift or outperform in a vacuum but the fact of the matter is you didn't join so you shouldn't talk about how you would "totally do better than them" because you don't know that unless you actually do it

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          I’m just saying I can make physical standards easily

          • 2 years ago
            Anonymous

            my roommate when i was in the corps was an absolute freak of nature, 20+ pullups and sub-20 minute three miles. he ended up washing out because of mental health problems and didn't even finish his contract.

            the main jist of my criticism here is that if you're actually genuinely interested in trying to go SF what you should do is not make a thread on /k/ where a bunch of anonymous fatasses (including myself) give you a bunch of random pieces of advice or comments. if you're actually interested go talk to a recruiter. see if they can link you up with people who have experience in the SF community. look for advice literally anywhere other than here.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      Interesting figure I heard: there are 40,000 cops in New York city and every agrees it's not enough. 20 years in Afghanistan and only 5 of them were there more than 40,000 troops for a whole country.

  2. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    don't even bother, you won't make it.
    Be happy with what you've got

  3. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Give it a shot. You get one life, live it.

  4. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Don’t even think about it UNLESSS - and this is a big unless - you go into submarines. They will pay you buckets of money if you can work on subs.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      >They will pay you buckets of money if you can work on subs.
      As an officer you just get 30k annual nuke bonuses along with sub pay, if you pass exams they give you. Work is quite a lot though.
      I wouldn't consider it SF though. If you aren't at the level of a college athlete though, I wouldn't bother.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        I meant as a mechanic/engineer

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      I’ve considered that and naval EWO too. My uncle was a WSO for the Air Force and said it would be fun.

  5. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Could always be a military engineer or something

  6. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    go for it anon, getting shot would be vastly preferable to working most mechanical engineering jobs

  7. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    FWIW AF has the least demanding pipeline and best pay. Ive heard The Army's commisioning system is completely fricked now because USAREC is in such a hole with enlisted numbers(much to their own making).

    At the end of the day OP, finish the degree so you have a backup and take the best recruiter deal youre given (only if its on paper)

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      That’s what I’m going to do. The branches I’m considering joining are the Air Force, Navy, or Army (only if I’m moronic enough to try and become an 18A)

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      Seconding. Knew several AF guys in masters degree program. They were on easy street.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      Seconding. Knew several AF guys in masters degree program. They were on easy street.

      Did they still have to deal with armyman bullshit? Im a civvie doing radar stuff for a europeon military and im thankful as frick i have a "real" job and don't have to play dressup to sit infront of a computer. I get better pay than officers and i can frickoff back to private sector with a few phonecalls if i want.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        Probably, but it’s so low key in AF I can’t imagine it’d be that thought to deal with.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        Keep in mind these AF guys I met were officers, probably ROTC. So:
        > paid college, undergrad
        > paid masters degree
        > retirement pay
        So… how much BS can you tolerate?

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          If they pay for all that shit i guess that puts it in a different light i got the impression you recommend anon to finish his degree and then join up. Or does the AF just pay of your loans in that case?

          I think my tolerance for bullshit is kinda low tbh, more importantly i want a job I actually enjoy and now I get to see cool shit every now and while still having a regular engineering job meaning i can easily go back.

          • 2 years ago
            Anonymous

            Personally if I had interest in military the smart move would have been ROTC.
            Hell my wife got them to pay for first 2 years and didn’t even sign up.
            Generally if you can get others to pay for your degrees, you should do that.

  8. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Anon... normally wouldn't matter if you joined as an officer anywhere, if you are good at it you will simply get to travel, do courses and enjoy the essence of being a CO in the army that is solving everything that everybody else before you neglected or creating new problems because you don't know how the frick solve the clusterfrick but have to still try to do something usefull.

    And if you are a failure it won't matter much, they will chain you into some desk and leave the good ones do their thing, maybe from time to time you get an opportunity to shine but in reality no one cares since you are a contained disaster in the traditional military sense.

    In SF that is different, because now performance matters, you cannot bullshit your way through because for once you have some actual responsabilities meaning that politicians are actually invested in you mission and suddenly people start caring about results. And being a CO means that you are responsible for everything on top of having an actual leadership role, so it's not even about wether how fast you can learn and do stuff but things that are outside your control like keeping spirits up or coordinating several teams or individuals in very different tasks while starving and sleep deprived, and you won't have any support above you or near you to keep you afloat when things go bad, you will be guilty of everything, even of things that aren't even your fault but you are the CO, the boss and when shit goes bad it's easier to blame people on top than others and you will find that in the end it's even healthy to keep everyone together letting the NCOs do their job.

    Also, don't think that you will just try it, because people that go through these courses can come out fricked for life, specially if they don't like you and have to convince you to quit.

    If you are lucky they might simply need meat and will say "well maybe he doesn't cut it but we really need to cover some positions right now" but that's it.

  9. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Skorzeny was an engineer, SASguy didn't even finish college, mauzer was a social worker and givi drove a forklift
    Make of that what you will i guess

  10. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    >I almost can’t stomach being a desk jockey in some random factory.
    Then get a research position at Sandia or a remote job.

  11. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    >want to try to become a SF officer
    Why?

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      I wanted to be a helicopter pilot when I was younger, but my astigmatism and poor vision prevents me. Also, I read a lot about SOG in Vietnam and it got me interested in SF

  12. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    kinda in your shoes. i was in grad school working on my engineering degree, and figured out i wanted to fly jets. so now that i've flown fighters for a few years, i've done just about everything i wanted to do when i joined up and apparently the AF won't let me do the last thing (too old, waiver got denied), so now i'm working on transitioning back into a cushy private sector job and maybe joining the Air Guard to fly on the weekends.

    anyway, live your life how you want to. if this means that much, go for it and let them tell you "no".

  13. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Why you moronic? Apply for jobs at gun companies, moron.

  14. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    SOF in general usually promotes from within rather than from the outside, Green Berets especially so, no saying it's possible, but it's preferred you have experience in this very specific field before you are actually in charge of operations, also sorry to bust your balls, but even officers in SF eventually become desk jockeys, I've known several O-3 - O-4 to forgo their commission for a Warrant position, or back to Enlisted to continue being in the field, it's not uncommon.

    I know your feeling being in college and wanting to join the military, I did it right after my degree, in my opinion you should try a professional career for at least a year, in that time you can also use it to become physically prepared for SOF if you eventually change your mind, at least then you'll be ready, and if not, at least you're in really good shape. Try contacting a SF recruiter and see if your can interview or shadow some guys working at SWCS or at your nearest National Guard SF location.

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