Anyone here ever have to deal with parental opposition?

However, she can learn that the caliber of those who attend is unmatched elsewhere, that the quality of the education is the absolute highest, and that graduates are well-rounded individuals with incredible opportunities, who go on to do great things, both in the public and private sector.

Well spoken, sir. :thumb:
 
I have ambitions to serve in the military like most other people who post on here, however my parents strongly oppose me doing so for a variety of reasons. They even get angry/upset when I bring up the issue, and they have been this way about it since my childhood.

Some of this in my observations is due to misconceptions about the military. For example, "my mother thinks the military is only for poor people who turn to it as the only option to get ahead in life", in addition to expressing overall misconceptions about the military. While my father also strongly says no to the idea, although his opinions and feelings are more shaped by the era he grew up in(Vietnam) then I would say any misconceptions. Lastly, overriding most of what I've mentioned is that my parents perceive the armed forces as dangerous career(where members of this forum can testify to) there is truth to that. However statistically, not any more dangerous than a long list of jobs/careers in the civilian world.

So has anybody else on here been in my situation, where parental opposition to a career in the military is strong?

There have been some pretty thoughtful pieces of advice given you - especially by Bullet.

Let me ask though- Why do you want to be in the military? You need to be able to articulate this pretty darn well or you aren't going to make any headway in convincing them. Truthfully- it is an Army at war, and the Army and the USMC at least are hard places to be right now. Telling your mother "not to worry more people get killed in traffic accidents" is at at worst not really all that honest and at best demeaning to the Soldiers and Marines sitting out there on COPs right now or walking patrols thru crappy little towns that aren't worth spit . So your mother is right to be concerned (and she always will be- when you are in your 50's and 60s she will still be worried about you !). To counter that -you need to be able to tell her what it is that makes you- an about to be adult- interested in serving in the military.
Reasons that come to mind and motivated me in 1976 and I think are still valid today as I know they are motivating my son.

a. It is exciting. To be a junior officer (or for that matter a young enlisted soldier) is to be involved in a career that has a lot of real adrenaline bursts. You are getting paid a pretty good salary to be a hands on leader while doing things that others pay big bucks to do as a hobby.
b. It is important. If the country is sending kids off to war- or off to prevent one, or even off to some forgotten rat hole on humanitarian missions to help the people who live there- it seems pretty darn important to me that those kids have good leaders who care about them and who share their sacrifice. Who is too valuable to pick up that responsibility?
c. It is really valuable experience and it is challenging. As a junior officer you will not be some faceless cog in an admin building crunching numbers to calculate a P&L with no real responsibility for the accomplishment or execution of a plan. Instead - in some of the most demanding and challenging situations imaginable, you will be directly responsible for the training, planning and execution of operations conducted by a fairly large group soldiers (Sailors, Airmen; Marines, Coast Guardsmen etc...). That frequently will include incorporating equipment maintenance, logistical planning, budget execution for highly technical organizations. If you don't think that is a valuable skill- a couple of months ago Fortune magazine's cover story was all about the trend of many of the largest corporations in the US- companies engaged in manufacturing, retail, financial services and logistics- deliberately targeting Military Junior officers as one of the prinicpal groups for executive recruitment. A common misconception of military leadership is that it is basically an "I say & you do exactly that" at a high decibel level. That's not really true though. Leadership in the Army is mostly by example (Try just pointing to guys and telling them to do something that will get them killed for no reason that they can understand while you go play pocket pool in the rear and see how effective that is.) Subordinate leaders are given a task, the overall picture on how that mission fits into the larger mission and wide latitude to execute it in the most efficient way possible.
d. The quality of the people is outstanding. While it may be that a significant portion of the force is composed of poeple trying to get ahead- THEY ARE DOING SO for the above reasons and they are Good. These aren't folks who fall into this profession- they are in it precisely because in many ways they are motivated by challenges, are smart and this is an opportunity to forge ahead because they know that more than any other institution - the US Military rewards performance rather than what prep school you went to or the neighborhood you grew up in. Additionally as others have pointed out: This is an educated military- the percentage of both enlisted and officers with graduate degrees is far higher than their peers in the civilian world.

e. The pay is good. You may not ever be independently wealthy as a career soldier- but when you calculate in the tax benefits, the special pays and allowances etc... you have a pretty good lifestyle and if you stick around to retirement - it's pretty nice to get a check every month from Uncle Sugar starting when you are around 42 years old.

You may never convince your parents that they wish a military career for you as their first option- but you know that part of growing up means that at some point- you have to make your own decisions. You owe your parents honesty and a good faith, well thought out, and well articulated effort to convince them that you know what you want to do. At some point however, you are your own man (or woman) and you have to do what you believe is right even if it's not what your parents would wish for you.

Good luck.
 
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