aglahad said:
I GUARANTEE you that during your senior year there will be upperclassmen cadets that will absolutely the loath the military, they will hate it as well as themselves for joining. Don't be those midshipmen/cadets, use self-reflection and go in 100% or not at all.
This is the best point made.
Without a doubt there are ROTC members in the program because this is the only way to get that college paid for. Their negative attitude does not go unnoticed, it is like a cancer for morale.
Once they go AD it actually gets worse and it becomes a personal downward cycle. Nobody wants to hang at work or socially with someone who only can be negative, thus they don't get the job they thought they deserved over someone else, and aren't asked to hang out on the weekend. They see it as them against me, and that they have no culpability in why this is occurring. Which makes them more bitter, and amps up their loathing of the military.
There is nothing wrong to walk away. The military is not for everyone and it is best that you decide if this is just a 1x time issue because as a frosh you didn't realize they meant it when they briefed you about missing lab or PT regarding what is accepted and what is not. Or is it that you are looking at ALL of the upperclassman and have decided you would never associate with any of them professionally? Is it a few that would be a better match, career wise if they were a prison warden? Remember in 4 yrs when you go AD they will be O3's and you will report to them again.
Just as you are the future Navy, they are too.
Have you created an illusion of the Navy that is not realistic?
Our DS is AFROTC, son of an AF officer, he had his butt reamed along the way, but he also understood this is the life... you may disagree with the reaming, maybe ticked that you were reamed, but you suck it in and salute sharply. RHIP (Rank Has Its Privileges). As he has climbed the ranks in ROTC he now realizes it was not personal, it was professional, and when he did something that weakened the link, he weakened the unit. It is no longer about him when he gets reamed, it is about the unit. That's what it is truly about, they are training you to be a leader, step up and make the hard calls, to train those below you.
It is not personal, it is professional.
Talk to your Dad, adult to adult, military member to military member. He is the one that will give you the best perspective.
I am not sure that you want NROTC for you or to make him proud. If getting reamed this early makes you 2nd question yourself, look inside and ask why you are asking the question.
No offense, but you are not the only ROTC mid to get reamed this yr...I bet there is a mid that had a horrible run, something he/she has control over. Are they folding or did they place a bar to meet?
Just curious, when you started this process what was your career goal in the Navy? You might think that is off the wall, but it is a tell.