Army vs. Marines

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PeacockRaj

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Feb 9, 2023
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Hello,

I am not sure if this is the correct thread category, as I am presently in my Junior year of high school, however as it regards post-commissioning life/opportunities I thought it fit better here than in any of the Academy/SMC/ROTC related forums.

While I have definitively eliminated the Air Force and the Navy from consideration, I have been hotly debating the Army or the Marines as regards which branch I ought to serve in. I am curious if anyone here has advice/guideace on this decision. What are some differences in life, structure, etc.? I am currently leaning towards the Army but seem to have this conversation with myself a few times a week.

I made a list of factors I am considering for each, as well.

Army:

-My dream career would be a Human Intelligence Officer, and I believe the Army has a greater number of opportunities there.
-Larger, more opportunities in that sense.
-Most of my inspirations for joining the military are Army folks, and, in general, as someone who takes pride in walking in the footsteps of those past, the connections of the Army to the Civil War certainly inspire me.
-More opportunities to travel the world on bases.
-Better dress uniforms (controversial take here, haha).
-More scholarship opportunities, especially for 2 or 3 year options.
-I am a vegetarian (religious grounds) and I believe that is easier upheld in Army DFACs than Marine chow halls.



Marine Corps:

-I am not heavily familiar with the structure of USMC intelligence, however, from the way the Corps is structured, it seems logical to think that a larger percentage of their intelligence careers would be HUMINT oriented. I may need to be corrected here, however. The intelligence sector being much smaller, it would also be more difficult to enter, which is a negative.
-Smaller, thus more individual opportunity to stand out.
-While I decided the Navy itself was not for me, I would still quite like to serve in a Naval oriented service.
-Culture. I heavily admire the unity of the Marine Corps along an ethos of reaching for excellence. The Marines, more than the Army, seems to epitomize the ideal of arming the man rather than manning the arms, of truly being a service centered around people, not gadgets. Recent changes in USMC organization by Commandant Berger seem to expand this further.
-Opportunity to deploy on a ship at least once.



Thank you.
 
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It seems to me that you have done some research already. However I believe you can get into the weeds a bit more and really look at the details. My gut from reading what you have stated above leads me to believe you are leaning Army. Go with what makes you feel right, it is YOUR journey. Do your research and go with your gut / heart. Do not let others sway you. Make an educated decision.

I will kind of state the obvious here...… If you do not want Navy I would say USNA is out as you do not get a guarantee of Marines going there. I do believe from your other posts that you are going the college route so this shouldn't be an issue. As far as the Marines go I believe you will have a more difficult time selecting a specific MOS as you seem to be looking for. The Marines are more concerned with placing your where you are needed. Every Marine is a basic rifleman. Only go Marines for one reason, you want to be a Marine. If you don't get that statement it is not for you.

The Marines are much smaller with a foundation in amphibious assault and a culture second to none!

As far as the comment about the best looking uniform, as my kids would say............ BRUH! Everyone knows the dress blues are second to none. Keep in mind how often the Army changes their uniforms those cool new ones maybe gone before you commission. ;)
 
PeacockRaj said:
Army:

-More opportunities to travel the world on bases.
Click to expand...
I'll only comment on this. The Marines (as part of the Navy) are inherently a mobile service and when you deploy for 6 months or so, you might have port calls in half a dozen or more different countries while that is much less likely for Army/Airforce deployments/movements. My second ship was an amphib and carried Marines as our mission. On one deployment we picked up Marines in North Carolina for a NATO exercise in Germany. We had a couple of short stops before the exercise in Denmark and The Netherlands and then did the exercise in Germany. After the Exercise was complete, we had 4-6 day Port Visits in Norway and Sweden with a final stop in England before we took them back to North Carolina. This was over about a two month period and it was not considered unusual.
 
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If you ultimately decide on Marines, you have a 2nd part to consider: how to get there. As already mentioned, you aren’t guaranteed a Marine slot via USNA. Via the NROTC route, you apply to the Marine option from the beginning.

I agree with @NeverSayNever. Pursue any/all options you are interested in. You may not have a choice to make. You also may change your mind over the next 18 months. There is a lot of growth/change during your senior year. At this point, open as many doors as you can! And make your final, educated choice when the time comes.

Good luck on your journey!!
 
I am watching my DD moving through a career as a USN Intel Officer.

Channeling her: There are lots of intel people who act primarily as information conduits connecting decision makers with operating units. Larger forces require more intel personel doing that "conduit job" briefing Power Points up the chain-n-down the chain.

I know she'd tell you to consider the mission of the force, the circumstances under which that force does its work and how strongly that force relies on the kinds of things you want to do;------- and forget about the # of opportunites.
 
Further on Marines and USNA. The posters above correctly state that going to USNA does not guarantee a USMC commissioning spot. In fact, about 25% of each USNA class commissions USMC. Trend in recent years is that more than 25% of each class pick USMC as their top choice-but not all get USMC. None the less there are other combat forces in the Navy such as: SEALs & EOD. Both of these are very competitive and few get them out of USNA (Typically 30 SEALs and 15 EOD.
 
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