Long story so bear with me. I am a sports recruit for USMMA, and up until the coach reached out to me this summer I had never even considered a SA. I visited in September and immediately fell in love with the school, program, and entire experience. I began my application process and somehow received a congressional nomination (my grades are severely average). I’ve done as much research as possible, however, as it gets closer and closer I find myself second guessing. I have never had any experience sailing, and have never wanted to be a STEM major. I have no issue with the school itself, but since it is notoriously difficult I do not think it would be worth going through unless I can find a job that I would enjoy. The last thing I want to do is commit and then fail out or leave because it is not the right fit. I do believe that nerves are also playing a big role in this. Does anyone have any advice/ job ideas for someone looking to go into law/english or literally anything besides STEM?
Second Guessing USMMA
- Thread starter navy2715
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User123222
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Just go deck. It is pretty damn easy compared to engineering.
Yea but If I go deck and don’t get a waiver to work shore side I’m basically screwed then right
NeverSayNever
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Lots of options that don't include sailing on your license. However - you have to serve in some capacity to pay back the "free" college. USMMA is a trade school and it requires 100% commitment to get through it no matter your major.
If you go to "normal" college you may not have a great job waiting for you upon graduation. After KP you will have your choice of many jobs or an Officer's commission that you can use to get EXPERIENCE which everyone that graduates for normal college lacks. This is why there are so many unpaid internships out there - people are willing to basically be unpaid slaves in order to be able to compete for work.
I'm a USNA grad but have family connections to KP. All were on the engineering track and have had amazing careers making $$$ with high quality of life (in their early 30s) that compares to what I make it my 40s. I was career Navy FWIW.
There is no guarantee that you will graduate "normal" college and find a job you like - let alone find a job that can pay back the tuition.
So do you think that a few years of potential suffering would be worth a high paying job? One of the reasons I was drawn to KP is because of the job security, it’s just the more I look into it the less I think I will be able to find a job I won’t be miserable in. However, I am also a senior in high school and so I know that as I grow up my priorities will change. Thanks for taking the time to respond.
The only thing I will add is this: take your sport out of the equation. The academics are RIGOROUS. If your primary focus is your sport, your academics will very likely suffer. Decide if the school is right for you. If it is, focus on academics and use your sport as an outlet (stress relief). If the school is not right for you, even winning a national championship in your sport will likely not be enough to make the school bearable.
I think that the school is right for me, it’s just that I don’t know if the career choice is. I am worried that I will be stuck to sailing, and as much as I think I love the school, I am not sure if that is a risk I am willing to take. Hope this makes sense, thank you so much for responding
One wonderful thing about sea year is that you have an opportunity to try out your career while you are still in college. You may love it or hate it, but there is really no way to know without experiencing it in real life. If you hate it, you have no commitment to repay until the start of your junior year. Remember that you can also serve your commitment in any branch of the armed forces. So even if you decide that sailing on your licence is not what you want to do, you would still have lots of great options. Good luck to you.
mackandcheese2006
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Hi, I am also a USMMA hopeful and at the beginning I was worried about this sort of thing. However, my sister is there now and its crazy how many opportunities she has. There is firefighting, EMT training, boat licensing, and on top of that you can major in something is like being a decky, and still be a pilot in any branch, or a public affairs officer in any branch. Everything may seem like sea sea sea, but I just look at that as some traveling built in to a college curriculum.
navyman73
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You are asking the right questions. It's a big commitment and a life-changing experience. I am not opined to push you in either direction - that is something only you can decide. Yes, a lot don't make it through. But most do - and you can too if you work hard and keep your nose clean. I will offer you this: there are decades of USMMA grads that entered the Academy for reasons other than they wanted to be a mate or engineer. A plethora of reasons: they were recruited athletes, their congressman offered them a nomination when they tried to get into another academy, they didn't have the money to go to a civilian school, etc. Many of those grads went to sea, but many are in business, government, law, real estate, etc. They have gone active-duty New Jersey Air National Guard, and they have gone on to Harvard. They are senators, professors, three-star admirals, and accomplished authors. In short, it's what you make of it.
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Have you worked out what you want to do long-term, or are you just trusting that you're going to change a lot and the mists of time will reveal something eventually? Not trying to be a smart guy here because a lot of folks just don't know at this point in life, but if you don't know what you'll like then you probably don't know what you'll hate either. And "English/law" could end up costing a ton more in school debt (if you're lucky.)
So consider this: how many things are you going to be exposed to at this school versus Middle Directional State U? There you might find bar tending pays better than C-F-A but the hours are rough. At USMMA you might find the Coast Guard law enforcement mission appealing. Or you might find you hate travel. You might like leading others and find a place in the Army. "Ooohh aviation makes my heart sing." You might get that port management gig and love it. Remember that all the services are options and they all have a list of choices as long as your arm. You might stick in one of them long enough to qualify for GI Bill dollars to cover law school. There are a *lot* of paths that lead away from KP and one probably leads in a direction you want to go.
Finally, gotta tell you something very middle-aged and drab: lots of debt is a huge drag on life plans. Five years of navy or ship life to get a clean balance sheet sounds like a long time until you consider how you need to live and for how long to pay down student loans. If you make $48k (not bad for an English major from good old MDSU!) that's $4k/month, but taxes claim a third, your rent will get the next $1200 and you'll want a phone ($100) car ($400) and (whoops already at $1k) food and maybe go out once in a while and clothes or consider saving for a house or car. To pay down your $30k loan at 5% in five years it'd be $566 (or $333 for ten years or $915 for three years.) The five years in the service might not be much different from the free and easy and broke life of a recent grad (depending on where you live and the cost of living) and you are within sight of paying for law school. You haven't mentioned your family's financial position yet, but law school is expensive for everyone and getting back on that payment track for multiples more money is never appealing.
So consider this: how many things are you going to be exposed to at this school versus Middle Directional State U? There you might find bar tending pays better than C-F-A but the hours are rough. At USMMA you might find the Coast Guard law enforcement mission appealing. Or you might find you hate travel. You might like leading others and find a place in the Army. "Ooohh aviation makes my heart sing." You might get that port management gig and love it. Remember that all the services are options and they all have a list of choices as long as your arm. You might stick in one of them long enough to qualify for GI Bill dollars to cover law school. There are a *lot* of paths that lead away from KP and one probably leads in a direction you want to go.
Finally, gotta tell you something very middle-aged and drab: lots of debt is a huge drag on life plans. Five years of navy or ship life to get a clean balance sheet sounds like a long time until you consider how you need to live and for how long to pay down student loans. If you make $48k (not bad for an English major from good old MDSU!) that's $4k/month, but taxes claim a third, your rent will get the next $1200 and you'll want a phone ($100) car ($400) and (whoops already at $1k) food and maybe go out once in a while and clothes or consider saving for a house or car. To pay down your $30k loan at 5% in five years it'd be $566 (or $333 for ten years or $915 for three years.) The five years in the service might not be much different from the free and easy and broke life of a recent grad (depending on where you live and the cost of living) and you are within sight of paying for law school. You haven't mentioned your family's financial position yet, but law school is expensive for everyone and getting back on that payment track for multiples more money is never appealing.
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At the end of your 5 year commitment you will be about 27.
Even if you HATE sailing, the money/time off ratio is outstanding and sets one up with a great foundation to do anything you want for the next 50+ years.
The USMMA Alumni network is rife with lawyers.
Even if you HATE sailing, the money/time off ratio is outstanding and sets one up with a great foundation to do anything you want for the next 50+ years.
The USMMA Alumni network is rife with lawyers.
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Highly recommend find a local alumni chapter and reach out. They are very welcoming of candidates and often have networking events. We would go and my DS spoke to many alumni of all class years and learn about so many different job options. He went in with one idea of maybe working on cruise ships or NOAA - after sea year sailings and exposure to the many options - going another route. Keep doing research - you will be surprised at the many different career routes!
No Appointment yet, still working on getting my cfa scores higher before my application is completed. also have no LOA that I am aware of, would it be beneficial to reach out to the coach and ask?
NeverSayNever
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Best not worry about the Go/No-Go decision until you have a decision to make. If you even are remotely interested - keep moving through the application process. Turning down an appointment is not a big deal - fretting over the decision of going before actually being given a choice is just a waste of energy.
The money hasn't kept up with the general growth of wages in different industries (i.e. Airlines, UPS Drivers, etc). Working for Military Sealift Command you average 1-2 Months off per year and 10-11 Months working. Your per day/per hour rate is quite terrible.
Starting your life at 27 puts you way way behind your peer group.
I know for a fact a lot of alumni came out ahead because most of them did not do their commitment and chased exactly what they wanted to do after graduation.
Heatherg21
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I second the recommendation to seek alumnus groups. When our son was appointed and seriously considering USMMA the state parent club held a luncheon. Great exposure to current mids, alumnus, working active duty, parents and spouses. Great real world info.
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In today's world you can do plenty along the lines of grad school and such even while sailing to keep up.
More importantly, I would suggest an alternate view of life such as "who gives an F about your 'peer group'".
I would suggest one define their own success in furtherance of their own happiness instead of worrying about keeping up with their "peer group".