Should I stay or should I go?

2025Candidate said:
I'd want to get a BA in Criminal Justice.
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You could transfer to a civilian college, get a BA in Criminal Justice and then enlist in the Coast Guard and shoot for OCS. You will have a very good chance of doing hands-on work in the Coast Guard. They start most enlistees as non-rates, even with bachelors degrees, but your background will make you a great candidate for an officers program if you work hard and prove yourself. You could also consider applying to USCGA now. So to answer the title of the post, I believe you should go.
 
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May I ask what made you not want to be a pilot anymore? Is it something that happened at the academy? I am assuming you wanted to be a pilot when you applied to USAFA.

So sorry to hear about your struggle...I cannot offer much advice but I hope that your decision will take you to a successful enjoyable career! Thank you for sharing!
 
Finish the year to give yourself time to prepare a landing and collect your credits. Consider that most of those "everyone has to take STEM" courses are this year and will taper off quickly as you get further into non-STEM majors, so if you can find something you like at AFA that problem will recede. If you can't, then go somewhere and get your CJ degree and see where your path leads. Your plans to be a pilot changed already, so be prepared in case Criminal Justice and LE change as well. The Coast Guard suggestion above is very good, but the earlier point about going Towards rather than Away is vital. This is too big an opportunity to discard without a solid goal. Good luck.
 
This is a question that some at all the service academies have wrestled with. And it isn’t all quite about you. Some of my contemporaries that stayed weren’t passionate about STEM. Thermo, EE, physics, and the like, had to be endured because that was part of the deal to graduate and commission in four years. Passion? Meh. They graduated after a long slog. Later, some were career officers and some left after the end of obligated service.

There may other factors in your journey that we posters are not privy. I hope they can be reconciled in making this big decision. A Youngster in a class behind me was academically brilliant and physically fit by all accounts. All he had to do was wake up for the ensuing two years and he would have graduated without busting a bead of sweat. He left because he couldn’t reconcile the “little” things like regimentation and perceived loss of freedom and that “others” on the civilian side had it better than he did.

In your departure planning, are going to live at home? or in a dorm? Or rent an apartment? Do you anticipate any family friction upon your return? If not, you’re lucky. How are you going to finance your civilian education? Do you plan on working or taking on debt? Will your parents be your ATM? You’re fortunate if your parents can help. But is that what you want after a modest degree of independence? At USAFA, school and military duties are your work. Room and board are in place. Returning home won’t be the same.

Regarding the Youngster that left – I read that after university he later returned to serve as a Marine Officer. Good luck to you.
 
NJROTC-CC said:
You could transfer to a civilian college, get a BA in Criminal Justice and then enlist in the Coast Guard and shoot for OCS. You will have a very good chance of doing hands-on work in the Coast Guard. They start most enlistees as non-rates, even with bachelors degrees, but your background will make you a great candidate for an officers program if you work hard and prove yourself. You could also consider applying to USCGA now. So to answer the title of the post, I believe you should go.
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All cadets at USCGA have to take STEM classes also. The only non-STEM majors at USCGA are Management and Government, but even they have to take quite a few STEM courses their first year. Neither of those is equivalent to the Criminal Justice the OP says they want.
 
Just curious why dont you want to be a pilot anymore?

I have two minds when it comes to your situation. I think your major is important based on what you want to do with the rest of your life. The thing is that many people do their fives year after commissioning (or whatever it is today) and then get out and continue with their lives. Even if you happen to do 20 years, you are still in your early 40s by the time you get out. Then the question becomes then what? What are you going to do with a major you never wanted with a possible job associated with it that you don't want to do. So in that respect, it is important you major in something you are interested in.

On the other hand, there are many jobs out there that require a degree but they don't really care what degree it is so you can have a degree in history and yet get into law enforcement or get into EMT training or whatever. In order words you major isn't necessarily going to direct what direction you go into.

On the other hand, i am assuming your plan was to be a pilot in the AF. Now you don't want to be a pilot. Do you have a reason to stay in the Air Force. Is there another job you are interested in or are you willing to do anything?

So to recap, what you want to do in the AF and what do you want to do when you get out.. Staying for the hell of it makes no sense to me. Staying and commissioning must be part of a bigger plan than just being a 2nd LT.
 
2025Candidate said:
I'm currently a Doolie at USAFA. So far, I've really enjoyed my time here. I met some amazing people that I know will be my friends for the rest of my life, I've learned a lot about myself, and I've had experiences that I will never forget. Despite how much Doolie year is supposed to suck, I've actually enjoyed myself. However, I am considering leaving for two fundamental reasons. One of the main reasons is that USAFA does not have a major that I am passionate about. When I applied here, I thought that it would be a lot more military focused and a lot less academic focused, so I thought it wouldn't matter that USAFA doesn't offer a major that I am interested in, however, that has not been the case. I'm not sure how I ended up with that impression, but I was wrong. 80% of what I do here is academics. It's not so much the issue that academics are hard, even though they are, I just know that I will never get to take classes that I am passionate about, which makes it really hard to be able to look forward to the future, especially when I know that no matter what my major is, I will need to take a great deal of engineering core classes that I am not remotely interested in. I've been told to just get through academics, and that it will be all worth it when I finally graduate. I have an issue with that. I will be spending 3 and 1/2 more years here, and since so much of my time is spent on academics, the thought of struggling through with a major that I don't care about is absolutely miserable. I don't want to "waste" that much of my life. My other reason for wanting to leave arose because I decided that I no longer want to be a pilot. All my life I have worked to avoid any kind of desk or management job, but I'm afraid that that's what I'll end up with upon graduating from here if I'm not a pilot. Growing up, I wanted to be an EMT or something where it was me actually physically doing stuff. I know that the role of officers is very important, but I just don't think that it is for me. I feel like somewhere along the lines I traded all the things that I am passionate about and that excite me for future job security and health care benefits. If I do decide that I don't want to stay at the Academy, I have no intentions of sticking it our for the next year and a half in order to "get more free credits" as I have been advised by my friends. I would leave after this semester. However, I am terrified that I would regret leaving. This is an amazing opportunity, that I worked very hard for. I also know that graduating from the academy will give me lots of connections, and that even if I decide to leave the military after 5 years, those connections will help me to get jobs in the civilian sector. If anyone could weigh it, that would be fantastic.
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As I read your note I thought to myself “Wow, this is exactly what I went through back in 1984 when I was a plebe at West Point”. The academy suck is real no doubt and every day is a battle, but I can assure you that if you stick it out you will not regret it in the long run. Life is hard and the sooner you get used to the “fight” the better off you will be. No doubt the next 3 1/2 years will be tough and not always be fun, but don’t make any rash decisions. Finish out your Doolie year and then reassess. Hang in there and remember that everything you are feeling right now is perfectly normal.
 
I LOVE CORE CLASSES!!!! Says no one. Embrace the awesomeness, pivot your mindset and remain open to how interesting it is, AN OPPORTUNITY OF A LIFETIME, and that you earned that $416,000 seat that so many would love to fill.

Your first tour of duty is: College Student, and heavily weighted towards academics. This would not be any different if you went to any civilian college - to excel, you have to put in the time. What you describe sounds more like any college freshman realizing it's a huge stairstep from high school AND the USUAL gripe about core classes. Let me guess - you are taking English, Chemistry and or Physics, Comp Sci, calculus, and maybe history.

No excuse they don't have your major. You can pick several that are close. You are trying to find validation that it's ok to leave if they don't have your major and you no longer want to be a pilot. WRONG! Half get pilot slots, the other - get amazing opportunities!!! Have you considered beyond the USAFA experience - what about grad school in the future? MANY opportunities, you have to do your research and ask around.

Make a pact with yourself. First, seek real advice - not SELECTIVE advice. Don't ask people you know are also unhappy. Don't waste your time commisurating. Seek those that are doing well with similar interests. Talk to the advisors. Make an academic plan of action. Second, keep this in mind: It is not what you do well/what you like that define you, but the things you DON'T like and the things you are NOT good at, and how you overcome these that define what kind of person you really are. There's no victory in only doing things you like or operating only if the circumstances are ideal. If you are to lead, you must go through the bad as well as the good times, in order to know how to motivate others when you are required to do something you may not personally like or have a natural expertise.
 
What career do you want? A Criminal Justice degree is one of the most oversold/underutilized degrees out there...so what is the goal? If you want to work law enforcement, there are better degrees. If you want to work law (which by your description, sounds unlikely), there are better degrees. If you want to do some other hands on job...there are better programs.
 
Personally, I dont know you, but I would respect any decision you make. It seems like you have thought about this a lot, and that's what matters when making a decision- that you consider every option available, including the ugly. As others have said, and I will ultimately repeat: You earned a spot at one of the finest institutions in all of the world, and letting go of your spot there is big. My question to you is this: Is it worth giving up all you have in front of you for a major? It may be intuitive that your passions in life should come before all else, but considering that only 27% of people work in a field related to the degree/major they graduated in... is it worth it? Last but not least, if you are a Doolie, that means you are in your first year.... which means you are 18-19? Nonetheless, pardon my French, but who the hell ever knew what they wanted at that age? Stay curious, continue to explore, and keep thinking... but I encourage you to find the beauty in your Academy experience. That bit of beauty makes it all worth it. All of the pain all of the doubts, they all go away when you find it. Even I don't know what it is, or what it feels like, but its existence is why I am chasing an appointment, and I imagine it's why you did, too. I identify with you a lot, there were times where I even doubted whether or not to go to college, but they all went away when I (literally and metaphorically) took a walk in the park and thought about the big question of purpose. I wish you the best of luck in whatever you decide and remember, you have a whole family of 4,000 some odd strong there to support you.
 
Again from my view, I believe OP has their mind made up and has determined the AF and AFA is no longer of interest.

Seems like a waste of not a spot in the Academy, but a waste of an awesome opportunity and time and effort that it took to get there.
 
To the OP

You’ve received plenty of thoughtful viewpoints, so I have little to add. Though I do agree with @Devil Doc that your mind was made up and that you were probably looking for someone to tell you it’s OK. Well, it is OK, because it’s your decision to live with.

The main thing that struck me about your post was that there was nothing about becoming a commissioned officer. Plenty about being a pilot and majoring in criminal justice. So I suspect (and I say this respectfully) that serving as an active-duty officer was NOT at or near the top of your list of priorities when choosing a college.

To the lurkers contemplating an SA

Make sure an officer’s commission is your #1 goal. Not getting a prestigious degree or pleasing your parents or chasing a free education. SA life is as challenging as it is rewarding — many would say more of the former. It’s that commission that ultimately makes it worthwhile.

The DOD SAs are STEM schools, full stop! The original (USMA) on which the others are modeled started as essentially an engineering school. Warfare leadership demands highly technical competence and highly analytical mindsets. That’s best achieved via a STEM-heavy curriculum.

Whatever you think you want to major in, the statistics say you’ll probably change your mind. (Likely once officially, likely multiple times in your head.) Major in something you enjoy and will fight through during the darkest days of SA life. But also recognize that it will have little, if any, bearing on what you do on active duty. And even less as a civilian. Majors give you something to specialize in during college. They do not define you, nor should they debilitate you.

Finally, attending an SA is serious stuff — from when you start the application process until you’re discharged. Do some real in-depth research, and make a truly thoughtful and informed decision. Sadly, OP seems to have skimmed over that part. 😕
 
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Devil Doc said:
Again from my view, I believe OP has their mind made up and has determined the AF and AFA is no longer of interest.

Seems like a waste of not a spot in the Academy, but a waste of an awesome opportunity and time and effort that it took to get there.
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An alternative Dx?

Maybe like 100s of others today at all the different SAs they know in their heart that they are sure they are in the wrong place and yet 2-3-4 years later they will walk across the stage and graduate.

I had one that sounded exactly like this from day one at prep school.

And every year later. In fact they “quit” before 2 for 7. Quit just never mailed the official papers.

And they graduated and despite hating and struggling with STEM courses they did OK in the class work.
 
After you finish your service obligation, you will still be a young person with a whole career ahead of you. You can take your SA education and with 2 more years of college you can parlay it into anything- engineering, teaching, criminal justice etc. You should not view your degree as the end but only a part of the trail. Life is short - grab it by the horns and seek out experiences. Life is what happens when you’re busy making other plans.
 
Capt MJ said:
Nothing like a touch of The Clash to start a rainy day here in MD.

The OP likely has no idea of the wardroom he or she triggered. They have certainly received a 360 range of responses.
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Wardroom?!?! I typed “ear worm.” My Siri just got all Navy on me.

The OP has many balanced views to thoughtfully ponder. The posts are also eye-opening and valuable for those coming down the pipeline who are wrapped up in the chase for an appointment but have not looked closely enough at the end of the hunt and what that really looks like.
 
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Capt MJ, our musical interlude maestro. The Clash really takes me back. DH can still sing every word to every song 🎶
 
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