USAFA vs USNA

DS attended graduate school after graduation from USAFA. There were quite a few of his classmates that attended AFIT and varies other graduate programs directly after graduations.
 
Thanks Raimius almost forgot! It's true, USNA does also have a better rep for professor access and teaching excellence, not to mention USNWR ranking significantly higher than AFA. Also, with no doubt whatsoever Annapolis has more Corporate/B-School/Street Cred awareness and prestige.

Navy has many more major career options than AF which is basically being a Pilot or flying a desk & chair v. Subs, SEALS, Surface Weapons, Marines or landing planes on a bobbing football field sized speck in the middle of an ocean somewhere (only the best need apply).

As a poster above said, AF has better housing and golf courses (and more comfy desk chairs too), but what are you joining the military for? how nice things are off duty or how interesting and stimulating things are during your working hours and the range of interesting options available to you over the span of a career...anyone up for sitting a missile silo?

One final thought, while Army and AF are rapidly shrinking force size, and in AF's case and moving to flying drones instead of piloting planes Navy is expanding the fleet, where do YOU think the brightest and most engaging career future lies?? Only you Jackie can decide what is right for you.

PS. the above is to not start a flame war. Much Love and Respect the AF and all her past and present service members, it's just "relative to Navy" the stark contrast and realities above apply.
 
My dad was USAF intel (albeit many years ago) and I was USN, so know a bit about both, though my knowledge is somewhat dated. Each service has its share of true garden spots and crappy locations. Most of the places you'll be stationed in the USN are pretty nice, in part b/c they're on the water. :D The downside, of course, is that you're often deployed away from those nice areas. When you're single, that can be terrific -- you really get to see the world. Once you have a family, it's not as great but many, many Navy families manage just fine.

During my dad's time in the USAF, my parents moved 28 times. They spent 11 straight years in Omaha. They lived in Minot, ND and Boise ID and Travis AFB, CA and Montgomery, AL. And a lot of crappy places in between. One overseas tour (Germany) and Vietnam during the war (unaccompanied, of course). In my dad's day, if you weren't a pilot, you were definitely a "second class citizen" in the USAF -- don't know if that remains true today as his day was long ago. The above said, my dad absolutely loved the USAF and his saddest day was his last in uniform.

If you have zero interest in being aboard a ship, don't go into the USN. There are land-based career paths but not many. However, if you're not sure you want to fly, USNA offers (IMHO) the best variety of jobs upon graduation -- ships, subs, aviation, USMC ground, SEAL, etc. Both the USN and USAF are great services and I'm sure you'll be happy wherever you end up.
 
Aim for the best, but plan for the worst... In other words, never forget that your actual job in the military can (and often does) come down to the needs of the service.

So in addition to considering all the great things about a particular branch, make sure you would also be ok with your personal "worst" if that should happen. So if you would rather chew your own arm off than serve on a submarine... or missle silo.... then you might want to take that into account as well.

In the end, both SAs are amazing, both branches have lots to offer, and you will be serving something greater than yourself in either case... congrats!
 
I would be interested to hear from the original poster. You've heard alot now, has it generated anything else? Do you have a gut feeling which way you're leaning or what is important to you?

Also, why USNA and USAFA? Was it familiarity? I applied to USCGA, USNA and USMMA.... all sea-centric service academies. I don't see a common thread between USAFA and USNA with the exception of "US" and "A".

Good info here folks!
 
kent2015 said:
Isn't that what it's all about at the end of the day?
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HAHA, kind of..... until money's involved.... or command..... or modernization..... or actually having to work together.

In reality, some services tend to annoy each other. Yes, they're on the same team, but that doesn't mean they're the best of friends.
 
My husband and I are both USAFA grads and 3 of our 4 children (so far) have or will be going thru USNA. They all applied to both. My oldest wanted to be a pilot, so these were the two that made most sense for him to apply to. From our experiences, the biggest over arching difference I have seen between the two services (not talking about missions etc, thinking more broad than that) is that the Air Force is very focused on the "How" to do things to accomplish a mission. They lay out every step that must be taken and expect you to follow it to a T. The Navy is more focused on the end result. They are more "This is what we expect at the end, you figure out how to make that happen!" Look up "Message to Garcia" and that will give you an idea. They don't want excuses and they don't want to take the time to hold your hand and walk you thru it. Figure it out. The Air Force spoon feeds a bit more, but don't deviate from their steps or you may be in trouble. The Navy gives you more freedom on how you achieve the end goal, but not as helpful in getting you there.
 
LineInTheSand said:
And that goes back to an old (and fairly true) saying "A b#$%ing sailor is a happy sailor."
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LITS: I missed this the first time I read your post. The same is said of Marines. Wonder where that came from? I certainly heard it frequently during my time on active duty 30 years ago.
 
Interesting online tool at parchment.com allows you to compare which of any two schools applicants chose to attend when they had been accepted at both. The current numbers show applicants who were accepted at both choosing USAFA over USNA by 58% to 42%. Applicants are choosing USAFA over USMA by 63% to 37%.

These numbers change all the time but in the time I've been checking it, USAFA has always been the preferred choice over both USNA and USMA, usually by pretty big margins.

http://www.parchment.com/c/college/...orce+Academy&with=United+States+Naval+Academy
 
Don't base your decision on what others think they want. Do what is right for you. It is your future.
 
"On the other hand.... MBAs are supposed to be the most usefull master's degree."

Opinion only here; nothing to back it up. But I think that would be for a "generalist." When I worked as an engineer with Motorola and at Tri-Star Computer, a sub of Diamond Flower Industries...an engineering masters was gold; an MBA was "nice" but...

Now...if you were NOT in the engineering/technical track then the MBA was valued highly, provided it came from a good school. Paper-mills weren't too highly viewed, "name" schools were and Wharton...oh yeah, that's a GOOD one!!

Steve
USAFA ALO
USAFA '83
 
flieger83 said:
"On the other hand.... MBAs are supposed to be the most usefull master's degree."

Opinion only here; nothing to back it up. But I think that would be for a "generalist." When I worked as an engineer with Motorola and at Tri-Star Computer, a sub of Diamond Flower Industries...an engineering masters was gold; an MBA was "nice" but...

Now...if you were NOT in the engineering/technical track then the MBA was valued highly, provided it came from a good school. Paper-mills weren't too highly viewed, "name" schools were and Wharton...oh yeah, that's a GOOD one!!

Steve
USAFA ALO
USAFA '83
Click to expand...

I agree. I'm an engineer and have worked at places where they would only hire you if you had a Masters in a tech field.
 
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