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[quote=Anonymous]So a funny thing about ROTC.

I was admitted to and really wanted to go to one of the small elite schools. The cost was out of the question for my family and we were offered very little aid because my dad owned his own business and the aid package assume the ability to sell or mortgage several business assets that my dad reasonably did not feel comfortable parting with. Also quite a bit of loans. I also have three siblings and that figured in as well.

I looked into ROTC and was exploring it as an option, but my dad was super discouraging about it. He's kind of an asshole anyway, but he told me I'd never cut it in the program and I'd hate the service after I graduated, etc. I was worried he was right so I gave up on it and on the school (which is not a place where a lot of people do ROTC). I went to a state university where I got a merit scholarship that covered most of my tuition and graduated debt free. No regrets about any of that -- my life has worked out really nicely and I got a good education and I'm really glad I didn't take out a bunch of loans for undergrad.

However, I sometimes think about how my dad handled that and have concluded he was just straight up wrong. I think my willingness to explore ROTC as an option to get something I really wanted reflected a real willingness to sacrifice for my goals at a young age, and I think I would have done fine in the program. I wound up in a field where military experience would have been useful early on, and I probably would have gotten a lot of language experience as well which would have been extra handy. I'm super liberal and I don't think military service would have changed that. I think it would have been pretty formative and interesting.

I don't regret the choices I made but I also think parents sometimes limit their own kids more than necessary. I've put that lesson in my back pocket for my own kids, I think it's worth heeding.[/quote]

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