I've heard from recruiters themselves that the hardest thing to do during a recruiting hitch is to never give up your integrity. Those guys are faced with obscene pressure for numbers. Whatever they promise/you decide...get it in writing, get it in writing, get it in writing.
If you want technical skills that will translate well into jumpstarting a civilian career, this Army guy would recommend the Air Force or Navy. If you want fun, adrenaline, and experiences you'll never duplicate in civilian life, go Army, USMC, or possibly USCG. Those are some broad generalizations, your mileage could certainly vary.
My advice would be (sorry Dad) you're young...live a little. Choose a short hitch but pick a cool job. Think superhero stuff, Cav, Ranger, 11B, shoot for the Q course if you want a real challenge. Kick in some doors and jump out of some aircraft while you can. Those experiences in the civilian sector are generally quite hard to find. You need some stories to tell the grandkids. And once you gain a little rank, the feeling of leading troops, even a squad, when everything is clicking is not an experience matched by anything else. Think winning a State championship...only better because you've made a real difference.
An aside, if you go infantry or artillery, your fellow grunts may not be exactly the crowd you hung with in high school. Not that it's bad, just prepare yourself for some colorful characters. Sometimes those branches can be sort of a holding area for soldiers with...well...limited options. Not knocking them, I love 'em all, everyone has a job that makes the entire machine work. I'm just trying to be honest. You guys in the peanut gallery know I'm right, think of the oldest E-4 or E-5 you ever saw...now what branch was he?
But make a pact with yourself to seriously examine how long you want to stay in on a regular basis, like every 6 months at least. I have friends that, before they know it, are 9-10 years into a career that they don't really like, but figure they may as well stick it out for 20 for the retirement. All the while in a career they still don't really like. A mil career can be good, but 20 years is a big chunk of regret if you limit yourself to staying in just to get a guaranteed paycheck.
I was in the Reserves for 12 years in the Engineer branch. The active guys don't like to hear it, but the differences between active/reserve get less and less every year. I would not recommend the reserves in this day and age. I'd say get all the way in or all the way out. Living a dual life, especially while we're in this "long war," doesn't provide you with a chance of giving 100% to either. I don't know if the engineer stuff is anything you're looking at. I could go on for pages about the Army engineer branch if it is in the cards, but I'll save it for now. Some parts correlate well to civilian life, some not. But combat engineering can be some big fun.
Looking back, I'd say a good track would be to do a 2 to 4 year hitch, get completely out, go to college or tech school and decide what you want out of life then. If ROTC or OCS is in the cards, so be it. The GI Bill perks right now are getting better all the time, but getting completely discharged after a hitch will give you perspective. You'll start school wiser than the average guy just out of high school. Plus, you'll likely keep some rank if you do elect to go back in and/or it will give you a huge leg up if you choose the officer route.
Whatever branch you choose, you'll learn things about yourself, working with people (both friendly and unfriendly), make friends and have experiences that will pay you dividends your entire life. Technical skills are just part of this whole being-a-grownup thing.
And you can always hop around services too.
Good luck.
SD
