Question about college

[Prussian to the Iron]

So, I don't know if I've shared this with the .org yet, but I plan on becoming an officer in the Marine Corps after college (degree required unfortunately).

My grades aren't exactly the best and my GPA tanked due to 9th grade geometry, so college is not going to be easy to get into and my dreams of the naval academy are probably for naught.


buuuuuuuuuuuuut...

what about a community college? cheap and (supposedly) fairly easy? does anybody know if I could still get in as an officer with a community college degree?
cuz that would be awesome, and tbh I just want to get in, get commissioned, and serve my country and make my dad proud as a USMC officer.

[Vuk]

So, I don't know if I've shared this with the .org yet, but I plan on becoming an officer in the Marine Corps after college (degree required unfortunately).

My grades aren't exactly the best and my GPA tanked due to 9th grade geometry, so college is not going to be easy to get into and my dreams of the naval academy are probably for naught.


buuuuuuuuuuuuut...

what about a community college? cheap and (supposedly) fairly easy? does anybody know if I could still get in as an officer with a community college degree?
cuz that would be awesome, and tbh I just want to get in, get commissioned, and serve my country and make my dad proud as a USMC officer.

lol, my brothers want nothing more than to become Marines as well. Don't they require that you have a four year degree though? Anyway, I hate to be a downer, but crap happens, and if you have a life changing experience that makes you ineligible to continue your service, or if you just don't want to make a career out of it, it would always be nice to have something to fall back on.

[Tuuvi]

What is you GPA like? Because you don't need a 4.0 to get into college, that's a myth. I wasn't a great student in high school either, I applied to go to a university and I was accepted, however I decided to go to a state college instead to save money. Also what grade are you in? If you're still in the early years of high school its not too late to save you GPA. I was a horrible student in the 9th and 10th grade, but my junior and senior years I applied myself more and I was able to get a decent GPA when I graduated.

[Hooahguy]

A CC degree is as good as any other degree.

[drone]

According to the websites marines.com and officer.marines.com, you need an accredited 4-year college. A freshman through junior year student can through the Platoon Leader Class, while seniors and grads go to the Officer Candidate Course.

IIRC, you are a junior in high school. Get your grades sorted out, do extracurricular leadership-type stuff, do as well as possible on your SAT, and kill the ASVAB. Your HS football will help. A transcript that obviously shows you getting your head on straight will be noticed. Look for colleges/unis with NROTC programs, and try to get in them. Not only will this help pay for college, but it will give you an in to the culture (though not as much as Annapolis).

Your other option is hardcore old-school. Enlist, then OCS. Be a leader through basic and keep it up during deployment. Mustangs ftw.

[Strike For The South]

The trolling doesn't work nearly as well when the other topic is on the first page.

Don't get lazy son

[pevergreen]

The trolling doesn't work nearly as well when the other topic is on the first page.

Don't get lazy son

His master sets the bar fairly low.

[Strike For The South]

His master sets the bar fairly low.

That hurts me on the inside

[Vuk]

The trolling doesn't work nearly as well when the other topic is on the first page.

Don't get lazy son

Who is trolling?

[rajpoot]

I never really understood this new-fangled stuff about scores...out here we still have the old marks and percentage system.
As for college, whatever you do, don't do a technical course like engineering or something....it ruins a chap's life.

[Prussian to the Iron]

What is you GPA like? Because you don't need a 4.0 to get into college, that's a myth. I wasn't a great student in high school either, I applied to go to a university and I was accepted, however I decided to go to a state college instead to save money. Also what grade are you in? If you're still in the early years of high school its not too late to save you GPA. I was a horrible student in the 9th and 10th grade, but my junior and senior years I applied myself more and I was able to get a decent GPA when I graduated.

under 3.0, and im a junior. so its not exactly possible to bring that to a 4.0

[TinCow]

under 3.0, and im a junior. so its not exactly possible to bring that to a 4.0

GPA isn't the only thing in the world. Test scores, extracurricular activities, and good teacher recommendations count for a lot. I had under a 3.0 in both high school and undergrad, and I got into good schools for both undergrad and law school. In both cases, I had several other factors to offset the GPA itself. What you need to do is demonstrate that your GPA is not representative of your abilities.

[Tuuvi]

Thats fine, like I said you don't need a 4.0. I think mine was between a 2.5 and 3.0.

[Prussian to the Iron]

alright then, that makes me feel a LOT better. now I just need to think of where I want to apply...

[Crazed Rabbit]

With a 3.0 you could likely get into a good state school, if you keep on working to improve your GPA and get good SAT scores.

CR

[Nelson]

Check out this site. I've set this link to the University of Maryland at College Park as an example. I don't know how representative it is among all state schools. At UMD at least, only 6% if the incoming class had a HS GPS of 3.24 or less whereas 68% had a 3.75 GPA or better. I know Virginia is tough, too. Some state universities can be very selective.

http://collegesearch.collegeboard.co...collegeId=3633

[Ice]

Score high on your SATs (yes studying is painful but worth it) and try real hard the remaining time you have left. You will be fine. Not to downplay the corp because I have a lot of respect for them and have considered doing exactly what you are talking about, but as long as you have a 4 year degree and are not a total idiot, I believe you would be accepted at Officer Candidate School or ROTC if that's the path you want to take.