Paratrooper

Hello, everyone. This is my first post and I was hoping to find a more active branch of the forums. However, this forum does seem to be more directed to my specific situation.

I am currently in Iraq with 6 months left of my deployment. Once I return from this deployment in Nov '09 I have 7 months left on my contract with the Army. I am not ashamed of the fact that I enlisted almost entirely for the MGIB, and did not gain any sense of selflessness and meritious duty until well into my military career.

I realize now that my time in the military is coming to and end that all of the ribbons, badges, and personal accomplishments I have achieved will mean very little in the civilian world, and am hoping that some of you who have gone through this process might have some advice for me and the situation I am in.

I did not finish high school. At age 16 I passed the CHSPE (California High School Proficiency Exam) which is just a rung higher up the ladder than a regular GED. My high school transcript is, for lack of a better word, sad. I have never attempted to take the SAT's, mostly in part to the fact that I worked full time from age 16 until age 19 when I joined the Army. I have purchased several books, programs, and memberships to prepatory courses hoping that once I do take the SAT's upon my return to the continental United States, I will do well.

All of this lies in my hands and I will only make it as far as I am willing to push myself. However, there are still gaps in my plans and goals:

-How do I overcome the strict requirements that most universities have posted as their 'freshman admissions checklist?'

-Would it be advantagious to me to complete 2 years at a community college before attempting to apply at a major university? [I was told that a good GPA over 2 years at a CC would trump my poor transcripts/CHSPE problem.]

-Will my MGIB cover student housing and other costs of being a full-time student?

-How can I use my status as a combat veteran, and the other military accreditations/medals to my advantage in a competative school's admissions office?

-Other than studying for the SAT, what else should I be doing to prepare in my downtime? (What little of it that I have.)

I know that these are probably very insignificant questions, and that I have a habit of overthinking things like this, but I could really use some guidance and advice here. So if you could answer ANY of the forementioned dilemas for me, or have any advice at all other than my questions, it would be greatly appreciated.

Some people stay up all night, studying to get in to college. I risk my life everyday to get into college. I don't want this time to be wasted.



-SPC Moore, Sean T
82nd Airborne Infantry

jaykoblives

Keep in mind that every college admissions office evaluates candidates differently. My response to your questions, therefore, is based on generalizations and are not necessarily true in every case.

"-How do I overcome the strict requirements that most universities have posted as their 'freshman admissions checklist?'"

You've already overcome some of these by giving years of service to the military. Military service trumps a list of extra curricular activities from the average freshman applicant.

"-Would it be advantagious to me to complete 2 years at a community college before attempting to apply at a major university? [I was told that a good GPA over 2 years at a CC would trump my poor transcripts/CHSPE problem.]"

It was for me. I was a student in a similar situation as yours: poor high school transcripts, no SAT scores, ect. When I completed my active duty obligation, I immediately went back to school, took a full course load consisting of rigorous courses. After two years at CC, I had a 4.0 GPA, was a member of the Honors program, and received a prestigious merit scholarship. I applied to some top universities and colleges and was accepted to each one. Admissions did not care about what kind of student I was in high school because it had been about 6 years since my senior year. They wanted to know who I was at the time I applied.

"-Will my MGIB cover student housing and other costs of being a full-time student?"

You're probably going to want to use the Post 9/11 GI Bill instead of the MGIB. It's more comprehensive, covers housing, and makes private colleges actually affordable. You can read up on it here: Education Benefits - (U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs)

"-How can I use my status as a combat veteran, and the other military accreditations/medals to my advantage in a competative school's"

Write a compelling essay which shows the admissions office how your military service changed you as a person (that's what I did anyway). Other than that, there will be places on every application where you can list your various accomplishments. However, from one service member to another, let's be honest, unless one of your awards was awarded with Valor, it's not that big a deal. Seems like everyone gets Arcoms, AAMs, and even Bronze Stars nowadays.

"-Other than studying for the SAT, what else should I be doing to prepare in my downtime? (What little of it that I have.)"

You can study for the SATs now if you want but if you're taking the CC route, that won't be necessary until your apply for transfer. Honestly, no preparation might be the correct course of action other than mentally preparing yourself for the transition to civilian life. You can start thinking about what CC or state university you would like to apply to and research their admissions policies. You can look through course catalogs and think about what you'd like to study.

Hope this post helps you.