I am currently active duty and have been for the past 7.5 and will have 9 under my belt at the end of this contract and I feel like I have wasted my time in not being involved in the career I longed for and now I am 28 years old and my current contract does not end for another year and I would be starting college in fall 2019. I would feel kind of silly being 30 and just starting. I guess my question is if it’s to late to obtain a bachelors in construction management or an arch studies degree? I’m truly stuck in a decision to finish the 20 years military or to get out and get the degree…maybe someone could help.
It is never too late to learn. Can you stay in and get a degree?
Stay in, get the 20-year retirement. Just think of your current pay as being about twice what it actually is, because the pension & medical benefits you will get after 20 will be really valuable. Try to get a degree in your chosen field online, or try to get stationed in places where a local college offers such classes. Or, if you do get out, stay in the reserves, so at the very least you can get a reserve retirement.
Do you have any college credits? Or have you not picked any up yet? Two places to star would be Penn State World Campus or University of Maryland University College. Both of those have extensive online programs designed for students like you, as well as some courses on or near bases.
You also ned to find our which colleges and universities offer your specific major, and what their placement is like. It really, truly is OK to ask where there graduates go. You have time to investigate all of this before you have to commit to staying to 20 years.
Starting at 28 or 29 is better than starting at 35 or 40. You are likely to be a more serious and more dedicated student than your younger fellow students. Also, I do know someone who started in construction management at a much older age than you will be in 4 or 5 years (in his case after a high tech career, that ended in one of the big tech bubble bursts). He has done well.
I would say: Go for it!
What is your MOS (job not number) and do you enjoy it?
Have you not used Tuition Assistance at all? You could use TA for some gen ed courses and stretch your GI Bill after the military.
You have 13 more years to make 20. That is a long time if you don’t enjoy it. Now, you qualify for the Blended Retirement System which has a bonus at 12 years.
Don’t worry about starting at 30. Lot’s of non traditional students if you are at a state university.
There are plenty of students over 30 going for undergraduate degrees. I got my bachelors in Alaska, and there were lots of ex-military from the various bases in Alaska who stayed in the state to get their degrees.
Colleges love veterans because they know vets tend to be more mature and take school more seriously than kids just out of high school.
If you don’t enjoy what you’re doing right now in the military and can’t cross-train into something better, get out. (I’m a vet, BTW.)