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Cc or online classes for ~16 year old interested in the Military....


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Its always better to have some kind of specialization or area which makes your dc stand out. If they have college courses under their belt it can demonstrate skills needed vs generalist. I would highly recommend taking some computer classes along with math and science at the college level. Of course its better if your child knows where his/her skills reside. Has he/she taken the ASVAB yet? If not take a look at this site which is developed by a group I work with: http://www.asvabprogram.com/

Edited by dereksurfs
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We've heard it's good to start getting college credit before joining the military. Any suggestions on doing community college or online recommendations?

Are you talking about enlisting or officer programs?

 

Is there a number of credits that would result in a higher rank on enlistment or make it more likely to get the specialty of choice?

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Are you talking about enlisting or officer programs?

 

Is there a number of credits that would result in a higher rank on enlistment or make it more likely to get the specialty of choice?

Probably enlisting, I have no idea, this is all new to me. Everything seems foreign & it's just come up recently. I think long term down the road he's talked police force, so maybe military police? I don't know. He recently mentioned the Navy as well.

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My son was homeschooled throughout his education and enlisted in the Navy. We are in Texas, but even here the recruiters/ MEPS weren't very knowledgeable about homeschool requirements. My son had several college courses before he left, but they were more used by the Navy to back up his homeschool transcript. His security clearance took a bit longer to get because they didn't have numerous teachers and coaches to interview. He has done very well after we jumped through hoops. I didn't understand all the hoops we had to go through since he scored above the 90th percentile on his ASVAB - I would have thought that would have spoken for itself.

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It will really really help if he has an accredited diploma- the army and Air Force both have had a hard time processing my friends' kids paperwork without a diploma! One of my friends was at such a standstill HSLDA has to get involved (and that friend's son did dual Enrollment at Liberty for a whole year and she had all his paperwork very organized) but without a "diploma" the recruiter couldn't get the paperwork through. In the end they figured it out but it will

Save you and your recruiter a boat load of headache If your ds has a diploma!!!

 

As far as classes nothing really helps that much because they really base it on the asvab.

 

My nephew had a full IB high school diploma (equivalent of associates degree) and they did start him out two ranks up which means his pay will

Be a little higher and he will advance a little faster. (But your son isn't planning on a full associates so probably any classes he takes won't really make a big difference.)

 

I would join hslda and some kind of accredited cover school If you can.

 

Other than that don't worry about it. Military police don't need a high rank on the asvab either. But he could study for the asvab later just in case :)

Edited by Calming Tea
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Yep, Air Force definitely has the more "cushy" living arrangements, and more family friendly than other branches. My son choose Navy because of the education opportunities, the rate he is in, and because it offered him the program he was most interested in. Being a public forum I can't give many details, but research and see which branch will be the better fit for your child. My husband is a former Marine, and we know a ton of vets from all branches and they all have their pros and cons depending on the individual.

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It will really really help if he has an accredited diploma- the army and Air Force both have had a hard time processing my friends' kids paperwork without a diploma! One of my friends was at such a standstill HSLDA has to get involved (and that friend's son did dual Enrollment at Liberty for a whole year and she had all his paperwork very organized) but without a "diploma" the recruiter couldn't get the paperwork through. In the end they figured it out but it will

Save you and your recruiter a boat load of headache If your ds has a diploma!!!

 

As far as classes nothing really helps that much because they really base it on the asvab.

 

My nephew had a full IB high school diploma (equivalent of associates degree) and they did start him out two ranks up which means his pay will

Be a little higher and he will advance a little faster. (But your son isn't planning on a full associates so probably any classes he takes won't really make a big difference.)

 

I would join hslda and some kind of accredited cover school If you can.

 

Other than that don't worry about it. Military police don't need a high rank on the asvab either. But he could study for the asvab later just in case :)

I find this interesting because I have homeschooling friends that both have joined the Army and Air Force with students that were homeschooled without an accredited diploma.
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It will really really help if he has an accredited diploma- the army and Air Force both have had a hard time processing my friends' kids paperwork without a diploma! One of my friends was at such a standstill HSLDA has to get involved (and that friend's son did dual Enrollment at Liberty for a whole year and she had all his paperwork very organized) but without a "diploma" the recruiter couldn't get the paperwork through. In the end they figured it out but it will

Save you and your recruiter a boat load of headache If your ds has a diploma!!!

 

As far as classes nothing really helps that much because they really base it on the asvab.

 

My nephew had a full IB high school diploma (equivalent of associates degree) and they did start him out two ranks up which means his pay will

Be a little higher and he will advance a little faster. (But your son isn't planning on a full associates so probably any classes he takes won't really make a big difference.)

 

I would join hslda and some kind of accredited cover school If you can.

 

Other than that don't worry about it. Military police don't need a high rank on the asvab either. But he could study for the asvab later just in case :)

 

FWIW, my ds experienced no issues with using the transcript I generated to support his Navy ROTC scholarship application.  He was awarded a scholarship with no questions related to his transcript.

 

I think it's worth remembering that homeschool graduates are pretty rare.  If homeschoolers overall are 2-3%, the number of homeschooled seniors and grads is much smaller (I'd guess around 1%).  That means that if a recruiter works with 1000 people interested in enlisting, fewer than two dozen will be homeschool graduates.  The bulk of a recruiter's experience is with graduates from public high schools.  It's not surprising that they aren't familiar with homeschool laws or requirements

 

So far as I know, homeschooled graduates may enlist on the same basis as any other graduate.  They might want to see an accredited diploma if one exists, but the lack of one ought not prevent someone from enlisting.

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^^ and that's what my friend was told...over and over that legally, Army does not require a diploma and that homeschoolers can show their graduation some other way.

 

And yet it cost her many weeks of major frustration, a long delayed enlistment, a call to HSLDA, extra paperwork and headache.

 

I am not saying you technically, legally have to have an accredited diploma.

But if you have one, it may really make things go much more smoothly.

 

Obviously legally they didn't need one and that's what HSLDA helped to explain and prove. :)

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^^ and that's what my friend was told...over and over that legally, Army does not require a diploma and that homeschoolers can show their graduation some other way.

 

And yet it cost her many weeks of major frustration, a long delayed enlistment, a call to HSLDA, extra paperwork and headache.

 

I am not saying you technically, legally have to have an accredited diploma.

But if you have one, it may really make things go much more smoothly.

 

Obviously legally they didn't need one and that's what HSLDA helped to explain and prove. :)

 

That is frustrating when it happens.  When I looked at the options for an accredited diploma, there was always something that I didn't like.  The academics weren't as challenging as what I do at home, or the accreditation didn't seem to be from less than desirable agencies, or it was really a charter school with all the snags that included.

 

It is worth keeping in mind that the military is a really large organization, which is only as good as the training and experience of the individuals you are dealing with.  As a military family, we have had many travel claims, changes of duty station, requests for maintenance or other items not done smoothly.  I can't tell you how often we've been told that something isn't possible, when it really is; or had multiple documents give conflicting requirements or guidances.  

 

It's not usually personal.  Keep asking to talk to a supervisor, and bring in the referenced instructions as often as possible.

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