Introduction
The biggest reward a parent can give his/her child is preparing the child for the life in college and life after school. This is an important parental task, however it is not easy to achieve. The transition from high school to college to adulthood can be made perfect if a child is brought up in a good background. Close parental supervision is required for a child to make a good transition from a child to a responsible and productive adult in the society. In the United States majority of high school students are below the age of 18 yrs and they are considered children. While in college majority of the students are above 18 yrs and they are considered young adult. As a result there is a heated debate on whether high school graduates should be required to spend two years in the military and then receive a free college education or not.
Self evaluation
1. The topic covered in this assignment is whether high school graduates should be required to spend two years in the military and then receive a free college education.
2. There are two possible different positions or claims related to this topic; the first position is high school graduates should be required to spend two years in the military and then receive a free college education. The second position is high school graduates should not be required to spend two years in the military and then receive a free college education.
3. Regarding this topic, I support the first position which support high school graduates should be required to spend two years in the military and then receive a free college education.
4. I support the first claim that high school graduates should be required to spend two years in the military and then receive a free college education, because joining the military has many advantages to high school graduates.
5. the reasons for joining the military are many, they include; duty to the country, personal development, get an education, travel, loan benefit, career establishment and development, and learning life lessons. Survey indicates that majority of military men and women attain vital life lessons in military which assist them later in life.
6. My intended audience is the government; I want it to implement policies that will force high school graduates to join the military for two years. So as to enable them to become responsible and productive citizens in the future.
7. Apart from becoming responsible and productive citizens, high school graduates will also benefit from the government through the free college education initiative. This will mainly benefit students from poor families who cannot afford the college education fee due to poverty.
8. I think this military initiative is essential to all high graduates as it prepare them to adult life hence all stakeholders involved should support it. Hence the government, parents and the high school graduates should support it.
9. There is no need of a high school graduate joining college without basis life skills that will enable them to make vital life decisions. Remember it is in college that majority of the students get their freedom, as they stay away from their parents.
10. In addition, the military provide the platform for high school graduates to launch their careers. Many careers will be developed in military as the high school graduates will gain valuable experience required in civil service jobs. Parents and the government should consider this point since it benefits both the country and students.
11. However before making the final decision, the government and parents should know that military life is not for everyone. Military life has many risks; it puts individuals in high risk situations and their life if more often in danger.
12. But parents and high school graduates should not be deceive by the fact that military life puts life in high risk since an individual can perish even at home or in an office. Death does not selected individuals from certain professions.
The decision of joining the United States military has various implications that can change the life of an individual. The lessons a graduate will learnt in the military about the world around, and oneself will definitely make an unforgettable impact to their life. Therefore the military is the right profession which high school graduates should join while awaiting to join college. By becoming a soldier, the graduates will be able to serve their country. They will carry out the obligation of defending their country from external forces. Unlike civilians (citizens) military personnel are willingly to defend their country with even there lives.
Joining the military will also provide monetary benefits to high school graduates. The military will give the high school graduates a VA home loan; this is a franchise initiative that will benefit the graduate throughout their life. In addition, the military academies offer a college degree to high school graduates who will join the military, free of charge. The high school graduates will also be entitled to a financial assistance of up to $ 50, 000 towards any post high school education, in particular college education.
One of the popular United States Navy slogans is “JOIN THE NAVY-SEE THE WORLD” (Rod 2008). Therefore the high school graduates who will join the United States navy will get the privilege of traveling and exploring the world. Traveling and exploring the world will enable the high school graduates to learn a lot about their country and the world at large. In addition, military as profession has many career opportunities. Thus high school graduates who will become interested in joining the army will be privileged as they can launch their military career immediately after completing their high school education.
In as far as career development is concerned; the army is the best place to develop a career. The high school graduates will gain imperative work experience in the military which will be very vital in their future careers. If the high school graduates will be able to hold on the discipline in military, they will definitely become good civil servants. High school graduates who will join the air force will get valuable job experience that will be applicable in a variety of fields.
The high school graduates should use the military experience as a springboard to establish specialized government careers such as FBI, CIA and ATF (Michael 2011). The military experience will also enable the high school graduate to break into the corporate world careers in future due the exposure the military will give them. At the same time the high school graduates will learn vital life lessons in the military.
Among the vital life lessons which the high school graduates will learn in the military include; honesty, hard work, determination, excellence and vital measures of a person (Jason 2009). Honesty is a good value in military and all servicemen and women are taught to tell the truth no matter the circumstance. Working hard is necessary in the military and high school graduates will be taught how to try and perform their level best no matter the magnitude of the task.
The notion of doing your level best no matter how trivial the task is will be vital to the future life of the high school graduates. It will enable them to give their level best in the careers they will pursue after school. Apart from working hard, determination is also an important value that will be added to the life of the high school graduates. They will learn that, for an individual to survive in the military he/she has to be determined as life there is risky and hard.
In conclusion, even though military life is not for everyone the advantages of joining the military outweigh the risks involved in joining it. Therefore high school graduates should be required to spend two years in the military and then receive a free college education.
References
Rod Powers, (2008), what are the benefits for joining the military?
Vicki Holmes, (2011), The Advantages of Joining the Military http://www.ehow.com/list_6372943_advantages-joining military.html#ixzz1nNYTPgHw
Michael Morales, (February 22, 2011), Benefits for joining the United States military: http://www.mrbestguide.com/benefits-to-joining-the-united-states-military/
Jason Chavis, (2009), United States Army Enlistment Benefits
http://www.militaryspot.com/enlist/joining_the_military/
