Which Branch of the Military Should I Join? Army, Navy, Airforce, Marines, Coast Guard?

people are always asking me what branch should I join let me answer that question by comparing branch missions and locations military occupational specialties quality of life operational tempo and pay let's start with branch missions and locations the mission of the US Navy is to win Wars deter aggression and maintain freedom of the Seas I don't want to hurt anyone's intelligence but this requires ships and submarines and aircraft carriers etc yes there are land-based opportunities for sailors but for the most part you are going to be assigned to a vessel that is at sea or you are going to be stationed on the coast if you like water and boats and are more of a beach person then this might be a more natural fit if you hate the ocean and don't like water then the Navy probably should not be your first choice because the Coast Guard is not part of the Department of Defense I usually don't include them in my videos but the same logic applies here if you are patriotic and you want to serve but want to stay in the United States and near water then consider the Coast Guard the US Marine Corps falls under the Department of the Navy their mission is to seize or defend advanced naval bases and/or other land operations to support naval campaigns their specialty is doing combined-arms amphibious and landing force operations Marines are focused on combat every Marine is a rifleman this is one thing that I really like about the Marine Corps Marines are tough and in good shape this goes for the infantrymen - the supply sergeant most Marines are stationed either in North Carolina California Hawaii Japan or the DC area if you don't want to live in these areas or if you don't like working to support the landing force or amphibious portion of a naval campaign they consider another branch the mission of the US Air Force is to fly fight and win in air space and cyber space here is a map of air force base locations let me oversimplify by saying that the air force bases are almost all in better locations than army bases so if you like airplanes space or cyberspace there is likely an Air Force Base near you the US Army's mission is to deploy fight and win our nation's Wars there are army bases in 25 states washington d.c Porto Rico Belgium Italy Germany Japan and Korea army base locations are generally in locations where there is a lot of land for training this usually does not coincide with booming metropolis where people focus on health education and high quality of life let's move on to military occupational specialties most military occupational specialties or career fields are available in all four branches for example you can be in public affairs like in this photograph or you can be a supply specialist a military police officer a computer or signal specialist a doctor or a lawyer in all four branches you can fly planes or helicopters in all four branches but there are a few nuances each branch has its collective personality traits and culture some of these may appeal to you some of them may not I will say that the Navy is very focused on the difference between the ranks there are separate dining facilities for officers and enlisted this is a small thing but something I had a problem with whenever I was talking with my conventional Navy colleagues on the flipside the Navy has a lot of unique and rich traditions although the Army has some of the best and brightest leaders in the world they also have a lot of idiots every job on the team is important but in the Air Force it's all about the pilots if you are a pilot then you are number one in the hierarchy everyone else is support the Marines are known for absolute obedience and discipline so if you are a freethinker this might not be your first choice on the other hand the Marines have great uniforms quality of life is subjective what might be terrible in the eyes of one person could be wonderful in the eyes of another but in my experience and I'm sure that most would agree the worst quality of life is in the Army and the Marines better yet is the Navy the best quality of life is in the Air Force most of the quality of life standards are cultural for example if you live in a tent or sleep on the ground as a soldier or a marine then you will be happy to have any old building as an office but if you're used to state-of-the-art technology and work 9 to 5 in an air traffic control tower then for sure your standard for housing and offices is going to be much higher housing allowance is equal for the same pay grade in each branch of the military but for sure barracks and lodging facilities are way nicer in the Navy and in the Air Force I've stated army lodges that were cockroach hotels and I've stated Air Force lodges that were like five-star hotels the Army and the Marines generally do physical training or PT every morning while many of the jobs in the Navy and the Air Force let you do PT on your own even as an officer I had morning formation in mandatory PT for 14 years of my 20-year Army career I suspect that some Airmen never did morning PT after finishing basic training truth be told I loved my service in the Army and would not have enjoyed a career in the Air Force nonetheless the Air Force quality of life is always much higher let's move on to operational tempo I'm gonna define op tempo as how often a member of the military is away from his home for training or for a deployment I could only find outdated op tempo information so I'm going to summarize base off of what I have observed and experienced over the past two decades I think it is safe to say that the Air Force has the lowest op tempo unless you are a pilot or crew member you are going to spend a lot more time at home than someone in the Army or the Marines and when the Air Force does deploy they deploy to an airfield where there is usually higher quality of life and much more infrastructure or life support the Navy s sea duty and shore duty if you want to be at sea and travel the world sea duty is a good opportunity even if you are on shore duty you can be asked to augment a ship's crew for a cruise the Marines and army are gone a lot this is because they have a high op tempo Marines are notoriously training for deployment or the point conventional army guys have long deployments usually not too well-established locations I know soldiers who did 18 month deployments to combat outposts generally Special Operations Forces have shorter deployments usually three to six months but even I got stuck in Afghanistan for a ten month rotation during my second tour another factor to consider here is the training phase prior to a deployment individual augmentees might go to a training facility for a week to get vaccines and mandatory classes get issued body armor and zero the optics on their rifle other units do six months of intense collective training to prepare for deployments for all practical purposes you are away from your family and home for that trained up period and finally pay pay is a relatively easy evaluation criteria because it is the same across the branches soldiers sailors airmen and Marines of the same pay grade in year get the same pay bonuses and specialty pays vary based upon your military occupational specialty so if money is your most important consideration then you need to speak with somebody in that career field and ask about specialty pays although no one joins Special Operations for the money I will say that Special Operations Forces can make a lot more money than conventional forces when you start adding together jump a dive pay demo pay language pay etc okay there you have it a summary of the major factors you should consider if you're thinking about joining the military serving your country has a long and distinguished history I hope I gave you something to think about and applaud your decision to serve thanks for watching don't forget to subscribe and too forward to a friend who needs to know this life is a special operation are you ready for it you

Channel: Life is a Special Operation

Views: 1,207,522

Rating: 4.9367828 out of 5

Keywords: SOCOM, Command, Explained, SERE, Survival, resistance, evasion, escape, What’s harder, school, scuba, combat, diver, qualification, HALO, Special, operations, fitness, green, beret, navy, seal, delta, force, forces, boot, camp, physical, training, pt, program, exercise, army, air, national, guard, reserves, marines, recon, coast, elite, performance, skills, military, ranger, enlisted, prepare, branch, join, recruit, enlist, service, leadership

Id: 8x2Zo0ic2DM

Length: 8min 40sec (520 seconds)

Published: Fri Apr 05 2019