Dropped out to join, thinking about getting out to finish school - Opinions?

[Xoshua]

Ok well folks...  Home for christmas.  But before christmas let me explain my situation.  I am 17, not finished highschool with one determination to join the army.  I end up signing up for full force, 4 days later get sent into BMQ in Wainwright on November 18th.  I survive the first few weeks but relize:
a) Infantry isn't what I want, I have a big urge to join on the Medic side of things.
b) maybe I should of listened to my folks and friends when they tell you highschool is important.

Now I talked to my chain of command and the best answer is get out, go Reserves, finish highschool and come back.
I was told it wouldn't be too hard to get back into Reg if thats what I wanted down the road.
My question is, is it right or wrong?  I feel like its right but I don't want to be a coward.  So your opinions?


(Moderator edit to clarify title.)

 

[kratz]

IMO the school year is wasted and you have the time to finish your BMQ. So the immediate answer is easy. If you really want to open doors, then you should listen to some of the advice you have been getting.

If you reenter the CF  (Reg or Res) with a completed BMQ, you are worth more than Joe off the street.

 

[DirtyDog]

Yes, no matter what I would finish BMQ.

How many credits do you need to graduate?

 

[gaspasser]

What about completing your GED while still serving?  It'll make good gravy for you PER as it shows that you want to improve yourself, and kill time when you're in the shacks staring at the walls.

 

[harry8422]

i agree with byt driver on the possibility of doing in while still serving i mean you would still finish highschool which is good plus you still get to be in the military

 

[Zell_Dietrich]

I have to agree that finishing BMQ is a really good idea,  after BMQ there are still many options open to you.  One could go for a GED,  or take correspondence courses - http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/eng/relsites/distance.html has a run down on a few that you might look into.  I think you're from Ontario so I showed that one,  I'm sure most provinces have similar programs,  I know my home province, Alberta, most certainly does. It is extremely similar to http://ilc.edu.gov.on.ca/index2.html for Ontario.

I don't know your situation at all,  so my advice can be dead wrong.  I'd encourage you to finish what you start.  You'll be done sooner than you think and afterwards you'll be that much better prepaired to finish up the courses you need.  No matter what you choose,  you have the same amount of work ahead of yourself,  your choice (as I see it) is in how you spread it out.  One or  two classes a semester for a year and you graduate while in reg force or flub BMQ, loose all that time you've put in, only to go through the hassle of enrolling and facing a similar problem with post secondary education.

Once again,  you know your business best, but for what it is worth,  one can stay in and do the courses distance - I think you might even get people to help you, if you need it.

Good luck whatever you choose

 

[ModlrMike]

Which unit and base you wind up posted to will have some impact on your ability to finish your high school education. Speaking solely for Edmonton, the PSO folks here have a large number of resources at their disposal and are very eager to help the soldier (at least in my experience). If you want to go MedTech, you will need your senior matriculation with two sciences and a math. This is the recruiting standard for the trade. I would go with physics and chemistry for the sciences, as the biology you will pick up on course. I would not recommend a GED for you specifically as you want to have the same credentials for the military as if you were applying to a civilian EMT programme. It would be useful to know what province you left school from, and how many more credits you need. You may be able to get everything done through either night school or distance education.

If you do decide to get out, finish whatever course/training you are currently engaged in. There is no sense wasting the work you have already done. It would then make sense to try and go into a reserve Medical unit so that you can at least start training. Once you have all your education taken care of, you could then attempt a component transfer.

My final piece of advice. Stay in, finish your current training, take some distance education to complete your high school. By the time you are done, you should have a tour down range. Taking all of that together would make you a better candidate for an OT, than if you got out and tried to rejoin.

 

[canadianblue]

Now I talked to my chain of command and the best answer is get out, go Reserves, finish highschool and come back.
I was told it wouldn't be too hard to get back into Reg if thats what I wanted down the road.
My question is, is it right or wrong?  I feel like its right but I don't want to be a coward.  So your opinions?

Finish your high school, maybe get some more post secondary while your in the reserves.

Don't think your going to be a coward for finishing high school, an education is important in life.

 

[kincanucks]

First of all stay in the Reg F, finish your training, and complete your high school part-time.  Benefit - steady income and more experience for when you want to OT to Medic.  Remember you need a high school diploma with biology and chemistry for Med Tech and a GED won't meet the educational requirements and there is never a guarantee that you will be able to get back in.

 

[medaid]

Like Kincanucks said we're looking for people with grade 12 biology and chemistry prefered. Now, if you're doing Gr.12 courses, you might as well finish off your HS diploma. Another things is, the Med Tech trade isnt for everyone. It is NOT an easy trade to go into. Think clearly, talk to a few Med Techs Reg F and Reserve to get an idea of what they do. I would suggest that you read a few posts with regards to Med Techs under the Health Services page on this forum.

I would most definetly recommend that you finish your diploma prior to joinging. Education is priceless. Why not get it while it's free? Hope all the best in your decisions.

 

[SoF]

Xoshua I also dropped out of school (college mind you) to join the regs; I put in a ct from res to regs and I'm still waiting. While I believe college is optional, highschool is definitely not. Finish your highschool than give some serious thought as to want you want to do.

 

[cgyflames01]

Ok well folks...  Home for christmas.  But before christmas let me explain my situation.  I am 17, not finished highschool with one determination to join the army.  I end up signing up for full force, 4 days later get sent into BMQ in Wainwright on November 18th.  I survive the first few weeks but relize:
a) Infantry isn't what I want, I have a big urge to join on the Medic side of things.

You must have High school diploma, including 2 gr12 level science courses, to be eligible for the med tech trade (reg's, I don't know anything about the reserve reqs) and if are excepted, you then have to take college level courses to become a licensed EMT/Primary care paramedic. And as said by the people prior, finished the BMQ your on now, it will open doors for you in the future. Good Luck.

 

[GO!!!]

Finish your BMQ, then get out, go home and finish high school.

Part time education at any level is difficult in the CF, because you will still be a very busy soldier during the day, and an even busier student at night. If you struggled with the commitment to high school when that was all you had to do - this will be nearly impossible.

You are not a coward for leaving the army, everyone does it at some point.

Not having high school will be a lodestone around your neck for the rest of your life, and will cut down your choices, even now, you can't become a Med Tech without high school.