What Military Jobs Are Available?

I'm exploring the idea of joining the military after high school and I'm trying to understand the range of jobs available. What kind of roles can one expect within different branches and how do you decide what to pursue?

There are a wide array of roles and occupational specialties within each branch of the military, from fields like healthcare to engineering, intelligence, aviation, and logistics, among others. Here's a brief overview:

1. Army: The Army offers around 190 different jobs, referred to as Military Occupational Specialties (MOS), which range from combat roles such as infantry and artillery to support roles such as medical specialists, military intelligence, and engineers.

2. Navy: Jobs in the Navy are grouped under ratings, each dedicated to a unique field of expertise, including aviation, construction, electronics, medical, logistics, nuclear power, and special warfare. There are opportunities to work on ships, submarines, and aircraft carriers.

3. Air Force: The Air Force categorizes its jobs in "Air Force Speciality Codes" (AFSC). There are roles such as pilots, air traffic controllers, space operations, cyberspace operations, and medical services.

4. Marines: The Marines offer numerous MOSs that include artillery, aviation, infantry, logistics, intelligence, and military police.

5. Coast Guard: The Coast Guard provides jobs related to marine safety, law enforcement, boating safety, and more. They are also responsible for various roles such as aviation maintenance, culinary specialist, and health services.

6. Space Force: The newest branch, Space Force, includes roles in space operations, intelligence, developmental engineers, cyber operations, and acquisition manager, among others.

To decide what to pursue, you should consider your interests, skills, and career goals. Think about what you enjoy doing, your strengths, and how you want your career path to develop. What roles align with those considerations? Do some research on each role to understand what it entails, what the qualifications are, and the obligations that are attached to it.

You can also speak with military recruiters to get more information on the various roles and what they entail. Take the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB), which is a series of tests that helps you better understand your strengths and predicts future academic and occupational success in the military. It can give you an idea of what positions you’d be most suited for and it's used by the military to determine eligibility for certain roles.

Consider doing an ROTC program if you want to attend college before becoming an officer in the military. That way, you can combine your military service with higher education and entering the military at a higher-ranking position.

Hope this gives you a bit of direction! Best of luck with your decision.