My son has a college degree and ENLISTED? Is he nuts?

My son also has a degree and I was terribly hurt when he decided to enlist, but then I had to stop and think, his father was enlisted in the Air Force, passed away when my son was 13 and it was his annuity that put my son through college. He has been home for the past year, working and doing OK, but he wants to be dependent and start his own life -- I am very proud of him and if he decides to cross over to become an officer at some point I will be doubly proud! My biggest struggle is I am still true blue Air Force!!!

Hope he is doing well. My son has a degree, too. He is currently in Basic. He is Naval Intelligence. We tried to get him to go to OCS but he wants to do it thru the enlisted ranks to give himself some credibility.

I would recommend enlisting first, with a degree or not. It gives the enlisted the opportunity to learn and play the game. I have seen too many JOs that get to a ship and literally have no clue what is going on. They are put in a position where they have 10-15 sailors under them and they have no what's in store. As an enlisted sailor, understanding the Navy rules and regulations, the definition of chain of command, and the chance of a sailor approaching with a serious or personal issue, it can be dealt with. Having a first class coming to a JO about a problem, the JO will likely not know what to do. It's about experience. I see no real advantages of joining straight into a commission...