“[I decided to join the United States Navy] about a month ago. College is really expensive, especially art college, and I didn’t want to be in debt for my whole entire life. The Navy and the military, in general, has a lot of benefits afterward. Basically, they get you in shape at boot camp, but I think you need [to be able] to do 50 pushups, 40 sit ups…it’s not as extreme as people might think; it just depends on what job you do which is based on your physical activity [level].

My brother is a corpsman. He’s in Guam right now, and he’s been there for about a year. And, my mom and my dad were both also in the Navy. I would say that [because of my family connections to the Navy] it’s all less scary. A lot of people get really intimidated by it when it really isn’t [scary]—it’s just a job.

[Our first meeting for the Navy] went really well. We had to do a 1.5-mile run, and a lot of the girls started sprinting immediately, so they were dead by the end. [I was the first girl to finish], and I know it’s not a big accomplishment but yeah. You don’t really have to exercise [beforehand] because they’ll get you in shape at boot camp, but it really helps.

I’m a lot less stressed because [before], I was worried about college and stuff; I feel like I’m doing the right thing. I really want to make [the Navy] a career, and you can be in the Navy for a long time. So, my brother who’s a corpsman is thinking of being an EMT after he gets [out], so basically, military jobs can carry over into the civilian world.”

(Senior)