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[msternin]

Never mind why you didn't do it before. You have the desire now and that's more than most. It takes lots of courage to get where you are at.

As to going officer or enlisted, both have pros/cons.

Have you decided if you'd like to go active or reserve? If not, start there. Last I checked, Officer cutoff for Active Army is 35, meaning a day prior to your 35th bday. When I commissioned, after having been enlisted, the cut off for AD and Guard were 42 years old (same a day prior to your bday). No clue on Navy, Air Force or their reserve or Guard components.

At a minimum, look online at something like goarmy.com to view MOS description for both enlisted and officer to see what may interest you.

Added: Trust me, you will not be the oldest guy in your basic training class.

[nick]

Whether you wash out or not is entirely up to you (well, mostly up to you). If you're serious about getting a commission, that wouldn't be something to worry about. Worry about being close enough to the top, now that the budgets are cut. And, like was said above, you probably won't be the oldest guy, but you'll be close, so you'll have to work more.

If you're considering the civilian career, as well, look into the Guard. Lots of good people there, and it's much more friendly to a civilian career than Reserve.

[msternin]

I want to go active and as much as I'd like to do something like infantry and be a gunfighter, at this point I'd like to do something I can transfer over into civilian life if I don't end up making a career out of it so I was thinking intel or medical.

I hadn't really considered reserve so I'll look into that first. I'm not concerned about being the oldest guy there nor do I have a problem taking orders from someone younger than me. I just don't want to start the process and wash out for any reason. I want to see it through regardless if it's just 1 contract or a lifetime.

You wont "wash out". Those terms don't really apply to basic training anymore unless you are a real screw-up.

Going Infantry can be fun and interesting. Unless you're forward deployed, it's all about training to kick in doors. I've done the enlisted side of it, now I'm on the officer side of it. Those skills are somewhat transferable to civilian life within law enforcement, if that's something you are interested in post-military.

Again you really need to figure out what military job fit you best. You'll probably be required to take the ASVAB which is used by the military to determine the right fit for you and your GT score. Some jobs require a higher GT score than others.

Talk to a recruiter. I know people on forums like this will tell you to avoid them like the plague, but you can't really join the military without talking to one. They are human like anyone else and can provide you with a wealth of knowledge on your options and familiarize you with the process of joining.

If you are worried about them calling and bugging you all the time, simply, go into a career center (I don't think they call them recruiting centers anymore) and talk to them. Don't give away your phone or email if you don't want to.

They can explain your options for contracts and tell you about bonuses, if there still are any, etc... Keep in mind, all the branches have their own recruiters. Again, not knowing about Navy or Air, the Army has recruiters that are separate from the National Guard. For the Army, there's probably one in your neighborhood, same with the Guard. Google it and go from there.

[Unit74]

If you have your associates now, join on the degree completion program and get paid to finish your degree.

[Mr.Caketown]

Medical is a great field to get into as an officer , intel is an even better field if you plan to get out after your initial obligation. As soft as the army is these days you'll be ok at 32 if you can ruck 10 miles w/ 50lbs , run 3-5 miles twice a week and bang out at least 60 push ups and sit ups in under 2 minutes ( for each). The best thing you can do as an officer is get into the field with the enlisted , I hated officers that barked orders from behind a desk and lead from power point.

[Snoopy47]

The Intel Officer ranks are very competitive. For example, there are no Jr. Officer vacancies for Intel in the USAR in California.

You will get through basic. Everyone does, and those that don't are not fitness problems but disciplinary ones.

At 39 I ended up being the oldest one that got through Basic and AIT without a profile or injury. It's a unique experience and I tried to just step aside and let the little ones learn life lessons. When you have 20 years on your peers all you can do is watch the train wreck happen.

It's all about Go-No/Go box checking. Everything else is just for show, but the kids can't figure that out. For them it seems like an eternity, but for me it wasn't even one fiscal quarter.

One kid ended up getting kicked out because he kept his phone and was calling home at 2am. He had a choice between an Article 15 or discharge. He took the discharge. He will regret that choice down the road when a future employer wants to look at his DD214 which says something other than honorable.

[CMBrowning]

Good luck and thank you. Im the same age and have the want to enlist these days. I wish I gave myself the opportunity to serve when I was younger.

[Ahmad]

If you're in shape and have your degree just get your commission. They quality of life is so much better.

[CrossedRifles]

There's always that one guy in the platoon way older than everyone else. The one we had, had already lost most of his hair. IIRC he was 39. He was a very patient person, even when he had to babysit a lot of us.

Go officer. Unless you're a masochist and like that sort of thing.

[BoJackUSMC]

At your age, I would probably go officer route...
More money, better benefits, more entitlements, and better job options when you do get out down the road.

Trust me, go officer route, you going to thank me down the road.

[Germz]

I have had the pleasure of working with a lot of new lieutenants so far, I've also met a few that try to reinvent the wheel. The best advice I can give is humble yourself and do not perceive yourself to be bulletproof. Listen to what your senior SNCOs advise and blaze a new trail only when necessary.

Ranks on your collar (or velcro patches...whatever) warrant a certain level of respect, but understand that going in at 30+ means you will have subordinates and officers younger than you, some perhaps with over a decade of experience in their field.

[SuperSet]

Good luck, old man.

[GunDog]

Looking back, I'm glad I went in when I was 18; it enabled me to start drawing a military pension shortly after my 38th birthday. Of course, then I had to go to work for a living. I have since retired two more times.

[Blitz]

I joined at 33, you'll be fine as long as you prepare physically and mentally. I was second oldest.