I became excited when I saw the “Be All That You Can Be” commercials of the United States Army. By the age of 18, I had studied German, Russian, and all the way up to Latin IV Honors. I had lived overseas with my family as a young child so there was nothing that excited me about Washington College in Chestertown, MD my university choice for the spring. With only 3 languages to choose from at Washington College, the school did not have much of a international presence to increase my enthusiasm. My best friend in high school, Jon, always talked about the Marines but that option was definitely too gung-ho for me. So, I decided to see a recruiter for the Army without letting my mother know. My mother and I clash about a lot of things, but when it comes to the military she is a great believer in it. If I told her I was joining the armed forces, she would freeze any college money she had in order to force me into the military option, so it was a hush hush operation as far as I was concerned.
I knew my interests revolved around languages at the time. The recruiter pulled out these large compact discs and inserted them in a machine that looked rather bazaar to me. There were several jobs that required languages but after viewing the compact discs, I settled for the Interrogator/Linguist position. It was not very hard to choose as I am a people person and the other positions were either always behind desks or working with machines which I was not a fan of. After selecting my position, it was time to take the necessary tests. Now, I am no fan of standardized test and therefore I rarely ever prepare for such exams. On the other hand the ASVAB which all service members take determines whether or not you become a janitor or a pilot. So, I suggest that this test is taken seriously and candidates prepare for the exam as it will determine your fate in the military. Fortunately, I fared well on the exam and was able to select the military specialty I desired.
Everyone who wants a language position is required to take the DLAB. I would say it is equivalent to the LSAT as a predictor of how well candidates will do in Law School. The grade is a predictor of how well one will successfully complete a language program. The higher the school, the higher the category of language one can study. I believe the LSAT has better statistics behind their findings compared to that of the DLAB but it is the DOD standard. I went in a secured room of only 4 candidates and I was the only one that achieved a score high enough to attend DLIFLC. Grant it, it was only high enough for a category 1 (97 raw score) language but it was enough to make everyone think I was a genius. Lol. The second time I took the test in order to study Arabic, I got only a 37 but successfully completed that Arabic program without any problems.
With a school option that I just wasn’t fond of, I needed a way out. I recall the recruiter asking to me to make a spontaneous decision about my choice to enlist in the United States Army. He said “This is not a truck driver position; we need you to make your decision now!” I could not get a hold of Jon or other friends to see what they thought. So, without another thought, I made the decision that would change my life for the best. The military is not for everyone but I think that everyone can benefit from its teachings of discipline, morality, and strength that is lacking in some parts of society. I am more focused than ever and I am honored to be a part of a distinguished group of Americans.