More seniors to join military after high school

Barely three months before graduation, nearly a hundred senior students from the three biggest public high schools on island have already made up their minds to join the U.S. military for the additional income and to be more independent and reliant.

Based on a survey conducted by the Northern Marianas College during its two-day Start Smart seminar that ended yesterday, a total of 98 graduating students said they plan to join the military. This is 24 percent of the total number of respondents.

Leo Pangelinan, NMC program manager for the College Access Challenge Project, disclosed that 61 of them are from Marianas High School while 37 are seniors from Kagman High and Saipan Southern High.

The poll, which had about 400 student respondents, also showed a total of 189 students who want to further their studies at NMC, a majority of whom have already applied for the Fall 2010 semester.

“It looks like going to the military is the second top choice of our seniors of today,” he told Saipan Tribune yesterday.

He admitted this is a slight cause of concern for the college, which encourages all senior students to pursue college after high school.

However, with the present economic situation, the students’ decision is understandable, Pangelinan said.

“For many students, college probably would be the best choice after high school…but at the same time, we understand the reality and decisions made to first join the military is understandable. With the pressure they feel from their families to bring in more income, the military seems to be the quickest and most viable option for them,” he said.

Pangelinan said the result was also due to the amount of resources the military has poured into its recruitment efforts, not only on the island but the entire Pacific region.

“There’s an intensive recruitment and admittedly, they’re offering financial aids and assistance for eligible and deserving students,” he said.

Of the nearly 200 students from Kagman and Saipan Southern High who participated in the seminar, 57 said they are going to the University of Guam; 22 will go to the University of Hawaii; and a few plan to take courses from international schools abroad.

The survey results also indicated that 16 seniors will immediately seek employment after graduation while 4 students say they will take a vacation.

To encourage more seniors to enroll at the college in the Fall semester, Pangelinan said NMC will immediately follow up on the students’ applications and processing.

Yesterday, NMC presented participants with various financial assistance programs they can access in going to NMC.

A senior ROTC cadet also spoke to the crowd.

‘22% join military in SY’08’

Based on Public School System records for school year 2007-2008, about 21 percent or 131 public school seniors joined the U.S. military upon graduation, while 44 percent opted to go to college. There were 595 graduates in the last school year.

The same records showed that 16 percent of the graduates immediately sought employment while 21 percent were undecided.

At MHS, Saipan Tribune learned that 106 graduates enrolled in college; 37 joined the military.

At Saipan Southern High, 81 enrolled in college and 53 joined the military, while Kagman High recorded 25 who enrolled in college and 23 joined the military.

At Tinian High School, 11 joined the military; Rota High School had six.

Pangelinan said that based on workshop’s “good turnout,” the college is projecting an increase in its enrollment in Fall 2010.

According to Tee Abraham, dean of Community Management Services, the college usually takes in 20 percent of the total high school graduates on the island.

NMC officials said that for NMC Spring 2009 enrollment, 151 are new students; it recorded 135 new students in 2008.