1. 13
   17
2. 27

You must be at least 17 years old to start down the path to officerhood in the U.S. military. Not everyone will see their goal through to the end.

1. Matchmakers
   Managers
2. Presidents

Enlisted soldiers do most of the grunt work. Officers, on the other hand, are the managers, making key decisions that make the military operate (hopefully) smoothly.

1. AWOL
   ROTC
2. GRONK

The Reserve Officers Training Corps, or ROTC, is a prominent program in American universities. Students learn valuable officer skills in exchange for tuition fees and the souls of their first-born children, but we probably made up that last part.

1. 18 months
   4 years
2. 2 tours

If you begin ROTC when you enter a university, once you complete your four-year degree, you will not only graduate … you'll also be an officer. A four-star general, even!

1. 1
   4
2. 18

There are four paths toward becoming an officer. Each path offers a very different way to the end goal, but they all require years of sacrifice and dedication.

1. You sleep late and no one tells you what to do.
   The service is your full-time job.
2. You're living in Afghanistan.

Active duty officers make the service their full-time job. They may be deployed around the world, wherever duty calls.

1. True
2. False

A four-year college degree is the one truly critical component to becoming an officer. So if you hate school, maybe you should really work on your salute instead.

1. Almost zero
   It depends.
2. You can bribe your way out of it, anyway.

Deployment is a great unknown for all service personnel. The geopolitical climate can change at any moment, transforming relative peace into full-blown war in a matter of days.

1. True
2. False

In the Active Reserve, you're allowed to pursue your normal professional life, so you can choose your place of residence. That's not true of other all officers, who are subject to the whims of their commanders.

1. Ground Zero
   West Point
2. Pentagon

The U.S. Military Academy, located at West Point, New York, is often just called "West Point." It's a college that offers four-year degrees along with officer training, and it's very, very tough to be accepted.

1. Bribery
   Threats
2. Nominations from politicians

West Point admissions are insanely competitive. Many applicants rely on nominations and letters of recommendation from well-placed politicians.

1. 2
   12
2. 98

The Officer Candidate School is typically a 12-week course. Once complete, you'll be an Army second lieutenant.

1. A four-year college degree
   Walmart greeter experience
2. A minimum of three kills

You might complete the OCS, but you won't actually be an officer until your four-year degree is complete … and that degree must come from an accredited school.

1. education
   substance use
2. kill ratio

For officers, education is paramount. Educational background almost always guides the direction that he or she takes through the military.

1. Your schooling is almost free.
   Fun hazing parties
2. Machine guns

Yes, it's very tough to get admitted to military academies. But once you make it, the government pays for almost all of your schooling, meaning the most important education of your life is free.

1. Higher than normal
   Lower than normal
2. They work for peanuts.

Army salaries are generous, and when you consider that the Army pays for most of your living expenses, you come out way ahead, particularly if you're a senior officer.

1. "Doughnuts and Coffee Officer"
   "Direct Commission Officer"
2. "Dumb and Crazy Officers"

A DCO is direct commission officer, an officer who is a civilian with advanced professional skills that the military really needs. DCOs are required to take some officer training courses to become full members of the military.

1. Mold remediation
   Law
2. Janitorial

Background in certain fields may make you eligible for the direct commission path. But you need skills in high-demand areas, like medicine, technology or law.

1. True
2. False

It's not as common as the other paths, but yes, some enlisted personnel do make the transition into officers.

1. Fraternity
   Sorority
2. Advanced

The ROTC Basic Course is made up of students in their first two years of college. Certain selected students can then move on the Advanced Course, where they receive uniforms and prepare for the military in earnest.

1. one year
   six years
2. a decade

Most candidates arrive at this school with a bachelor's degree in hand. So this school rarely exceeds one year in duration.

1. "Nuclear Command Officer"
   "Nincompoop Officer"
2. "Non-Commissioned Officer"

High-ranking enlisted service members can advance to the point that they become NCOs -- Non-Commissioned Officers. They take additional courses to shore up their educational background.

1. True
2. False

Officer Training School runs the gamut of skills and responsibilities required of true officers. That means getting dirty, with a significant amount of field work and physical training.

1. 9 credits
   90 credits
2. 666 credits

If you're coming from the enlisted ranks, you need at least 90 college credits to apply for Officer Candidate School. As we mentioned, education is paramount when it comes to becoming an officer.

1. Top Gun University
   Officer Flyboy School
2. Officer Training School

In the Army, it's called Officer Candidate School. The Air Force equivalent is called Officer Training School.

1. 0
   1
2. 4

There are four phases to the Air Force's Officer Training School. Once you've completed the course, you'll have the skills to lead as a second lieutenant.

1. bribery
   political influence
2. technical skills

They are the enlisted personnel who accumulate vast specialty expertise that makes them invaluable to their units. They become warrant officers, renowned for their deep understanding of very technical subjects.

1. 17 weeks
   341 weeks
2. 12 days

OTS varies depending on the location and the service branch. It can last up to 17 weeks.

1. At graduation, you must run blindfolded through a minefield.
   After graduation, you must serve for a set time.
2. Once you get your degree, you report to the nearest war zone.

The ROTC program pays for a lot of your tuition and trains you to become an officer. But once you graduate, you're required to serve for a set time in the military.

1. Nuclear warfare strategy
   Combat training
2. Bomb building

In the Officer Training School, Phase Two teaches critical combat skills and leadership concepts, two very important elements in an actual ground fight.