Why do so many women join the military despite the ongoing wars? I think most women join for the same reasons men do: opportunity, desire to serve and education. In an ideal world, a soldier is a soldier and women bring nothing more than a body to fill a uniform, just like a man.

I therefore reject the idea that women somehow bring something that is more nurturing or kind or softer to the military by intent or by design. There are a number of things that the military offers that makes joining and staying in the military attractive for women and men alike. According to the Defense Department Advisory Committee on Women in the Services’s Annual Report for 2008, the number one reason women stayed in the military was their sense of job satisfaction and job performance. Other reasons for women to stay in the military included access to health care, education opportunities, a sense of purpose and being part of a team. The only reason these responses were singled out as female responses is because they were collected as part of a gender study. Men might have given the exact same responses. 

Education

The military’s eArmyU program provides 100% tuition at universities and colleges enrolled in the program. An enlisted soldier, regardless of rank, can have her entire college education paid for by the U.S. Army. Even with the high operations tempo of the last decade, soldiers are earning degrees at unprecedented rates. If soldiers are not able to attend college while on active duty, now they can access more educational benefits through the Post-9/11 GI Bill, which provides the single biggest boost to veterans since the original GI Bill allowed the Greatest Generation a chance at an education. There are no combat requirements for either the Post-9/11 GI Bill or the eArmyU program. All men and women who enlist are eligible. 

Health Care

Among soldiers, there are some well-known jokes about the military’s health care system. One of the most common is about Vitamin M — Motrin, which is used to treat everything from broken bones to tooth aches. But the availability of health care is something those in the military need not worry about. Going on sick call in the military can be a hassle, but a doctor is always there. To an outsider, it would be a huge a relief knowing that one isn’t responsible for any medical bills from visits to the doctor. 

Taking Pride in Work

In the Army, they say that if you don’t like your boss, you should just wait, because one of you will leave sooner or later. While moving to new positions can be difficult for civilians, military members often thrive in new environments, excel at facing new challenges, and continue to focus accomplishing the mission and taking care of soldiers. Soldiers take pride in what they do each and every day, and women take no more or less pride in their work than men do. 

Knowing that one can make a difference in a young soldier’s life would be an incredible experience for anyone. Soldiers, men and women, wear their uniform with pride and with the awareness that there are brothers and sisters in arms who have died wearing these colors. 

A Distinct Difference Between Female Soldiers and Male Soldiers

Many female soldiers, mothers or not, love the military life, and love serving their nation, just as many male soldiers do. So what is different about women soldiers’ lives in the military?

Women across all professions still shoulder the bulk of childcare responsibilities, and military life is no different. When female soldiers feel they are able to balance home and work life, their job satisfaction is high. When they are unable to achieve balance, job satisfaction is low. In an ideal world, all women would be able to balance home and work and that would include women in the military. Unfortunately, we do not live in an ideal world, and I can say with certainty that while women get into and stay in the military for the same reason that men do, women get out of the military for a more specifically female issue: the impact on their families. 

While struggles exist, once more, the ability to be part of the team, useful and empowered to make a difference, has counterbalances some of the issues for men and women in the military.  

Many women go through these struggles alone, without a partner to help make life-altering decisions. And whether they stay in the military, or they leave, depends on the answers they find within themselves in the middle of the night. 

Army life is not easy, and no one expects it to be. It is because of the challenges that accompany service that the pride instilled within is so hard won and held in such high regard. Women join the military for the same reasons as men, but often stay or go depending on the impact on their families. 

I would love to hear your thoughts on women in the military.  Were you, or someone you know, a female member of the armed forces?  

Until we speak again,
“The Inner Chick”