Are college students drafted? (Answered 2024)

The US is a country that has always been strong with its military requirements. Imagine if your country is around a war you may want to know about your service status. It is extremely important when you are a college student. As a college student you must want to know are college students drafted or not. Thus here I will help you to know more about drafting and give you more information related to it.

Quick Takeaways

• The draft is a program where males which are between the ages of 18 and 25 are filled with vacancies in the American military. 
• After the Vietnam War, the process of drafting was shut down and thus at present, you can not be drafted even if you are a college student.
• Following are some of the exemptions from being drafted-

1. Being a full-time student can temporarily postpone your draft eligibility.
2. If you have a medical condition will qualify you for the medical deferment.
3. If you have a religious or moral objection to the war.

However, you must read till the end so that you can easily understand if a college student can draft or not.

What does it mean to be drafted?

In the US there is a special contingency plan known as Draft or Conscription in the United States. With the help of this plan, they fulfilled the vacancies required in the American military at the time of war against the United States. In this program males which are between the age of 18 to 25 are filled with the vacancies. This plan has been used in the history of America six times. As it is a contingency plan this is the last resort for the United States to fulfill its military requirement. The only need to implement this plan is at the time of a serious war.

Are college students drafted?

You must remember that the draft system was opened after the war with Vietnam. After that, the US decided to implement all volunteer legislation which allows people to voluntarily register for the US military. It means that if you are interested in going to the military you will have to register by yourself. This means that college students cannot be drafted at the present time. However, you must remember that this policy was only for the time of emergency like war and it may again come if a new war takes place.

Why a student can not be drafted?

As mentioned above US stopped the draft system after the Vietnam War. However, you must remember that you will need to sign up for the Selective Service System which is mandatory for every male between the ages of 18 to 25. The selective service system is the organization that is responsible for registering the males who are eligible for the draft position. It uses the lottery system to know the order in which the males will get Drafted. So if in the future, the Draft Policy is again implemented, you may get drafted for it.  

Is a Selective service system mandatory?

As mentioned above when you will be of 18 years you will have to sign up for the Selective Service system. To register for it you will have 30 days for completing the process. If you were living in any other country then you will be getting one month after you arrive in the country. An important thing that you must remember is that if you have not registered for The Selective Service system then getting approval for the financial aid application is very less.

Although if you have received the approval for your financial aid it can be pulled out at any time later on. Do remember that registering for SSS does not mean that you will be required to be appointed for the draft position. You will only be eligible for a draft if it is implemented at the time of any war.

Are there any Exemptions and Deferments from being Draft?

Yes, you may get some of the exemptions that may be applied to you as a college student. Following are the situations that are allowed from the exemptions of being drafted-

• Being a full-time student can temporarily postpone your draft eligibility.
• If you have a medical condition will qualify you for the medical deferment.
• If you have a religious or moral objection to the war.

However, always remember that whether you will be getting the exemption or not will depend upon the selective service system. You will need to contact the local service system office or visit the official service system website.

What happens if a college student gets Drafted?

If you are getting drafted while in the school you may have to leave it and report for the military service. You are likely to be getting a specific period known as a grace period. In this period you will have to finish all the ongoing exams and projects before you report for duty. However, remember that The Selective Service system is not eligible to pay your tuition as well as other expenses like rent. 

What are the benefits of being drafted?

The following are the benefits of being drafted-

The first benefit that you get from being drafted is that you will be getting a GI Bill that will help you provide financial assistance to help pay for your education including the books and the tuition fees.

As You are drafted at the time of college, you will be receiving training and skill development in the military. These skills will help you in adding up value to your future career if you select to go into military service. These skills may include discipline, time management, etc. 

You may also be eligible for health care in which you will be getting life insurance and Home loans easily.

When you are working with the military you will be getting a lot of opportunities like law enforcement and government services to work with.

Conclusion

In the US there was a special process known as Drafted. Drafted was the way to fill the vacancies which are required in the military. With it, males who were between 18 to 25 years are taken to fill the vacancy. However, after the Vietnam War, this process ended and thus you can not be drafted as a college student. But, still, you have to register with the special service system so that if in the future Draft system is again used then they can draft you.