There is another, less obvious sign of the hard economic times currently gripping the country. Besides the slumping stocks, an unemployment rate of 7.2 percent and constant news of layoffs, there is another signal that the United States has entered a period of recession. Military enlistment rates are on the rise.

The year 2008 proved to be the strongest recruiting year in four years according to the pentagon. Retention rates, when soldiers re-enlist after their original tours of duty are complete, are also at their highest levels since 2004. The news comes just two years after a report was published in the New York Times that young officers were leaving active duty as soon as possible. Retention rates at the end of 2008 were twenty percent higher than they were four years ago.

What can account for the sudden change? “Clearly the slowdown in the economic situation is the cause for the increased enlistment” says Captain William Laase, Recruiting Operations Officer for Boston University’s ROTC program. “You have a guaranteed job for a period of time. An army contract lasts between 4 and 6 years, and in that time you would gain the knowledge and skills to find other jobs once you leave the military.”

In addition to increased military enrollment nationwide, here at Boston University, enrollment in the ROTC (Reserve Officers’ Training Corps) has also increased for the 2008-2009 school year. According to Captain Laase, enrollment in BU’s ROTC program has increased 8-10 percent over the last semester among freshman and sophomores. The reasons seem clear for struggling families sending their children to school. “Benefits include scholarship opportunities as well as a guaranteed job after you graduate. A cash stipend is also paid to you over your undergraduate years that can increase after 4 years, we also provide money for textbooks” says Captain Laase.

However, young cadets cannot seem to forget that there is a very real possibility that after leaving college, there is a very real chance that new officers will be deployed to war in either Iraq or Afghanistan. Patrick Farrell, a Boston University senior and ROTC member, always has that fact in the back of his mind. “The consideration of deployment always exists when a young man or woman enlists in the military or contracts in ROTC, but if you and your family decide the military is right for you than I would say the pros outweigh cons. Coming from a family of five and being the last to attend college, ROTC definitely eased the burden on my family.”