Junior Shelbi Corlett, who previously served in the U.S. National Guard, balances her life as a student and an RA at Manchester.
Photo provided by Shelbi Corlett
Shelbi Corlett Discusses Life as Student, National Guard Member
Ali Risner
Shelbi Corlett, a junior at Manchester and a part of the United States National Guard, finds ways to balance work every day with her busy schedule.
Many students around the world are a part of a branch of the US Army before they attend college. Corlett decided on the National Guard, which is the primary reserve military force in the states and federal government. Corlett is also an RA on campus and manages to run her floor smoothly without a hitch.
Corlett spoke about how being in the National Guard has helped her as an adult and how she can better herself in the future. “It’s really helpful to have other perspectives because it helps me to have well-rounded conversations,” she said.
Coming into college can be a difficult and stressful time for many, but having previous experience like the National Guard can help prepare a student physically and mentally for their new college experience. “I have to be able to budget my time well and make sure that I’m keeping myself fit in military sense and also keeping myself fit as a student and keeping up on my studies,” Corlett said.
Corlett was encouraging to students who might be thinking about the military. “If there are other students who are possibly considering joining, I would tell them to just do it because it’s not really an experience that you can take somebody else’s advice on,” she said.
She believes no one could understand what it is like to go through unless they have gone through it themselves. Corlett also stated that she now actually advocates for herself and never would let someone else tell her how to think or how to act, which has led her to become a confident leader.