Military

Your best bet is to talk to a CF recruiter and watch their videos. Reading through your link and answering some questions... It doesn't matter what element you join you will go through the same 10 Week basic training as everyone else before going off to your trade specific training. The infantry is always hiring, the Navy is always hiring people into electronics, and the Air Force is off and on. Trade wise in the CF some are locked off and you won't be able to join the fact there are no openings. I believe Military Police is locked out right now, and I know the Air Force just took their lot of pilots for 2005. So my advise to you is talk to your recruiter and check out the link below. Read about all the trades, there used to be a trade finder quiz I don't know if it's still there though.

http://www.forces.gc.ca/site/careers/index_e.asp

Yeah go see a recuiter, he can brief you on all the specifics. If you want to get in as an officer, you'll need to have an university diploma in hand or on its way. I considered joining the Navy as (Maritime Surface and Sub-surface) officier... my training would have been right near your home, on CFB Esquimalt. Well more specifically i was going to go the military college for my studies, with summer vacation at esquimalt

Personally, I think the best choice if you want to go in as officer but do not yet have an university diploma is to go to the Royal Military College. Probably one of the best university in the country... great food too

If your recruiters are anything like our recruiters, take everything they say with a bucket of salt. They're salesmen. You'd be better off getting information from guys who've done it. In the end, I decided not to join the marines (talking to former marines being part of that decision).

LOL, if you go in as an officer, you won't be the guy doing the cleaning

what kind of knee problem do you have?

Of course, it can be an issue in the military.

Ouch. Wow i've got some knee problems as well, but not as bad as your sounds, and i'm pretty much forbidden from any type of running or jogging ( i'm only 25) which prevents me from any type of military service. I'm not really bumed about it either cause my frind from HS just got back after finishing his 4 years, and from the stories that i've heard the middle east is just a F'd up place to be, and that nobody that comes home every tells the truth because if they did, every person over there would have to be courtmarsheled. I had to tell him to stop after he told me how his 1st C.O got removed because he got 5 women pregnant including one of the woman in his unit, and what everyone suspect were a few minors.

So yeah count your busted knee as a blessing in disguise, i do.

Well with a problem like that, a lot of trades are out for sure. Don't even think about infantry or stuff like that. It's pretty serious problem and you wouldn't want that to happen in the field. Consulting your doctor first is a very good idea. Try to learn for him more specific details on what you can and cannot do.

all i can say is be careful when it comes to your knees. Medical science regarding those joints (or all joints for that matter) is still pretty much bear skins, and stone knives. We all depend on them everyday just to walk around, let alone jog or run so their value can not be understated, and yet they're pretty vunrable if you consdier how often people bust them in some way.

Anyway if i were you'd i'd just be greatful that i could walk around. But see what you doctor says.

Does this mean all military is out? i know some dont require fighting but all have to go through bootcamp.

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You may or may not make it through "bootcamp" (keep in mind I did reservist training so it'll be harder for you as a reg force guy)

Bootcamp isn't as hardcore as movies make it to be. It'snot a hell week really (Hell comes on the final EXs of the later courses). The kind of pain you endure in training isn't really shock pain like getting hit by someone. It's mostly long term and over an hour of humping with a big ruck on your back kinda throbbing pain. You won't be doing advanced infantry attack techniques or even basic ones. you'll learn field craft and basic weapons skills. No application so if you play it safe you should be ok. Your knee seems to fall out when you put intense shock on it. Places you may have problems are extreme PT (happens a few times during training as punishment), Rough Terrain marches and obstacle courses. Don't drag ass and fall on a rock or something you'll be ok. I wouldn't recommend it with that bum knee of yours but you may make it through training.

Remember... it's a forum. Don't give it too much credit

All I'm saying is doing an army course with a bum knee to begin with would limit your career progression substantially even IF you managed to pass your basic. It's a hard cold reality but to advance you'd have to go through leadership courses which are heavily physical. Really, you're knee is grounds for an application rejection and the only way you could get in is to lie about it's severity.

At the end of my infantry course, I had a second knee injury shortly after my first one finally healed up. It was agony. But I had a 2 days before my final exercise so the medic doing the exam closed off our cubicle and told me real quietly "I'm going to give you the standard knee injury test. If you admit to having pain during any pert of the exam I will be forced to take you off the course and you'll have to come back and do it all over again next year. So the choice is yours." He put my knee through seceral different bends and twists and every shot of pain I winced and said "feels fine". I did my 3 day final ex limping and cussing at the intense pain but got through my course. I got lucky since no real permanent damage (to my knowledge) was sustained but I know a lot of guys who are stuck at corporal, and worse yet, can't do the things they love because of exactly what I did and what you are proposing to do.

Think long and hard about what's more important to you because given your current knee condition you may suffer irreperable damage to your knee and not only will you not be in the army, you won't play hokcey, run a marathon or do much of anything physically intense afterwards. It sucks but you need to consider these things before jumping head first into things.

It sounds to me like your asking someone to just pat you on the back and say "You'll be fine! Go ahead you have my blessing". That's fine. But I"m telling you now the people on these forums are level headed and reasonable people who tend to weigh consequences versus benefit. Unfortunately, you won't find what you're looking for here.