Every young American male coming of age in the 50’s and 60’s had a major life-affecting decision to make at about age 18. 
What to do about the Draft??   
In essence he had few legal choices.  You either got drafted, served your two years in the Army and got discharged.  Or you could go the National Guard route and serve 6 months but then serve several  years in the reserves.  ( called the 6 month- rest of your life plan).   Or, if you were college bound you could join an officer training program ROTC. And try to earn a commission as an officer on graduation. Those programs had various terms of service. I’m sure there were other options but none I recall. . 
I was already a Freshman at Queens College, part of the NYC City College system. (a super deal).  In essence, it was free.  I paid $12 per semester plus books.  There were 5 such colleges in the city. Brooklyn College, Hunter College ( for girls in 1957). Cooper Union (for engineers), City College of New York ( CCNY). And Queens. All were free with the catch that you needed a 90 average in high school to get accepted and you needed to keep grades above C to stay in. ( academically tough).
I had done nothing about the impending draft, other than register, as required by law at 18. 
One day a good friend and I were chatting outside on the campus.  Across the way on an open field we saw some young men in uniform practicing marching with rifles. “What’s that all about?” I asked.  He said “That’s ROTC”.  You can sign up for that course and if you stay in it for 4 years you get a commission as a 2nd Lt in the Air Force when you graduate”.
For a kid who was squeezin the nickel so hard the Indian was riding the buffalo, that sounded like a guaranteed job and a way to beat getting drafted as a private, after busting his butt to graduate from college. 
We both signed up for Air Science the codeword for Air Force ROTC ( Reserve Officer Training Corps). My friend dropped out in a month. I stayed in 30 years. A big impact on this scruffy New Yawker.