The closest I ever came to being a member of the Armed Forces was freshman year at MIT where taking ROTC was a requirement. We marched in uniform on Briggs Field or in the Armory. We had classes in military history and learned how to clean M1 rifles. I got to shoot an M1 once.
In my sophomore year I heard that you could get excused for flat feet so I went to the MIT infirmary. They said I didn't have flat feet, but my eyesight which required glasses would get me excused so I filled out a form and that was it.