Future Navy Intelligence Officer to Get Master’s Degree at Age 19

At the age when most college students are wrapping up their freshman year, Avery Cloutier is finishing a master’s degree and setting his sights on something bigger: the U.S. Navy. 

Cloutier, who has already attended six colleges, isn’t ready to leave studying behind. After the 19-year-old University of Michigan student graduates with a Master of Applied Data Science degree this spring, he plans to attend Officer Candidate School (OCS), pursuing his dream of becoming a Navy intelligence officer. 

“I may be the youngest to ever receive an intel slot,” Cloutier told Military.com. 

Coming from a military family, Cloutier always considered the Navy, but wanted something to match his extensive educational background. At Michigan, he watched plenty of classmates pursue careers in consulting, banking and big tech, but he yearned for a less conventional path. 

“All of those are excellent, but I think it came down to narrowing it to what I really wanted to do instead of following the more conventional career path out of grad school,” Cloutier said. 

When he attends OCS in Rhode Island, Cloutier will be among rare company. 

“I would have to verify this, but I don’t think anyone from my master’s program has ever joined the military,” Cloutier said. “The people in my program were definitely surprised when I told them I’m joining the Navy, but again it comes down to not being afraid to take the unconventional path in my career and I think that carries over from not being afraid of taking that unconventional experience of graduating early.” 

College at 12 Years Old 

Homeschooled through childhood, Cloutier said he always had a desire to learn and finish school quickly. 

He started earning college credits at age 12 with the College-Level Examination Program (CLEP), where he was allowed to receive credits through standardized tests, rather than attending classes. 

“Essentially, I just wanted to progress through my classes faster, so it was a self-motivated thing to get that done,” Cloutier said. “About a year after passing my first college courses, I passed college-level biology, so that was kind of the sticking point that I would be able to handle college coursework. It just came from the place of wanting to accelerate. There are a lot of benefits to doing that; it saves a lot of money in college. I was self-paid through grad school, so being able to start my career a little early helped me build a cushion to be able to pay off any debt that I accrue.” 

Cloutier’s long and winding road through college led him to Columbia College (Missouri), Grand Rapids Community College (Michigan), Grand Canyon University (Arizona) and Liberty University (Virginia), where he obtained a bachelor’s degree in 2024, still only 17 years old. 

“I was a remote learner until I was 17, basically for safety reasons of having a kid that young on a college campus. One of the struggles I had was having no network around me. For the first five years of school, I was pretty much unknown to my classmates. It was only the last two years that I had more exposure to the students in my classes,” Cloutier said. “Most people did not know my age when I was a senior in undergrad, and I definitely surprised some people when they found out. But I was always treated very well; I never received any special bias because of my age. Overall, the reactions I’ve gotten have been very positive, and it’s helped me in my career.” 

Cloutier took a few graduate courses through the University of Oklahoma before transferring to Michigan. 

The Navy and Beyond 

Soon after turning 18, Cloutier started a job with an analytics consulting company and found his calling. 

“I’ve always really loved the information science field, but I didn’t actually discover that until I actually started working in it,” Cloutier said. “With applied data science, having the ability to build a technical skill set and having it match with the information school at Michigan, I think, was an excellent match.” 

Having worked full-time through graduate school, Cloutier should be ready to handle the rigors of OCS and the Navy.  

“I really enjoy challenges,” Cloutier said. “To graduate from college early, you have to enjoy a challenge, so the Navy carries over to that. The reason I chose intel, specifically, is because it’s the closest in my mind to the information science field I already work in. I’m also hoping my corporate experience will bring some extra value to the Navy and help me make an impact in ways that aren’t normally seen.” 

Charlie Rose, who helped recruit the bright young student to the Navy, said Cloutier possesses an ambitiousness and drive that could make him a valued leader in the military.  

“If this is what you want to do, I’m willing to help you get there because I can see he’s motivated and he wants to tackle that,” Rose recently told MLive.com. “He’s obviously a natural leader that people are naturally going to follow and believe in him at the same time.” 

No matter where the Navy takes him, Cloutier wants to embark on a fulfilling journey that will make a difference. 

“I really want to work in a career that has an impact and is good for society, that’s what I was always told when I was a kid, ‘You can pick whatever career you want, but you'd better pick something that helps the world.’ That really had an effect on me,” Cloutier said. “Any sort of challenge I’ve done has really sort of helped me get to wake up to a career that I’m excited to everyday. That’s why I’m glad I’ve gone through this path.”