It's a huge privilege to command Her Majesty's soldiers, and something that one can only do when young, so I went for it. Also, the leadership training and maturity that you gain from the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst are second to none in the world.
Thanks for the clarification Chris; my worst fear would have been you trading a few years in exchange for your university tuition. But seems like that wasn't the case.
Enjoy your journey, don't forget to keep hacking :-)