After the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in New York and Washington, D.C., military recruitment officers said they are seeing a mixed reaction from people interested in joining the armed forces.

Staff Sgt. Dan Jones, of the regional office of the U.S. Marine Corps in Pittsburgh, reported the numbers have increased in the regional office, which extends from State College to Sharon, Pa. and down into northern West Virginia. The Marine recruiting office in State College, 242 S. Fraser St., has seen a direct inflation of numbers, Sgt. Matt Swisher said.

There has been a 10 percent rise in normal recruitment, Swisher said.

These numbers come from both new enlistees and people with previous interest who had not yet made the decision to enlist, he added.

More people have been dropping into the office "on the spur of the moment" and "out of the blue" for information, Swisher said.

While Marine target numbers for the year remain the same, officers believe there might be an increase as military jobs are created as a result of crisis, Jones said. The U.S. Navy and Air Force, both in State College and around Pennsylvania, have not seen a change in their number of applicants, said Lt. Todd Johnson, from the U.S. Navy's regional recruiting office, 234 E. College Ave.

Navy officials noticed a rise in interest, as both civilians and veterans have expressed awareness of a possible need for recruits, Johnson said.

Not all departments of the armed forces, however, have seen the same reaction. The State College Army recruiting office, 228 W. College Ave., has felt the backlash of the tragedies. Applicants have been requesting that their applications be put "on hold," Sgt. Theodore Groholske said.

But the overall numbers have not gone down, he said. While the need for new recruits may or may not be necessary, none of the divisions have changed their recruitment techniques, said Staff Sgt. Eric Baldoz of State College's Air Force recruiting office, 315 S. Allen St. Groholske echoed Baldoz, stating "We're business as usual."