United States Military Academy West Point<\/a> and had planned on a lengthy career in the U.S. Army.<\/p>\n\n\n\nFate would have other plans, however, and after a few years and moves \u2014 from serving as an intelligence officer to branching out to artillery and ending his brief military tenure as a recruiter in Chicago, Illinois \u2014 Swies separated from the Army. Unbeknownst to him, it would be his first step toward vying for love as a member of \u201cBachelor Nation.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
After hanging up his uniform, Swies enrolled in the MBA program at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business and began preparing for his life, post-service. That\u2019s when his sister made the recommendation to go on \u201cThe Bachelorette.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMy sister was the one who nominated me,\u201d Swies told Military Times. \u201cMany people have been like, \u2018I didn\u2019t see you, you know, going on a reality TV show.\u2019 But at the end of the day, I thought it was a cool way to meet a girl.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This season was particularly novel for the fact that two women \u2014 Rachel Recchia and Gabby Windey \u2014 were both looking for love among the same pool of eligible bachelors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n