Mercyhurst University Intelligence Program?

Hello, Intelligence forum, I am a Sophomore(Junior this Fall) in High School and I want to go into the Navy as an Intelligence officer. So, at the advice of my Sea Cadet commander, I started to look at colleges to apply for Spring 2013(I was told to apply in my Junior year). Along the way, I found many prospective colleges, but one in particular stuck out to me: Mercyhurst University, as it had a program offering a Major in Intelligence Studies. Now, I figured the college seemed like the perfect place, as this would get me a degree that in the field I wish to pursue.

Unfortunately, MU does not offer a Navy ROTC program, so this turned me off a little bit. However, there is a Navy Reserve Center, and, from what I've seen on this forum and real life, I could enlist in the Navy while I pursue my education and then become an Officer. Of course, A School would likely force me to miss my first semester, and then there is the possibility of deployment while in school. So that could be a hassle.

Now, I have a couple questions

First off, what do guys know about this program? Does the Navy endorse it? How much will it help me?

Second, how will NOT being in NROTC affect my chances of getting intel?

Third, what about the Naval Reserve? How much will it help me? Is it worth it?

Fourth, how many openings are there each year? It seemed like in another thread people were saying that 2013 only offered 10 slots, is this true every year?

Regards,
Clausewitz

I know of the school but nothing of the program. I’m skeptical about any major that ends with the word “Studies”. I was a History major and spook central offered me a job a while back. I’m sure that Navel Intelligence is looking for bright kids from all sorts of majors.

Is that the science of finding lint in a belly button?

Not lint silly.......WMDs

1. The program appears to have some repute, however I would expect nothing but perfection grade wise from your package in such a specific field as many I am sure haven't heard of it and it has the "studies" stigma (even if it isn't a valid stigma). I will also add that a degree in a more well-rounded field of study (such as Computer Science) will greatly benefit you for the Navy and beyond in the civilian sector.

2. It may in fact improve your chance, the mission of NROTC is to commission unrestricted line officers.

3. I'm going to say, having once been in your shoes, no. If you want to be an officer, apply to be an officer. Enlisting and becoming an officer, while a very great thing worth being proud of, is very difficult to do. I read and help write letters for STA-21 packages and it is definately not a free meal in terms of competition.

4. Intel is very selective because the size of that communnity allows it to be. Expect it to be a tight squeeze regardless of what your commissioning source is. The best bet that will not detour you into a community you don't want is OCS. Make PERFECT stats and apply apply apply.

NROTC does not produce intel officers generally speaking. Its purpose is to create unrestricted line officers (aviators, SWOs, sub guys, etc). Barring exceptional circumstances, you will not become an intel officer through NROTC. Check out the NROTC website for more info in terms of your career options. If you don't like those options and only want intel, OCS after college is probably a better fit for you.

If you're a sophomore now, yes, looking at colleges is a good thing, but you don't actually start applying for schools until the beginning of your senior year. Talk to your high school guidance counselor or whoever at your school helps out with colleges. Your Sea Cadet commander is a good resource, but people at your school are probably going to know more on the college admissions perspective.

And Brett Mercyhurst is a legitimate college, I had friends who went there (though they all transferred out of it), but in terms of academic quality, well.....

That is where I would have issue.

I went to a private university, I will probably be in debt to the day I die, but the academic quality couldn't be beat. Real doctors with field experience/success taking time out to teach, not research. If you are paying out the tailpipe and the quality is sub par, you may as well go State.

If you want to be an Intel officer you should look at a degree like Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Math, Physics, or something else technical, that is the direction they are going.

Or Powerpoint ranger. That's what I hear the intel guys do...

Mercyhurst costs about $9,000 per term, and I believe that there are generally 2 terms in a year, so that evens out to be about $24,000 a year when you include room and board. Which isn't too much more expensive than going to Truman, an instate school. So, I guess that would be about $96,000 for my entire education, and I figure I can pay that off with the pay I'll get from the Navy within a decent amount of time.

Of course, I don't know what constitutes 'crushing debt'.

What do you guys know about getting a degree in National Security Studies? Aside from the 'Studies' stigma. I'm also looking at IR and poli sci, but I am getting a lot of information about these degrees already.

You need to read my post, the majority of the people that have been selected for the Intel field are technical majors, NOT Political Science/International Relations/History/etc...... the direction of the IDC has changed in the past few years. The majors you are looking at lead to people becoming SWO's not IDC, not a slam on SWO's just calling it like it has been for several years.

Agree with some of what as been posted. I may be the first intel o to respond. From my fighting position can say that I have yet to encounter a stereo-typical intel officer. Selection is quite difficult. Seems like many active duty intel officers are lateral transfers or flight attrits. I'm highly suspicious of anyone whose first goal is to be an intel officer.

My advice is simple: attend the best college you can afford (without massive loans), complete a program that interests you, and get high grades. If you're really serious about becoming an intel officer, without lateral transfer from URL, complete a master degree or professional degree.

Regardless of the secondary/tertiary definitions of "intelligence", on a base level, I do get a chuckle out of hearing there are "intelligence" majors. Like you can "teach intelligence". Almost like the "aeronautical science" majors, where you major in being a pilot. If you suck at flying, you suck. Can't really "teach" a skill.

Yeah yeah, I know "intelligence" is a field, as is aviation. Still makes me smile.

Information Dominance Corps, they now hold all the boards together for all the designators that fall under the IDC umbrella

In my several years of recruiting we haven't had a single person selected that spoke any foreign language, early on there were a few History or Political Science with a minor in International Relations or some other field, but recently they have all been technical degrees, the exception was a person that started out in a tech major then switched, so he had calculus, physics, and some other tech courses.

The board is still going to pick some non tech degrees but the split will be slanted for tech, and when you look at the numbers most that apply are non tech, they are huge compared to tech, so tech degree will have a MUCH greater chance.

Yes, big change, the Intel officers I have worked with recently said their chances of getting selected now if they were applying were slim to none. The long term thoughts are that IP/IW/Intel will be interchangeable in the future, but I believe it was phrogdriverswife that said they were still having issues with that, everything is going the way of the computer.

I agree tech majors are the best at writing papers, but they should be able to use spellcheck, it won't get them all the way there but a good amount.

The numbers for IDC are low anyway, so they do get to pick and choose.

Really the USN could just recruit for 2 OCS designators, Pilot and Nuke, and those that don't cut it for aviation for some reason or Nuke for some reason could filter down to everything else.

Well, it is the IDC community so I would say so, well maybe not....... oddly enough I think that is what one of the Intel officers I worked said they did on deployment, that and finish their Master's