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NEWS Navy to end ending all enlisted ratings!

nittany03

Recovering NFO. Herder of Programmers.
pilot
None
Super Moderator
Contributor
@Uncle Fester help me understand what it fixes. I've read the press release and message traffic, several times. I'm still wondering what problem this solution address. The career flexibility thing is a stretch because at the end of the day a Sailor is going to get detailed IAW needs of Navy - see also Lemoore. The better translation to civilian employment thing is a stretch as well. Is this an admission that TAPS, GPS, or whatever we're calling it these days doesn't work? Help me understand.
If this was our solution to vet hiring and making TAPS class useful . . . we're really fucked.
 

Pags

N/A
pilot
I still don't know why ratings needed to go away to achieve any of the goals here. Why does telling my Sailors that they're now B600s instead of Intelligence Specialists help them out with civilian employment? Why not just allow people to earn NECs outside their rate if the goal is to let them expand their skill sets and provide greater flexibility in detailing? Why are we taking away a tradition that's as old as the Navy? I'm sure there are reasons for all of this, but no one seems to know what they are.
What's the difference between a rating and a NOS title? How are these at all different?
 

BigRed389

Registered User
None
Yeah plenty willing to try to understand how ending rates will help.

Because combining the surprise rollout of a major change bucking tradition with vague and unconvincing descriptions of how/what things will improve is what's hurting the concept.

Civ employment? You can give civilian equivalent certs...that's what the civ market will care about.
NOSs...we already have numerical tracking of skills with NECs.
If you want greater cross pollination of skills, what does opening up NECs outside of rates not do that breaking the rating system entirely provide?
How does this improve Fit/Fill and unit manning?

Maybe this was the only way...but we did not get answers to what should be pretty basic questions.
 

exNavyOffRec

Well-Known Member
TAPS/GPS doesn't work?!?!

If you are talking about resume writing and things associated with getting a job no it doesn't, I was a huge proponent of TAP classes until I had a job in HR, the past 4 years have been an eye opener, TAP is great for benefit explanations and such, but resume's nope.

I have reviewed resume's from those out after 4 to those who retired with over 20, resume's from enlisted and officer, and the majority who were recently out sucked!

What the services need to do is have HR people from different companies come in and explain what they look for. I have had some really eye opening discussions with some of my peers that are at major companies.
 
D

Deleted member 24525

Guest
I was involved with some of this process. There's a lot of sensible reasons behind the changes, and as valuable as tradition is, the rating system was causing a lot of problems. This is kind of a cut-the-knot solution, but it needed doing.

I am glad SECNAV decided to keep "Seaman" in use. We couldn't come up with an alternative that didn't sound dumb.

Do you realize how dumb this is?
An attempt to be "gender neutral" and you refer to women sailors as seaman?
I swear to Christ I thought it was the onion.
 

Gatordev

Well-Known Member
pilot
Site Admin
Contributor
My favorite email distro, exactly one day after the roll-out: "All, keep using Ratings in the drop down in NAVFIT until it gets updated." It's almost as if we could have rolled this out slower and been more prepared...
 

Hair Warrior

Well-Known Member
Contributor
What's the difference between a rating and a NOS title? How are these at all different?
Well, can you can hold more than one NOS simultaneously? (Unclear to me.)

Ex.: A sailor joins the Navy already fluent in a native language other than English. Let's assume it's an in-demand language. If he or she earns a DLPT of 4/4/4+, will the NOS system allow him or her to be a linguist (formerly CTI) for that language?
 

Pags

N/A
pilot
If you are talking about resume writing and things associated with getting a job no it doesn't, I was a huge proponent of TAP classes until I had a job in HR, the past 4 years have been an eye opener, TAP is great for benefit explanations and such, but resume's nope.

I have reviewed resume's from those out after 4 to those who retired with over 20, resume's from enlisted and officer, and the majority who were recently out sucked!

What the services need to do is have HR people from different companies come in and explain what they look for. I have had some really eye opening discussions with some of my peers that are at major companies.
There may have been some sarcasm in my post :)

When I was going through TAPS my wife was getting her PhD in english and I was working with her and my father-in-law, a corporate VP, on my resume. I ended up running portions of the resume class in TAPS.
 

Jim123

DD-214 in hand and I'm gonna party like it's 1998
pilot
*TAP

There is no "S."

... but it changed to TGPS to sound more hip/relevant/look slick on powerpoint title slide (Transition Assistance Program, Transition Goals Plans Success).
 

DanMa1156

Is it baseball season yet?
pilot
Contributor
I wonder if there was ever an SH1 Thot...

I wonder what this will do to rating exams, but I'm too lazy to read the source article. Oh well.

I'm not joking when I say there was a LS Chief in my squadron converted from SK, who, in his/her junior days was under the impression that every pen, pad, pencil, etc. belonged to "SK1 Illcraft" and could not get over how much stuff belonged to him.

When it hits you, you won't believe me. I'm not joking about this.
 

Pags

N/A
pilot
Well, can you can hold more than one NOS simultaneously? (Unclear to me.)

Ex.: A sailor joins the Navy already fluent in a native language other than English. Let's assume it's an in-demand language. If he or she earns a DLPT of 4/4/4+, will the NOS system allow him or her to be a linguist (formerly CTI) for that language?
No clue. Even if you could I doubt it would end up working out that way due to quals, parachiolism, etc. under the old system you could transfer rates, etc but there was risk in that if you went from being an AD to a BC or a MN that you'd fall behind because you wouldn't have the experience that a "native born" BC or MN would have. Same as how a helo guy CAN become a jet driver. There are all sorts of official ways to allow this to happen but you end up as a marked man. Your old community hates you because you're a traitor and your new community doesn't know what to do with you because you're a senior unqualified guy.
 

robav8r

Well-Known Member
None
Contributor
Is it really that big of a deal? Everyone keeps their same rank (and pay) and it's not like their job is going away.
Yeah, it is a big deal Pags. It's a big deal to those that have worn those rating badges, it gave them an identity and made them part of a community within the Navy. For me, wearing the Anti-Submarine Warfare rating badge was an honor and something I will always be proud of. I think for prior & current Sailors, they feel the same way.
 

Pags

N/A
pilot
Yeah, it is a big deal Pags. It's a big deal to those that have worn those rating badges, it gave them an identity and made them part of a community within the Navy. For me, wearing the Anti-Submarine Warfare rating badge was an honor and something I will always be proud of. I think for prior & current Sailors, they feel the same way.
So why can't the 1234 NOS, Helicopter Aircrew Tactical Sensor Operator (or whatever USN has decided to call Aicrewmen this week), still use and wear the rating badge? In that particular case they'll still get to wear wings because it's a warfare qualification (or whatever USN has decided to call them this week). I guess I'm missing the difference between "I'm an AW2, which means I'm a PO2 who's a helo rescue swimmer" and "I'm a PO2 with the rescue swimmer NOS". In both cases the Sailor still had the same job and wears the same wings.

From my time on the LHD it's not like it's any different in the USMC. They may call themselves LCPL, CPL, or Sgt but its also quickly apparent what their MOS is.

I never wore a rating badge so maybe I don't get it. But if they changed it from Naval Aviator to 1310, Naval aviator does it change the meaning of the work or the merit badge on your chest?
 

Hair Warrior

Well-Known Member
Contributor
After reading all the comments, I am going to call bullshit on the "Your civ resume will be better" rationale. The ratings system did not prevent you from writing about your expertise, leadership, and education on a resume in a way that relates your qualifications directly to the job description.

As a DoD contractor and hiring manager who sees 200+ resumes a year (and hired 51 last year), the biggest fault I see is the false belief that their one-size-fits-all resume is sufficient, and the veteran doesn't need/want to tailor it to the particular job vacancy. Sometimes this comes from spending a lot of time polishing a single resume, and upon thinking it's the "best version," not wanting to tinker with it further. That may be fine if you're applying for just one type of job (e.g. 747 mechanic), but not if you're trying to have multiple irons in the fire, as most job-seekers have to do in this job market.

There may be other, compelling reasons to end the ratings system, but better civ resumes is a hollow argument. There's no LRP preventing it today.
 
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