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1810s as SSES DIVOs have been a thing for a long time, typically as a second tour after qualifying at a large NIOC. I personally think IPs should do it the same - not fair to send a first-tour to sea to play SWO without having a solid background in their job field first. Unfortunately non-SWOs...

Should have been a cryppie ?

Yeah, I actually think it’s more beneficial to have a broader perspective and then learn the technical stuff in the Navy. I’ve met a fair amount of extremely intelligent, tech savvy CWs who are crappy officers because they can’t communicate or aren’t interested in leading sailors or playing...

With so much time in front of you, I’d recommend studying what interests you rather than putting all your eggs in one basket. What you want in 4-5 years may change from now. Generally, CW prefers STEM degrees like the ones you listed, but officers are leaders/managers, not technical specialists...

I love it. Day-to-day is hard to say because it depends where you’re stationed and we have a pretty wide range of things we can do. Typically, we do our first tours at a large NSA site, then go to a ship/Fly in EP-3s/subs/NSW, then either go to NPS for a masters or possibly back to NSA to do a...

This. To the OP - ship life can be miserable. It can also be rewarding and exciting. As long as you’re comfortable with that and can stay positive and motivated when things get tough, go for it.

Yes, for the most part. If you strictly want to be a CWO or IP officer, academy or ROTC are bad choices. They are allowing some graduates to commission into those job designators, but it’s a tiny percentage. Lateral transfer isn’t guaranteed. If you just want to be in the Navy and are okay...

I had the same issue - unless things have changed, you shouldn't need a waiver as long as it was "childhood asthma" (if I remember correctly this means you didn't have it after 13 y/o). To demonstrate I didn't have it anymore, I went to my local doctor for a spirometry exam where you blow into a...

What, specifically, are you referring to in terms of inconsistency? Also not sure what you mean by fragmentation. Anecdotally I've heard about some differences in the qual process across the big NIOCs but by and large I think we're holding a decent standard, at least at the big four commands...

This is interesting - anyone know if this is something new or just a weird way of wording? Would that basically mean you apply for all IWC designators (with the exclusion of CWE I imagine) and then get thrown into one based on availability?

They could just read the news. https://features.propublica.org/navy-accidents/uss-fitzgerald-destroyer-crash-crystal/ https://features.propublica.org/navy-accidents/us-navy-crashes-japan-cause-mccain/ https://assets.documentcloud.org/documents/3934451/Navy-Report-on-USS-Fitzgerald.pdf...

I think this is a bigger deal than the Navy wants to recognize. The experience @Uncle Fester had is still true today - JOs (especially DHs) are so overwhelmed with day-to-day tasking that becoming truly proficient in ship driving and tactics is nearly impossible. I think that finding a way to...

Maybe not for pilots, but for rates/designators that serve in NSW commands, PFA scores play heavily into screening for those orders.

This sounds like a third class trying to justify doing the bare minimum. If you would accept this justification from one of your Sailors for doing just enough to get by without making any meaningful contribution, we'll have to agree to disagree.

Yikes, just looked at it now. I knew our community was having a lot of manning issues because prior-enlisted guys/girls would punch out at 20, leaving us really weak at the O-4 and O-5 levels, but I didn't realize they restricted the OCS eligibility so severely.

...and that precluded you from applying CW? I went to OCS with guys who'd been in 10+.

Interesting - I'm not an expert on current requirements nor what makes someone competitive these days, but in terms of the actual job, IP is all comms and computer networks, whereas CW much less so. I've found that this is sometimes poorly sold by ORs, who are made up of non-IWC designators and...

Out of curiosity, why have a few of you applied Intel and IP but not CW? Intel and CW are much more closely related than Intel and IP; I'm interested if this is a conscious choice or it's due to a limited understanding of what each designator does (not a criticism - I barely knew what I was...

I think it cheapens the idea of service. I'm not saying you have to do 20, or even a day over your initial commitment, but if you join the military there should be some level of sacrifice in the interest of the country. I understand everyone has different reasons for joining and some people get...

A flawed system doesn't excuse a person who is taking advantage of it. Just because it's possible to leech off the government doesn't mean it should be celebrated or that the individual isn't responsible for their choice. I'm not naive to the fact that it happens and sometimes even benefits the...

Can't blame him - padding your resume with Navy reserve* seems to be all the rage lately. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pete_Buttigieg...

One thing this story brings to life is the way interpersonal relationships and petty disputes can mean life or death in a crisis. I think that surface navy 'get it done' culture is accurately depicted, which is something I admire. But what some overlook is how being headstrong, aggressive, and...

Correct - my bad, I missed your original post with the Stephenson article and only saw the Butera one subsequently posted. I was just pointing out that there is diversity of opinion within the IWC and they're (we're) making a realistic effort towards defining what our role should be, not that...

Why is the IW pin a joke? Is the EDO pin is a joke? The FMF pin? Seabees have one, but I'd be interested to hear which warfare domain they control. And yet there's no hostility towards any of them (and many, many others) having pins. I agree an IW officer shouldn't command a CSG, but similarly...

Oh god here we go again... Sorry, but I agree this is complete horseshit. Most SWOs and aviators do not understand IW in the way an IW-qualified officer does, yet for some reason think they would be entitled to earning our pin without lateral transferring. I know it feels cathartic to bash the...

Honest question: what is the appeal of commissioning directly into the reserves without any prior service? To me the Navy is an all-or-nothing kind of deal - you're either owned by them and put up with mountains of BS, long hours, and stress in order to do some cool shit every now and then and...

I would argue that, if anything, the admin that DESRON buries DDGs in to provide updates, prepare for inspections, random taskers, etc. doesn't leave time to get truly proficient in your job and watch station, especially when added on top of the daily avalanche of personnel, training, and...

CWE is actually a great example of an epic failure by the Navy to create "highly technical roles" for Officers. A Naval Officer is a generalist who leads enlisted technical specialists, outside of LDOs and perhaps aviators. So, without any idea how to actually employ 1840s over the course of a...

Concur - and conversely, I've met reservists with a very impressive resume and civilian job who are crappy Officers because they think they already know everything. Being an Ensign is a humbling experience; prior experience can add a lot of value and perspective, but it doesn't predetermine success.

Concur - Corry Station is where a large majority of Cryptologic enlisted and Officer schools are. There are also IT and IP schools, but I'm not aware of any Intel (IS/1830) presence there. Information Warriors is a great place to start if interested in the 1810 community.

Aww, and we were all geared up to say 'told you so' after your first 'being enlisted sucks' post. But seriously, good choice - take the time to put together a good package. Guys with non-Navy life experience have a lot to add to a wardroom.

As said in a few previous posts - you need to research different jobs and be frank with yourself about what your strengths are and what you'd enjoy. All Naval Officers 'lead,' whether they're URL, RL or Staff Corps, but there are HUGE differences among communities. I would spend less time...

Don't mean to be harsh, but get used to being uncomfortable. You can pack all the new socks you want but if you're already looking for crutches, you're going to have a rough time. I recommend focusing on what you know you'll need to do to be successful - memorizing and working out. By the time...

I'm sure I'm not the first to ask - but is it possible to have the IW pin added? I earned it AUG2015 at NIOC Maryland. Thank you!

To elaborate on what @HAL Pilot posted... here are a few reasons they're telling you this: - You'll be treated as free labor and spend a large amount of time doing menial tasks that have nothing to do with your rate. If you go to a ship, you'll have to spend several months as a Food Service...

Talk to your command's Training Officer.

Their point remains the same. The N2 shop in Djibouti is filled with about a hundred intel reservists doing the same types of jobs as their counterparts in a CSG. Only they get to stop work at 1600, have a beer, and don't have to stand watch. Side note: when I was in DJ the person whose sole...

There is no difference between enlisted and officers when adjudicating the same level of clearance. When an individual (enlisted, officer, civilian) is put in for a clearance, they are investigated based on the clearance level (SECRET, TOP SECRET, etc.) no matter what their rank or status is...

Make sure you're 100% committed to any community you're applying to transfer in to. Being a SWO, SUPPO, or whatever else will most likely be the most difficult job you've ever had and you'll be working alongside people who had to fight tooth and nail to get there. I've met too many jaded...

This is essentially what the Cryptologic Warfare community does, sending most new officers to NIOCs to learn their trade, get qualified, then get to the fleet with a baseline level of specialized knowledge. My qual (more the 1810 pre-requisite than the pin) was tough, which had a lot to do with...

Have fun with that...

I just read through this thread for the first time and, even though most of it is few years old, everything (at least about DDGs) rings true today. It's a tough first tour no matter where you go (although being in Hawaii, for example, isn't so bad), but you get exposure to nearly every aspect of...

The DDG I'm currently on (AC CWO) has an 1820 COMMO who is solid. I'm honestly not sure why COMMO isn't a dedicated IP billet on CRUDES, similar to the way IWO is a dedicated 1810 billet.

I understand where you're coming from, but I was responding to another post, not bragging or belittling. My point was that we don't sit just around SCIFs all day while 1830s are in on operations; I'm not saying we are any MORE operational - or special, for that matter - than any one else. If...

I mean, yes and no - our career path is very flexible, which allows for us to either do multiple operational tours or just knock out a single 2-year wicket and then stay shoreside the rest of our career (VADM Tighe for example). That said, our operational tours directly support operations and...

Clearly we're all biased towards our own communities, but to imply 1810s are not involved in operations is not accurate. Also, on a side note - I think the fact that an 1830 really believes that is a problem, a large part of which is our (1810s') fault. The 1810 community is bad at explaining...

All this post says is that the selection progress worked in this case. Some of the best leaders I know got 'online degrees,' and I'd take them any day of the week over someone fluent in Japanese who goes off on a whiny rant any time he/she doesn't get what they want.

I don't think it's for lack of liking the job, just a lot of people that hit 20 and decide it's time for a more stable, family-friendly lifestyle. With the availability civilian intel agency billets, it's not too difficult to time it so your last tour sets you up for a well-paying civilian job...