Confused about USCG vs USN and Pilot vs NFO; what would you do in my place?

[fusiongtx]

I am stuck in a sticky situation. I dont know what to do.

Im 19 year old freshman in college playing D1 vball. I was going to try to apply for OCS in the coast guard but after finding out that 30 or so out of 3,000 get selected, my chances are not seeming so well anymore. Is Navy OCS any better?

Ultimate Goal : Become the best officer I can. But.....FLY! Coastguard - Helicopters, Navy - Helicopters first, but would be happy with a jet as well.

What is my first step? Wait? Im not 21 yet so I cant even think about applying, and I wont have my degree till im 22 (business management).


As far as Im concerned the only way I can become a military aviator (I wouldnt consider enlisting then trying to apply for OCS) is to go OCS in air force, marines, coast guard, or army warrant officer/ army ocs.

What is this ROTC all about? Is it too late? Is it easier getting into?


Websites are lacking information, and I cant get a hold of recruiters for the life of me. Any information would be greatly appreciated!

 

[eddie]

I am stuck in a sticky situation. I dont know what to do.

Im 19 year old freshman in college playing D1 vball. I was going to try to apply for OCS in the coast guard but after finding out that 30 or so out of 3,000 get selected, my chances are not seeming so well anymore. Is Navy OCS any better?

Ultimate Goal : Become the best officer I can. But.....FLY! Coastguard - Helicopters, Navy - Helicopters first, but would be happy with a jet as well.

What is my first step? Wait? Im not 21 yet so I cant even think about applying, and I wont have my degree till im 22 (business management).


As far as Im concerned the only way I can become a military aviator (I wouldnt consider enlisting then trying to apply for OCS) is to go OCS in air force, marines, coast guard, or army warrant officer/ army ocs.

What is this ROTC all about? Is it too late? Is it easier getting into?


Websites are lacking information, and I cant get a hold of recruiters for the life of me. Any information would be greatly appreciated!

Search BDCP on this website for Navy. Search Blue 21 for Coast Guard. Read until your eyeballs do PRK to themselves.

Other than that, look through the "Best Threads" and Stickies; almost everything you could want to know has been discussed on this board. Good luck!

 

[picklesuit]

And don't be afraid to try to be one of the 30 out of 3000...

 

[nzachman]

Play shirtless dogtag volleyball to Kenny Loggins of course...thats what I would do.

Seriously, BDCP is the best deal in the Navy. You can apply with up to 3 years left of college (technical degree) or 2 years (non-technical). You get paid as an E-3, housing and food allowances, full benifits, and accruing leave....it does not get any better. Once you graduate you go to OCS then flight school. Step 1: Talk to an officer recruiter.

 

[Boomhower]

And don't be afraid to try to be one of the 30 out of 3000...

^^THIS^^ Very good advice.

 

[govols]

talk to a Navy recruiter and see what he/she says. then do what you want to do. if you want to fly Helo's for the CG then do it, if you would rather fly marine or army attack helos then chase that dream. the Navy BDCP program is pretty clutch, sounds like would meet the time limit for it. if you want navy, good ASTB score, good letters of recomendation, good grades and Moto statement and try to have the best resume you can and apply. worst thing that can happen is they tell you no, at which point you try to figure out your weakness and reapply.

 

[Spekkio]

What is this ROTC all about? Is it too late? Is it easier getting into?

You can try to pursue ROTC (not sure if it's too late), and it's a better way to guarantee a commission than OCS, since OCS is used to fill leftover slots from the FY. However, your designator is up to the needs of the Navy, so if you go ROTC you have to be okay with the possibility that you might not be flying in the Navy. As a business major, you won't qualify for a ROTC scholarship, though.

As others have said, if your grades are good you can talk to an officer recruiter about applying for BDCP, and start studying for the ASTB (this site has lots of gouge on it). It's a highly competitive program, but the benefits are great. Even if you don't get accepted for BDCP, you can still apply to OCS after you graduate. The plus to the BDCP or OCS route is that you can guarantee a flight contract prior to joining the Navy. The minus is that it can be harder to get accepted to a commissioning program than NROTC.

 

[fusiongtx]

any other input?

As for now I will study my butt off and try to raise my GPA, and continue to work hard in school and athletics and hope that is enough. Once it comes time to apply, I will get my best letters of recommendation, write a great narrative, and sell myself to the navy as best as I can, and hope for an aviation acceptance into BDCP.

Questions.

Say i got aviation and BDCP. Do i go garunteed straight to flight school? Also, what determines what I get to fly?

 

[HH-60H]

Questions.

Say i got aviation and BDCP. Do i go garunteed straight to flight school? Also, what determines what I get to fly?

Come on man, we were cool with your initial questions because you asked some specific questions that wasn't quite the standard newbie stuff. Now, you're asking the newbie questions. Take some time, search around the site. The answers to both of these questions have been discussed extensively here. After you have done your research, if you have more questions or don't understand certain things, then ask.

 

[HeyJoe]

I am stuck in a sticky situation. I dont know what to do. Im 19 year old freshman in college playing D1 vball. I was going to try to apply for OCS in the coast guard but after finding out that 30 or so out of 3,000 get selected, my chances are not seeming so well anymore. Is Navy OCS any better? Ultimate Goal : Become the best officer I can. But.....FLY! Coastguard - Helicopters, Navy - Helicopters first, but would be happy with a jet as well. What is my first step? Wait? Im not 21 yet so I cant even think about applying, and I wont have my degree till im 22 (business management). As far as Im concerned the only way I can become a military aviator (I wouldnt consider enlisting then trying to apply for OCS) is to go OCS in air force, marines, coast guard, or army warrant officer/ army ocs.

I can't see how you are in a sticky situation at all. First off, you're only 19, which means you have lots of options unlike those who wait until they are graduating or are about to and well into their 20s and can only hope for a spot at OCS. You still have every possible path into the cockpit open to you in the Navy or Marine Corps including the Naval Academy. Sounds like you haven't done much research and are mistakenly boresighted on OCS, which is not the only path. If you really want to fly in Naval Aviation, then you should go for the path with earliest commitment/guarantee or best chances.

What is this ROTC all about? Is it too late? Is it easier getting into? Websites are lacking information, and I cant get a hold of recruiters for the life of me. Any information would be greatly appreciated!

First off, this website is chockful of info on all the paths open to you including ROTC and the Academy that both put aspiring aviators into either Navy of Marine Corps paths to the cockpit as well as service specific paths like OCS that are available in both Navy and Marine Corps and BDCP (Navy) and Marine Corps PLC that lets you start OCS while you are in college and gurantees you a shot at flight school.

any other input? As for now I will study my butt off and try to raise my GPA, and continue to work hard in school and athletics and hope that is enough. Once it comes time to apply, I will get my best letters of recommendation, write a great narrative, and sell myself to the navy as best as I can, and hope for an aviation acceptance into BDCP.

Questions. Say i got aviation and BDCP. Do i go garunteed straight to flight school? Also, what determines what I get to fly?

Come on man, we were cool with your initial questions because you asked some specific questions that wasn't quite the standard newbie stuff. Now, you're asking the newbie questions. Take some time, search around the site. The answers to both of these questions have been discussed extensively here. After you have done your research, if you have more questions or don't understand certain things, then ask.

These are indeed the timeless questions of those who haven't used search or even surfed our conveniently organized threads on all the paths and how the mysterious selection process works. THe answers are all here, the quest is yours to seek your holy grail.

 

[81montedriver]

any other input?

As for now I will study my butt off and try to raise my GPA, and continue to work hard in school and athletics and hope that is enough. Once it comes time to apply, I will get my best letters of recommendation, write a great narrative, and sell myself to the navy as best as I can, and hope for an aviation acceptance into BDCP.

Questions.

Say i got aviation and BDCP. Do i go garunteed straight to flight school? Also, what determines what I get to fly?

While you're at it, you might also want to learn to spell i.e. word in bold, before you post on a forum full of professionals.

 

[badger16]

"Someone has to do it. It might as well be you."

-This is the best advice I ever received when I was thinking about joining up. Good luck!

 

[fusiongtx]

Confused...

My recruiter was not very good at explaining.

I am going for the BDCP program. He said that I apply to be a pilot, then if selected, I would go to OCS after college, then to flight training. Ok. Great.

But I see you can either be a PILOT or a Naval Flight Officer (NFO).

So which do I Do? What is the difference between being a pilot, and a flight officer? I have googled, and searched here and I cant find anything. Maybe my search skills suck.

Thanks,

 

[Treetop Flyer]

You googled and searched this site and still can't figure out the difference between a pilot and an NFO? Wow

 

[HH-60H]

Really? Are you being serious?