Question about Seabees enlisted and Navy enlisted in general...

[OdeToArsenal47]

I know this is more of an officer forum but this seems like one of the best places to ask. Also, please correct me if I'm saying something wrong (like using Seabees) or if I'm just totally wrong on something. I'm trying.

I'm thinking about going to a Navy recruiter some time soon. I'm really interested in doing Nukes or Seabees. If I go Seabees, it'll be Engineering Aid (I'd like to become an Architect some day), if I go Nuke, if I can pick I'll go Electronics Technician. Which leads me to my question.

I'm pretty sure I know this answer, but my research (about.com) isn't 100% clear. When you want a guaranteed job, are you guaranteed that job in that community (like Construction, Nukes, Admin), or are you guaranteed the rate in that community (like Engineering Aid within Seabees)?

Also, looking at the CREO listing on about's website, Engineering Aid is apparently overmanned. If I pick EA (which is my backup behind ET), I can go into DEP until spots open up, right? How long would I be waiting? What kind of shape do I need to be in before going to DEP? I'm about 20 pounds overweight (I was 30, I'm making progress) and I'm just short of being able to pass the Navy PRT if I took it right now.

Another quick question (and it'll probably sound stupid), how are Seabees deployed? About says they have sea tours and shore tours like everyone else. I was looking on this board and I see a bunch of pictures of them on land with guns and whatnot. Do Seabees go on cruises like everyone else? That's one of the most appealing things about the Navy for me: Going out to sea. I wouldn't want to miss out on traveling the world. If I wanted to stay on land the whole time I'd join the Army (no offense). And if Seabees go out to sea, are they restricted to certain ships? I think it would be really cool to work on a Nimitz-class carrier more than anything.

And, finally, joining the navy as enlisted to me is getting money for college and doing something different and new and exciting, versus everyone else in my family. I'm really interested in the Navy and if I like it, I'd like to join back in as an SNA or NFO or CEC or Nuke officer, be it as discharging and joining again or through STA-21. My question (I've looked around for an answer and couldn't easily find it) is this: How does prior enlisted look on an OCS application?

Thanks for any answers you may have.

 

[Thisguy]

Another quick question (and it'll probably sound stupid), how are Seabees deployed? About says they have sea tours and shore tours like everyone else. I was looking on this board and I see a bunch of pictures of them on land with guns and whatnot. Do Seabees go on cruises like everyone else? That's one of the most appealing things about the Navy for me: Going out to sea. I wouldn't want to miss out on traveling the world. If I wanted to stay on land the whole time I'd join the Army (no offense). And if Seabees go out to sea, are they restricted to certain ships? I think it would be really cool to work on a Nimitz-class carrier more than anything.

Seabees generally don't go to sea. When we deploy, we go by airlift. There are pros and cons. I've been on a ship and port calls were fun, but sometimes being underway 25 days working 7 days a week before hitting a 4 day port makes you go a little stir crazy.

My last deployment we were in Kuwait for 6 months, which sucked, right now we're deployed to the Pacific which is much better. Upside is, after work, we're free to do what we please until the morning. Fleeters are stuck on the ship.

 

[OdeToArsenal47]

Oh okay, thanks for clarifying that. It still sounds like it'd be a job I'd really be interested in if I enlist.

How do you (or any other Seabees) like it? What are the pros and cons to being a Seabee?

 

[Ken_gone_flying]

My question (I've looked around for an answer and couldn't easily find it) is this: How does prior enlisted look on an OCS application?

The answer is yes, as long as you were successful while you were enlisted, i.e. got your quals, got awards, and made rank. It is especially helpful if you are trying to become an officer in the same area that you were enlisted. For example: enlisted nuke to officer nuke, aviation/aircrew to pilot/NFO.

 

[Thisguy]

How do you (or any other Seabees) like it? What are the pros and cons to being a Seabee?

Without going into too much detail, some pros and cons:

Pro: Junior Seabees are generally crewmembers on a construction project, getting to do actual, meaningful work.

To give you a contrast to the fleet, some E-3 in below on ships do the laundry for staterooms, some can be seen stripping and waxing the deck every other night, and some work in the Wardroom. None of this is actually what they signed up for.

Big Pro: Your deployment cycles (in the NMCBs) are set. 12 months in homeport, 6 month deployments. You won't be extended, because another Battalion will be waiting in the wings to replace you. On the two cruises I went on with CVN-70, both deployments got extended.

Con: As a junior Seabee, you'll probably spend a lot of time in the fighting positions during field training exercises (FTX). It's freakin' hot, and you'll have all this gear on.

Also, a lot of our deployment sites these days are to Afghanistan, Iraq, Horn of Africa, etc, and the problem with that is our quality-to-code construction skills have deteriorated a bit as a result.

Finally, this is more of a con for being an EA, but that rate is tougher to advance in. Generally speaking, if a rate is overmanned, that's a bad sign, because if you don't advance after a few years, you'll be asked to cross-rate to something else.

 

[mpatterson]

I know this is more of an officer forum but this seems like one of the best places to ask. Also, please correct me if I'm saying something wrong (like using Seabees) or if I'm just totally wrong on something. I'm trying.

I'm thinking about going to a Navy recruiter some time soon. I'm really interested in doing Nukes or Seabees. If I go Seabees, it'll be Engineering Aid (I'd like to become an Architect some day), if I go Nuke, if I can pick I'll go Electronics Technician. Which leads me to my question.

I'm pretty sure I know this answer, but my research (about.com) isn't 100% clear. When you want a guaranteed job, are you guaranteed that job in that community (like Construction, Nukes, Admin), or are you guaranteed the rate in that community (like Engineering Aid within Seabees)?

Also, looking at the CREO listing on about's website, Engineering Aid is apparently overmanned. If I pick EA (which is my backup behind ET), I can go into DEP until spots open up, right? How long would I be waiting? What kind of shape do I need to be in before going to DEP? I'm about 20 pounds overweight (I was 30, I'm making progress) and I'm just short of being able to pass the Navy PRT if I took it right now.

Another quick question (and it'll probably sound stupid), how are Seabees deployed? About says they have sea tours and shore tours like everyone else. I was looking on this board and I see a bunch of pictures of them on land with guns and whatnot. Do Seabees go on cruises like everyone else? That's one of the most appealing things about the Navy for me: Going out to sea. I wouldn't want to miss out on traveling the world. If I wanted to stay on land the whole time I'd join the Army (no offense). And if Seabees go out to sea, are they restricted to certain ships? I think it would be really cool to work on a Nimitz-class carrier more than anything.

And, finally, joining the navy as enlisted to me is getting money for college and doing something different and new and exciting, versus everyone else in my family. I'm really interested in the Navy and if I like it, I'd like to join back in as an SNA or NFO or CEC or Nuke officer, be it as discharging and joining again or through STA-21. My question (I've looked around for an answer and couldn't easily find it) is this: How does prior enlisted look on an OCS application?

Thanks for any answers you may have.

You should check out a couple of the Navy career pages on Facebook. They have officers on the Civil Engineering and Nuke pages that can help answer some of your questions, and/or point you in the right direction. Hope this helps!

http://www.facebook.com/NavyNuclear
http://www.facebook.com/navycivilengineer