Tips for an enlisted person.

[fc2spyguy]

While on a ship honestly I did have time to take classes but that wasn't really a priority for me at the time. You could probably take one or two at a time but nothing more than that. On shore duty however I was able to take a 17 credit semester and not kill myself doing it. Of course they were all the lower level classes so wasn't too much thinking involved.

 

[kaiangel]

First off, it is very easy to go to college while enlisted. It is just a matter of dedication on your part. Also, regardless of whether you think you are staying in or not, always act as if you are. For one you may change your mind at the last moment, and people who say they are staying in get the better evaluations. I know that it shouldn't work that way, but it does. Why waste an "Early Promote" eval on a guy who doesn't want to stay. Sorry for the Navy jargon, but you will eventually understand what I am talking about.

 

[Scamahmrd]

Not to stay on this topic or anything, but I really feel stronly about the College Fund. It is as simple as doing the mathmatics. Take the $1,000 and that's all you get... $1,000. Take the College fund and up your GI Bill by $400 per/month (I think.) Take that over 3 years (36 months) of full time study and it's a total of $14,400. My number might be a little off, but I think there pretty close. As far as having the Navy pay your way, it's a great idea. In fact, I just did it. But, say for some reason someone dosen't want to stay in the Navy long enough for STA-21, or they get hurt, then what? That extra money could come in quite handy when supporting ones-self through college. Also, when thinking about grad school, it may be nice to have then. Tuition Assistance won't cover the but a very very small portion of it. Anyway, those are just my thoughts on the matter. It seems like the $1,000 would be nice in the short term, but not very wise in the long run. I took the college fund, and wouldn't change it if I could, even though the Navy paid for my undergrad degree.

OC Scameheorn

1 day and a wake up 'till COMMISSIONING!!!

 

[twidget]

You can find out info about seeking a degree while on Active Duty at the Navy College website. There are quite a few schools that have joined the Navy College Partnership program to provide degrees specifically tailored for Navy Enlisted Ratings. Of course I have to recommend my alma mater Old Dominion University. I was the first grad of their new General Engineering Technology program. I had a big head start since I transferred from a school where I was majoring in Physics. I'm sure it would be possible to finish this program in less than 6 years, probably much less if you're highly motivated and have 2 years of school under your belt already.

I'm trying to continue my distance learning education through ODU. They also have an Engineering Management graduate program for sailors.

Let me know if you have any other questions. BTW, I also had a 17 hour semester while on shore duty. The rules have changed for TA though, so I wouldn't be able to do the same thing now. TA pays 100% tuition, but is limited to 4 classes per year now. It used to be 75% with no limit on classes as long as you didn't bust the $3000 annual cap.

Twidget

 

[Beefalo]

Hey Twidget I actually printed out the ODU degree for engineering. It says you get 37 credits for FC e4 which is quite a bit. An ET gets wow 52! Thats almost a whole year right there. How hard were those classes and what type of jobs would they open up? I looked at the ET/FC ratings and the ODU one came up along with information systems and telecommunications from Fort Hayes. I was thinking of pursuing the latter. How much of your military credit goes towards your major? I wouldnt need any lower general as I would already have all that.

I never heard of the college fund?

 

[twidget]

Hey Twidget I actually printed out the ODU degree for engineering. It says you get 37 credits for FC e4 which is quite a bit. An ET gets wow 52! Thats almost a whole year right there. How hard were those classes and what type of jobs would they open up? I looked at the ET/FC ratings and the ODU one came up along with information systems and telecommunications from Fort Hayes. I was thinking of pursuing the latter. How much of your military credit goes towards your major? I wouldnt need any lower general as I would already have all that.

I never heard of the college fund?

Beefalo,

The classes weren't too difficult. Guess it depends on your aptitude and work ethic. I actually did almost all of the classes on campus since I had the opportunity. I only took 2 CD courses. The first one was a bit difficult to use because the instructor who narrated it was monotone, and there were more than a few errors in the student guide. The second course was much better, and from what I understand, the first has been re-done.

The two most difficult classes for me were Thermodynamics and Fluid Mechanics. Of course I took them together along with 4 other classes in my last semester, doh :dunce_125. Thermo has a high failure rate in-class, so I'm not sure how the distance learning class is.

Unfortunately, I don't know anything about the second program you mentioned.

You should also look into CLEP/DANTES tests to fulfill University Req's/Electives that you may not have yet. They're free in the Navy and pretty easy from my experience. I never studied for any of them and got at least 4 or 5 classes waived by taking them.

 

[Beefalo]

How much say do you get in picking either ET or FC?

What is an Aegis FC? I heard being any Aegis FC sucks?

 

[fc2spyguy]

Aegis Rocks!!

How much say do you get in picking either ET or FC?

What is an Aegis FC? I heard being any Aegis FC sucks?

AEGIS FC does not suck :icon_rage I am an AEGIS FC. An AEGIS FC is any NEC (Naval Educational Code?)that is included with the AEGIS Weapons System. There are four main primary NEC's that are associated with the AEGIS platforms (I'm not dividing the baselines here). First and best would be the SPY tech (sorry little partial on that one). A SPY tech works on the AN/SPY-1 radar. There are several diferent mods to this radar that are currently split up into two separate NEC's in the Navy. With the SPY radar you deal with the signal processor the transmitter an auxilary system and anything else that has to do with making up a radar signal and sending its return back to the system for processing. After SPY you have the FCS system. Fire Control System. This system provides terminal guidance for the SM-2 missiles. It consists of a testing system and a radar signal processor and transmitter. There are sevarl differences but I'm just going over the basics. Then you have the Computer tech. He deals mainly with the computer side of the house. And these computers are completely different from any computer that you've ever dealt with. Most are the UYK-43 computers that are in the computer rooms. After that you have the Display technician. He is basically a tv repair man.

NOTE: This is by no means an all encompassing reply. There are many differences that I just don't really want to go over. If you have any further questions about an AEGIS FC or the jobs they do please let me know and I will answer them as best I can.

 

[Beefalo]

Aegis FC sounds pretty interesting. Im hoping to choose FC but if I get ET it'd still be cool and it gives me like 10 more credits towards my degree.

 

[flynsail]

Beefalo,

According to the CREO message somebody had posted, ET is currently a better rate to advance in. If you are still entertaining the idea of another rate, I would be happy to answer any questions about IT. More so on the computer side of the IT rate though, and it would be a bit outdated.

Selecting a rate that requires a security clearance is the best. All those extra phone calls to home during bootcamp are nice. You know, just have to make those phone calls home to get that "info" for the clearance :icon_mi_1

College Fund vs. Enlistment Bonus:

I chose the latter and regretted it while I was in college.

 

[ET-Mike]

Like everyone has said, ET/FC is the way to go. I was an ET, obviously. I loved every bit of it. I lucked out and went straight to shore duty out of A school, by the way, I don't know if it is the same today but make sure you whoop ass in A schoo so you can have your pick of the orders. FC1CIWS, I was at SIMA Norfolk in 2000-01, I was in the 67HS shop. I was a surface ET working on Submarine ants...that's right, subs have antennas. I loved my enlisted time and I managed to worm my way in on a NROTC scholarship back in 2001. I graduate in May and found out that I will be in P'cola for flight school after that. Good luck with everything. Buy your Career Counselor a case of beer and talk about officer programs, that is the way to go.

 

[twidget]

Wow, small world ET-Mike. I was at SIMA Norfolk from 2000-2004 in the 2M shop (67M). I'll send you a PM with my name to see if we know each other. Though you guys were kind of in your own little world being in a separate building. We did a lot of connector work for you guys on the boats though, so maybe we ran into each other. There was a female surface ET stuck in that shop for awhile. I remeber she used to do a lot of the ship-checks with us.

Congrats on your selection BTW!

Go ETs!!!

 

[ET-Mike]

Good to go Twidget. I wouldn't trade that experience for anything. Hanging out with a bunch of MM's was a life lesson. I never had more love for the ET rate. This just goes to show that the Navy really is a small world and you will always run into people again and again, some of them you wish you would never see again!!

 

[Beefalo]

I checked the advancement rates for PO3 for ET and it has been at 93 percent the last 2 quarters and for PO2 I think it was around 10-15 percent.

FC3 was like 2 percent for the last 2 quarters. Pretty much deadlocked.

Im looking foward to sea duty for my first tour. Hopefully I can pick a ship close to home in Everett. Ive already been studing basic electricity the past couple months and am like 1/5 through the book. ( just got done reading about Ohm's law) It says it the prolouge that it was developed for Navy technicians in the 50's so hopefully it will be the same text used in A school.

What exactly do they do for a security clearance? I thought they just ran a backround check and called it a day.

 

[NavySTL]

Hey Beef, sorry to jump in kind of late into the thread, but I wanted to throw in my 2 cents as well. I joined under the AECF program as an E-2 and made E-6 in six years. Although advancement opportunities for ET/FC don't look so hot now, they are cyclical. Advancement quotas can change drastically from cycle to cycle. They may be rough for a couple of years, but then the "flood gates" might open. It makes sense when you think about it.

As far as your options for jobs, although you may be qualified for a job based on your scores, the Navy may not have the billets for it. That's why there wasn't a bigger list of jobs. Your recruiter has absolutely nothing to gain from the job you pick unless you pick a NUKE job. Then he/she gets a couple extra "recruiter points" (for awards). The fact that you joined brightens his/her day regardless of the job. If you wants to change jobs, ask your recruiter to submit a request for a specific job, even if that job isn't available. A billet could always open up before you ship. Then you could choose to keep AECF or change jobs. Just don't get your hopes up too high about a specific job, because it may not become available. Unfortunately, the Navy just doesn't need many new recruits right now.

http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2005-01-23-navy-air-recruits_x.htm

At least you have good job already guaranteed to you if you don't get to change. It seems all of us ETs/FCs like our jobs well enough to speak positively about them. The fact that we're all on this site telling you postive things about our communities should let you know. If you were here asking about a crappy job, believe there is no shortage of people who would be willing to tell you to steer clear. If you do decide that you want a different rate, bounce it off os us in this forum and you'll probably find somone who has served in that community.

The fact that you are on this forum trying to get ahead shows that you are willing to go a little further in your pursuits. If you maintain course and speed, you will have a lot of success in the Navy regardless of the rate you choose. Remember that 20% of the people in the Navy do 80% of the work. Be in that 20% and success will be unavoidable.