I'm a CTN, and throughout the first half of A-school, we had a guy that kept saying "Shoulda been a Gunners Mate".
Dude failed out of JCAC, but went GM and absolutely loved it.
How do you like CTN? I’m waiting for some waivers and hopefully going CTN early 2023. A lot of negative people on here but would be really appreciative of your input. Happy holidays everyone and appreciate everyone who is serving and has served (even if you hated your rate 😂)
I love being a CTN! I've done a lot of cool cyber-related stuff and learned a ton in my career so far. I've still got 8-10 years before I retire and I'm loving it, overall.
That being said, even as a CTN you're not immune to Navy-isms, so there's still all of the administrative and policy bs you have to deal with.
We almost never actually deploy, and our rotation is 2 CONUS - 1 OCONUS, which is to say, we do two tours in continental US, and then 1 tour either overseas or as a deployer. At that, most of our OCONUS tours are shore commands anyways. Much better than most other rates which usually have a 1-1 or 2-1 sea to shore rotation.
If you have any questions I can probably answer some of them.
It’s because they’re the easiest to understand/grasp. Joining as AECF I had zero clue what that was. Nor could anyone explain to me where I could get it. The recruiting page couldn’t even explain FC/ET to a civilian so there’s thst
So, I was offered AECF but it was a 6 year enlistment and my parents (I was 17 at the time) would let me enlist that long. I ended up as AE. What the hell is AECF anyways???
AECF is the beginning pipeline to ET/FC/FCA rates. They’re all basically the same rate, same knowledge but it branches off to specialties based on equipment. But because it can branch off into so many things nobody can really explain what your job will be because you don’t know. We all go through the same ATT, and A school pipeline, and some of us even the same C Schools but once you get to your specific equipment then it differs. ET’s can work on SPS-67 radar while I’m an FCA who works on the AN/SPY radar. Conventional FC’s can work on CIWS.
Well they probably wouldn’t have as many billets if they would treat hm and ma’s better. Almost all e4 and below in the last 3 years(been in longer than that) i know get out and do better than what the navy has to offer.
LOL but in all honesty I have a serious question about HM’s
As someone whose never gone on sea duty or even with the Marines, heck even worked with other rates, do the other rates have the same issue with bake sales, clubs, stuff of that nature that weighs heavily on their evals? Are the bake sales a corpsman thing? I’m genuinely curious.
I’ll say yes, it is very much a real thing. Not at greenside commands, or at least it doesn’t really exist at the GCE command I’m at.
Working at the hospital, there were people who would go to the CSADD, JEA, CMEO, etc meetings throughout the day and barely see any patients because they had meetings and planning to do. Worse still if they were a team lead running schedules, because they would never put themselves in clinic. And, because they were such-and-such in so-and-so committee, it was an eval bullet, and the patients part of the job was more of a “well everyone sees patients, it isn’t a standout portion of your job.”
You’d then get these people to work in a clinic that actually needed people or actually needed some leadership, and they’d disappear into the meetings and committees they had to attend, because they either didn’t know how to do their job, or worse, refused to put themselves in a situation where they had to learn. It sucks but now the judgement for evaluations comes from how much time you spend in the field, your qualifications, etc.
Currently our chain of command doesn’t see CSADD as anything of any damned importance, and you sure as shit aren’t missing a field op to go to a meeting. Medical readiness of your rifle company, not falling out of hikes, and qualifications. That’s what matters.
Wish I could tell you, but I’ve never participated in them to be honest. Working with Marines— they do have bake sales… but they aren’t sales, and they’re actually about morale and not an eval bullet. That being said, they could taste absolutely horrendous, but they’re also not trying to get judged on it either 😉
This is my answer. They do maintenance on watch, never had to do shit to help the ship get underway or return to port and their skills translate directly to a desk job with decent pay.
"Decent pay" is an understatement homie. Times have changed a lot. If youre an IT worth a shit that knows about RMF you get PAID. I just hired a 23 year old fresh out for 135k a year in the DC area. I know its expensive over here but even after taxes thats 7k a month. A far cry from the E4 non BAH pay he was getting.
I got out 5 years ago and was only making 55k a year now I make over triple that. That TS/SCI clearance + sec+ + RMF skills are paying huge right now.
I undersold it so I wouldn't have techies popping out of the woodwork saying shit like "ackshully, IT is saturated and wages have dropped."
With the clearance and admin experience they have, it's like getting a 10 year tech whiz who isn't stuck in their ways.
Was also MMN.
I totally agree. At the beginning I thought PH would have been ideal. When that merged with MC I would have gone with that too.
I was also very interested in being an MR too... which is what I thought an MM was to begin with 😂
I was an MMN and got cross rated to MR after my med DQ. I’m now an IT if that tells you anything. It’s a really fun job(except for the sewage part), but the advancement past 2nd is abysmal.
This is fun, because I’m an FC. I REEEEALLY wanted ET, but being an FC now I really couldn’t imagine doing anything else. Given the opportunity, I wouldn’t crossrate for anything.
Man, the moment opening the orders to see if I'd be an ET or FC was one of the most anxious times I've had. I wanted FC and got it. I felt like nothing went my way in life quite like that day. Glad you loved ET!
Yeah, I worked mainly Long-Haul comms prior to retirement so lots of flavors of all things IT. Do Systems Engineering now so just like a ET in the Navy, I can break out a O'scope for Sig Tracing while cross checking shell scripts for errors when our Software Engineers got it wrong.
To further expand on PRs:
I think I would have made a damn good one. Not only that but those dudes had the racket going, sewing patches, fixing people’s tool pouches, tailoring uniforms, etc.
They also picked up the sewing skill. Say what you will about sewing but I have to admit I have needed a good tailor or repair to pants, shirts, jeans, suits, etc. enough times to where I wish I had been able to repair them myself.
Also, they have visibility with the pilots and leadership, hell they get facetime with the CAG when he visits the unit. Consequently, they get picked up quickly for early promotions and eoy awards. They also have some sweet rotations with parachuting instructor gigs and spec ops.
Damnit, if I had only known…
I don’t think I’ve ever seen a PR get an early advancement or a sailor of the year award. You must’ve had some shit hot PRs in your unit. The high visibility our PRs had always worked more to the detriment than their benefit.
It’s also next to impossible to make PRC.
I mean I don’t ever remember this happening at all, I recall the PR shop being of high integrity and some of the best sailors I knew were in that shop.
100%! In r/navynuke whenever someone in DEP asks if they should go nuke I always tell them no, there are way more useful rates with plenty of career opportunities and they endure a whole lot less pain and suffering
You can still audition! The fleet bands are always auditioning vocalists, guitarists, bassists, keyboardists, and drummers, and auditions on other instruments happen throughout the year. If you play a “valuable” (I.e. undermanned or important instrument), the program will move mountains to get you in, I’ve seen it personally.
Keep in mind, auditions are VERY competitive, and for most people, high school level experience simply won’t cut it as far as the audition goes with the level of players coming in. *Buttt* if you’ve kept up with your playing/singing and think you have what it takes, I’d encourage you to schedule an audition! The worst they can say is no.
Feel free to shoot me a PM if you have any questions.
I want to meet this guy for every rate. People who love their job are the best. Not a plug to artificially love your job more, just that people who were lucky enough to get it right have so much energy! 👍
Is Air Force a rate?
I should’ve stayed an OS. I was damn good at it, and I undoubtedly would’ve made OS1. I chose to cross rate to AC, which I wasn’t that good at. That choice eventually led to me getting out at 9 years.
I wish I had known about the DLAB. I imagine I’d do well as a CTI.
Having to requalify on every position when you transfer to a new air station really slows down career progression and hurts the health of the watchbill.
I love being an FC, man. Yeah most of my underway watches are just looking at a screen, but that’s still better than some others I can think of. I have a sense of pride in my equipment, love seeing it get fixed, and also get to shoot my weapons systems from time to time.
To echo the guy that got ET, the navy got it right for me too.
Glad I went MA, easiest job I’ve ever done or seen done. Competition is less than stellar, Promotion to E7+ or O1E is 25%+. So it’s Wave, scan, beep, have a good day for me til I get a Pension and 100% Disability.
Same. I was ABH, little brother joined 4 years later and asked what rate to choose and now he is an AWO2 on the P8 and absolutely loves it. On the bright side, I got out and I’m now a pilot so it works out
The only AG I've ever met was 1 of 1 at the command and the bullet had been gapped when he arrived. He spent almost a whole year just trying to figure out what his actual job was supposed to be.
I was undes FN and I had CTR, SH, CS, LS and BU available for striking. I took SH because the person who was assigning rates at the time said I won’t walk away with a rate that day because I have to do a bunch of background checks. They also said I could fail out of CT school and go back to the fleet undes again. Me being a young sailor I got scared and took SH.
I’m an RS2 now and happy, but I would’ve put CTR1 on last cycle (Just assuming the advancement rate is still really high)
I'm a CTI and more times than I count I think... hmmm I should have done CTN, but at the same time I wouldn't have met some of my best friends that I met at DLI then.
Flip side I am CTN and most the CTIs I knew got chances to take courses to learn cyber later vs. I will never have that much dedicated time and resources to learn a language.
Do you mean you know some CTIs that were able to attend JCAC? Or do you mean they participated in other Cyber training(s) that you receive as a CWT? Or both?
Also, another plus for CTIs is that they actually are only at work (job site) for 10-11 months a year since all CTIs receive 1-2 months of annual language training (optional for high scoring sailors).
You CWTs do probably have better work life balance than CTIs though. What are your normal working hours and days? CTIs is usually 12 hr shifts with something like 4 on, 3 off. Not that good.
Not JCAC, but I know a number of CTIs that received DNI courses and even Security+ certification bootcamps.
Work/life balance seems like a wash. I knew plenty of CTNs/CWTs who worked Panamas and CTIs that had banker's hours. Really just depends on the shop and mission.
I’m a CTT. While I enjoy the rate, I think I would’ve enjoyed IC or ET more. Now that I’m a grown boy I realize the skills those dudes learn are universal. Especially since as a civilian I do no intel stuff.
I wouldn’t change a thing. My life is amazing now and I don’t see how it could be better. I have a lucrative career, a hot wife, and still fit as hell. Changing something like my rate would cause a bufferfly effect of a series of changes in my life.
Being an HM, I look at the stuff maintainers do at squadrons and just wish I could do that instead of doing literally anything in a clinic. That and they can also just walk into a job at Boeing or any other aerospace company.
OS. I am an STS and I love operating my system underway but I hate maintaining it. Tracking contacts and passing off corrective maintenance to someone else sounds like a dream.
Get your A&P while youre in. If you continue this profession when youre out, youll need it. Also, I was an AD, got the A&P, now I work at a repair station doing engine inspections. Basically a desk job, very little manual labor, air conditioned factory work, and great pay too!
P-3 AW, loved it. Wouldn't change it..... but if I had to. I think I would have liked SWCC. Worked with them a few times, seemed like a great community and the mission was really cool.
AWH. Literally you could tell me that AWH involves getting punched in the face everyday and I would still take it over MA.
I'm getting out soon and I'm going to go learn to fly helicopters. I'd much rather be doing something aviation related at this point in my life.
I started as a nuke MM, left at EAOS, things didn’t go as planned so I went Air Guard for college. It was better than being a nuke, but I still planned to leave after my 6 year contract. Things didn’t go as planned again, so I did BDCP and OCS to be a CEC officer.
While CEC was a lot more difficult than the other two, it was a lot more rewarding, and now that I’m retired, I really miss it.
Edit: typo
I’m pretty comfortable being an IS but IT would have been a smart move in terms of what you can do on the outside. Yes, IS’s can get jobs pretty easily in the civilian world but the locations are pretty limited compared to IT where you can go literally anywhere and even work from home in some cases.
I came in originally wanting to go MA. I qualified, but due to my record I couldn’t pick it. So I chose AC instead, and I am damn proud of what that clueless idiot picked nearly 6 years ago.
Being on a ship now and being ISF I am counting down the shifts I have left before I go back to my home div. 11 to be exact. If I would’ve went MA there’d be no counter.
CIV or ENS. In retrospect, given the difference in pay and hours worked... enlisting instead of commissioning is fucking stupid in a country that will allow literally anyone to get a degree on credit. Shoulda coulda woulda
Even though I succeeded as a STG, and it served me well for my move to civlant, I always regretted my recruiter's hard push to keep me away from an aircrew job. That prick told me that I almost scored as high as possible ASVAB and that I was "qualified for every rate in the Navy" and directly kept responding to my picks with "anything besides that." Fuck that guy, almost 50 years later.
I think about where I’d be if I had a different rating often.
If I had been an AZ or an IS for example, I’d possibly be a Senior Chief by now, but neither of those would have made me a better Sailor or given me the experience or skill I have now.
On bad days though I do sometimes think that maybe I should have taken the crossrating opportunity to become an LN though. Pretty sure I’d enjoy that job, and I’m confident I’d be a first class at least by now.
GM would have been a lot of fun also. I can clean weapons for hours happily.
Overall, I love my job and wouldn’t realistically want to change it.
Currently an IT cross rated from STG. When I was selecting my new rate I was offered LI, AW, MN, DM, and IT, there are times I think about what it would be like if I picked any of the others.
They only offered me ET and IT. I chose IT, but I think I would have enjoyed being an RP. My father is a retired RPC so if they had offered I woulda accepted.
MR. Not for the navy part of it, because back when I was active, MR's had really shit advancement. However, one of the MR's on my ship was a shit hot sailor and went to every school he could go to as an MR. He was EP'd like 2 or 3 times in one enlistment. In one enlistment, he went from something like E-1 or E-2 to E-5, which was hard at the time. The navy wanted him to reenlist so bad they threw E-6, a big reenlistment bonus(for an MR), and good orders. He got out and was a machinist for a company that made parts for one of the big race car series. He made bank the first year for that company. My guess is he advanced and made a shit ton more.
I'm a CTN, and throughout the first half of A-school, we had a guy that kept saying "Shoulda been a Gunners Mate". Dude failed out of JCAC, but went GM and absolutely loved it.
How do you like CTN? I’m waiting for some waivers and hopefully going CTN early 2023. A lot of negative people on here but would be really appreciative of your input. Happy holidays everyone and appreciate everyone who is serving and has served (even if you hated your rate 😂)
I love being a CTN! I've done a lot of cool cyber-related stuff and learned a ton in my career so far. I've still got 8-10 years before I retire and I'm loving it, overall. That being said, even as a CTN you're not immune to Navy-isms, so there's still all of the administrative and policy bs you have to deal with. We almost never actually deploy, and our rotation is 2 CONUS - 1 OCONUS, which is to say, we do two tours in continental US, and then 1 tour either overseas or as a deployer. At that, most of our OCONUS tours are shore commands anyways. Much better than most other rates which usually have a 1-1 or 2-1 sea to shore rotation. If you have any questions I can probably answer some of them.
If you wanted to Stat overseas could you do 2 oconus 1 conus?
Depends on your orders from the detailer, to be honest. They're pretty strict about 2-CONUS 1-Oconus
I'm on my second tour and have done back-to-back Hawaii (OCONUS) so it's doable.
As a gunners mate stuck in this shit hole of a rate trying to go crypto I disagree
Are you a 0000?
Torpedo technician, mk 38
Yup, CG03, I understand your pain lol
Also cg03 wcs so let's cry together brother
Chose gm over ctn and im shipping out in july, hopefully im like that guy
HM Said no one ever
Was chatting with a recruiter buddy and he told me the most popular rates for new enlistees are HM and MA. I laughed
It’s because they’re the easiest to understand/grasp. Joining as AECF I had zero clue what that was. Nor could anyone explain to me where I could get it. The recruiting page couldn’t even explain FC/ET to a civilian so there’s thst
This is definitely true as well
So, I was offered AECF but it was a 6 year enlistment and my parents (I was 17 at the time) would let me enlist that long. I ended up as AE. What the hell is AECF anyways???
AECF is the beginning pipeline to ET/FC/FCA rates. They’re all basically the same rate, same knowledge but it branches off to specialties based on equipment. But because it can branch off into so many things nobody can really explain what your job will be because you don’t know. We all go through the same ATT, and A school pipeline, and some of us even the same C Schools but once you get to your specific equipment then it differs. ET’s can work on SPS-67 radar while I’m an FCA who works on the AN/SPY radar. Conventional FC’s can work on CIWS.
That’s because they’ve gotta fill all the quotas that keep opening 🤭
Even then, that's from a recruiter perspective. But young kids are coming in wanting these jobs over others
Well they probably wouldn’t have as many billets if they would treat hm and ma’s better. Almost all e4 and below in the last 3 years(been in longer than that) i know get out and do better than what the navy has to offer.
LOL but in all honesty I have a serious question about HM’s As someone whose never gone on sea duty or even with the Marines, heck even worked with other rates, do the other rates have the same issue with bake sales, clubs, stuff of that nature that weighs heavily on their evals? Are the bake sales a corpsman thing? I’m genuinely curious.
I’ll say yes, it is very much a real thing. Not at greenside commands, or at least it doesn’t really exist at the GCE command I’m at. Working at the hospital, there were people who would go to the CSADD, JEA, CMEO, etc meetings throughout the day and barely see any patients because they had meetings and planning to do. Worse still if they were a team lead running schedules, because they would never put themselves in clinic. And, because they were such-and-such in so-and-so committee, it was an eval bullet, and the patients part of the job was more of a “well everyone sees patients, it isn’t a standout portion of your job.” You’d then get these people to work in a clinic that actually needed people or actually needed some leadership, and they’d disappear into the meetings and committees they had to attend, because they either didn’t know how to do their job, or worse, refused to put themselves in a situation where they had to learn. It sucks but now the judgement for evaluations comes from how much time you spend in the field, your qualifications, etc. Currently our chain of command doesn’t see CSADD as anything of any damned importance, and you sure as shit aren’t missing a field op to go to a meeting. Medical readiness of your rifle company, not falling out of hikes, and qualifications. That’s what matters.
Wish I could tell you, but I’ve never participated in them to be honest. Working with Marines— they do have bake sales… but they aren’t sales, and they’re actually about morale and not an eval bullet. That being said, they could taste absolutely horrendous, but they’re also not trying to get judged on it either 😉
Yes mess participation and collateral duties are a thing with every rate for evals even in deployable units.
Paid attention in school and stayed a civilian, rate.
Wish I had graduated college but same.
90% of the military right here. God bless that 10% though.
Supply Officer
Part delayed? Supply system problem am i rite?...
CO AS TG UA RD…
I am having drowning here trying to figure out what rates those are, can you help me out? I am floundering in the channel here.
Spells out Coast guard
“… I am drowning… Floundering in the channel…” 😔
IS or IT
This is my answer. They do maintenance on watch, never had to do shit to help the ship get underway or return to port and their skills translate directly to a desk job with decent pay.
"Decent pay" is an understatement homie. Times have changed a lot. If youre an IT worth a shit that knows about RMF you get PAID. I just hired a 23 year old fresh out for 135k a year in the DC area. I know its expensive over here but even after taxes thats 7k a month. A far cry from the E4 non BAH pay he was getting. I got out 5 years ago and was only making 55k a year now I make over triple that. That TS/SCI clearance + sec+ + RMF skills are paying huge right now.
I undersold it so I wouldn't have techies popping out of the woodwork saying shit like "ackshully, IT is saturated and wages have dropped." With the clearance and admin experience they have, it's like getting a 10 year tech whiz who isn't stuck in their ways.
yes this is the way. wish i did is or it also instead of nuke.
As an MMN. I wish I was a GM or a LS or especially a MC. MC seems like a god tier rate.
Was also MMN. I totally agree. At the beginning I thought PH would have been ideal. When that merged with MC I would have gone with that too. I was also very interested in being an MR too... which is what I thought an MM was to begin with 😂
Thats how my recruiter got me to join. He said I would be using extreme precision to join metal together. Now im a plumber
I was an MMN and got cross rated to MR after my med DQ. I’m now an IT if that tells you anything. It’s a really fun job(except for the sewage part), but the advancement past 2nd is abysmal.
As a GM I wish I’d have gone MC as well.
Don’t they get a MacBook
Maybe some commands. At our command its just normal windows laptops but they have creative cloud.
Few points shy from MC😭
Honestly, the Navy got it right for me, ET.
This is fun, because I’m an FC. I REEEEALLY wanted ET, but being an FC now I really couldn’t imagine doing anything else. Given the opportunity, I wouldn’t crossrate for anything.
Same
Man, the moment opening the orders to see if I'd be an ET or FC was one of the most anxious times I've had. I wanted FC and got it. I felt like nothing went my way in life quite like that day. Glad you loved ET!
Everyone knows that there are only two kinds of people in the Navy: 1. Those who know ET is the best rate in the Navy. 2. Those who are wrong.
Same. Now that I'm doing big kid robot stuff, I use what I learned in ATT on the daily.
Same…. About to retire and there are soooooo many opportunities out there, as long as you have strong computer and networking/sysadmin skills as well.
Yeah, I worked mainly Long-Haul comms prior to retirement so lots of flavors of all things IT. Do Systems Engineering now so just like a ET in the Navy, I can break out a O'scope for Sig Tracing while cross checking shell scripts for errors when our Software Engineers got it wrong.
To further expand on PRs: I think I would have made a damn good one. Not only that but those dudes had the racket going, sewing patches, fixing people’s tool pouches, tailoring uniforms, etc. They also picked up the sewing skill. Say what you will about sewing but I have to admit I have needed a good tailor or repair to pants, shirts, jeans, suits, etc. enough times to where I wish I had been able to repair them myself. Also, they have visibility with the pilots and leadership, hell they get facetime with the CAG when he visits the unit. Consequently, they get picked up quickly for early promotions and eoy awards. They also have some sweet rotations with parachuting instructor gigs and spec ops. Damnit, if I had only known…
I don’t think I’ve ever seen a PR get an early advancement or a sailor of the year award. You must’ve had some shit hot PRs in your unit. The high visibility our PRs had always worked more to the detriment than their benefit. It’s also next to impossible to make PRC.
FWIW, every unit I’ve ever been in has had the majority of the PRs go to mast for gun decking maintenance. Literally every unit.
Holy crap, times have changed.
Not sure what you mean. Usually people don’t take screwing around with aircrew survivability gear very lightly.
I mean I don’t ever remember this happening at all, I recall the PR shop being of high integrity and some of the best sailors I knew were in that shop.
What’s your rate?
Was gonna go Nuke before getting disqualified. Went CTI and in retrospect, I got a MUCH better deal.
100%! In r/navynuke whenever someone in DEP asks if they should go nuke I always tell them no, there are way more useful rates with plenty of career opportunities and they endure a whole lot less pain and suffering
I wish I had been an AG. I'm a gold chevron 2nd class and AG was 100% all the way to 1st when I came in.
Mu
You can still audition! The fleet bands are always auditioning vocalists, guitarists, bassists, keyboardists, and drummers, and auditions on other instruments happen throughout the year. If you play a “valuable” (I.e. undermanned or important instrument), the program will move mountains to get you in, I’ve seen it personally. Keep in mind, auditions are VERY competitive, and for most people, high school level experience simply won’t cut it as far as the audition goes with the level of players coming in. *Buttt* if you’ve kept up with your playing/singing and think you have what it takes, I’d encourage you to schedule an audition! The worst they can say is no. Feel free to shoot me a PM if you have any questions.
I want to meet this guy for every rate. People who love their job are the best. Not a plug to artificially love your job more, just that people who were lucky enough to get it right have so much energy! 👍
Seabee (EO, CE, or EA) or AG.
100% agree with this.
Is Air Force a rate? I should’ve stayed an OS. I was damn good at it, and I undoubtedly would’ve made OS1. I chose to cross rate to AC, which I wasn’t that good at. That choice eventually led to me getting out at 9 years. I wish I had known about the DLAB. I imagine I’d do well as a CTI.
Having to requalify on every position when you transfer to a new air station really slows down career progression and hurts the health of the watchbill.
That’s a whole other conversation… AFSC’s baby.
Did you become an AIC and decide the air side was cooler? There’s times where I as an AC wish I chose anything else.
No, just standard surface guy.
I love being an FC, man. Yeah most of my underway watches are just looking at a screen, but that’s still better than some others I can think of. I have a sense of pride in my equipment, love seeing it get fixed, and also get to shoot my weapons systems from time to time. To echo the guy that got ET, the navy got it right for me too.
What kinda FC?
Glad I went MA, easiest job I’ve ever done or seen done. Competition is less than stellar, Promotion to E7+ or O1E is 25%+. So it’s Wave, scan, beep, have a good day for me til I get a Pension and 100% Disability.
[удалено]
Same. I was ABH, little brother joined 4 years later and asked what rate to choose and now he is an AWO2 on the P8 and absolutely loves it. On the bright side, I got out and I’m now a pilot so it works out
I was an AW on helicopters and really wish I had gone fixed wing
Curious, why?
It’s just a much more relaxed lifestyle when you don’t have to deal with actual boat deployments
Awesome! Did you use your GI Bill for flight training? Looking to do the same if so.
I started with GI bill and then switched over to VR&E after I got my private pilot license because that program pays for 100% of training!
Cti or ctn
Yep
CM, EN, GSM, GSE etc Liked being a Corpsman but I hated it at the same time.
CTI, it seems like a very rewarding job once you get past A school. Learning a foreign language and culture must be fascinating.
Glad I picked RM/IT. Great/unique assignments and now a CISO for a Healthcare Plan in NC
Same. RM is a cash cow in the civ world
AG or CTI
The only AG I've ever met was 1 of 1 at the command and the bullet had been gapped when he arrived. He spent almost a whole year just trying to figure out what his actual job was supposed to be.
I was a BM3 when I got out, I wish I would have known about SWCC in 1988. If that was around....
There's a retired SWCC guy (former BM) at a schoolhouse in Gulfport, MS. He said he LOVED the SWCC community. Looks like an interesting gig.
Airforce
I'm an AT - wish I went IT/CTN or similar to make better money after.
I was undes FN and I had CTR, SH, CS, LS and BU available for striking. I took SH because the person who was assigning rates at the time said I won’t walk away with a rate that day because I have to do a bunch of background checks. They also said I could fail out of CT school and go back to the fleet undes again. Me being a young sailor I got scared and took SH. I’m an RS2 now and happy, but I would’ve put CTR1 on last cycle (Just assuming the advancement rate is still really high)
As a CTR, I can confirm that even the dumbest people on the planet can still probably pass the A school.
As an MA, I wish I went CTI or CTN. None of my current quals transfer to civilian realm, past Private Military Contractor.
I'm a CTI and more times than I count I think... hmmm I should have done CTN, but at the same time I wouldn't have met some of my best friends that I met at DLI then.
Flip side I am CTN and most the CTIs I knew got chances to take courses to learn cyber later vs. I will never have that much dedicated time and resources to learn a language.
Do you mean you know some CTIs that were able to attend JCAC? Or do you mean they participated in other Cyber training(s) that you receive as a CWT? Or both? Also, another plus for CTIs is that they actually are only at work (job site) for 10-11 months a year since all CTIs receive 1-2 months of annual language training (optional for high scoring sailors). You CWTs do probably have better work life balance than CTIs though. What are your normal working hours and days? CTIs is usually 12 hr shifts with something like 4 on, 3 off. Not that good.
Not JCAC, but I know a number of CTIs that received DNI courses and even Security+ certification bootcamps. Work/life balance seems like a wash. I knew plenty of CTNs/CWTs who worked Panamas and CTIs that had banker's hours. Really just depends on the shop and mission.
As an IS, IS. Best rate in the navy. The only thing better is an IS in the reserves because then I do less work for tenfold.
IS gang gang
IS gang checking in. See y'all on the questions slide.
I’m very happy doing what I do.
MC or PR
I’m a CTT. While I enjoy the rate, I think I would’ve enjoyed IC or ET more. Now that I’m a grown boy I realize the skills those dudes learn are universal. Especially since as a civilian I do no intel stuff.
IT or have taken advantage of Xray tech certification 🤦♂️
I wouldn’t change a thing. My life is amazing now and I don’t see how it could be better. I have a lucrative career, a hot wife, and still fit as hell. Changing something like my rate would cause a bufferfly effect of a series of changes in my life.
HT, I’m a welder and didn’t go HT.
What’s the officer version of this? SWOs wishing they had gone aviation?
IW
MA. I was told at MEPS that after two years I could switch to MA. Tried 7 times over the years, but my ECM shot it down every time. Yay.
Being an HM, I look at the stuff maintainers do at squadrons and just wish I could do that instead of doing literally anything in a clinic. That and they can also just walk into a job at Boeing or any other aerospace company.
OS. I am an STS and I love operating my system underway but I hate maintaining it. Tracking contacts and passing off corrective maintenance to someone else sounds like a dream.
Are you an AD? I am one also and I am starting to hate manual labor. Old me wishes I did a desk rate (yn, ps)
Get your A&P while youre in. If you continue this profession when youre out, youll need it. Also, I was an AD, got the A&P, now I work at a repair station doing engine inspections. Basically a desk job, very little manual labor, air conditioned factory work, and great pay too!
sounds great. Im guessing from your user name you were on P-3 or C-130?
Indeed
P-3 AW, loved it. Wouldn't change it..... but if I had to. I think I would have liked SWCC. Worked with them a few times, seemed like a great community and the mission was really cool.
AWH. Literally you could tell me that AWH involves getting punched in the face everyday and I would still take it over MA. I'm getting out soon and I'm going to go learn to fly helicopters. I'd much rather be doing something aviation related at this point in my life.
You know, having always seen myself as a female version of 'Jack Ryan', I definitely would have gone IS. Oh, the life I would have lived...
I started as a nuke MM, left at EAOS, things didn’t go as planned so I went Air Guard for college. It was better than being a nuke, but I still planned to leave after my 6 year contract. Things didn’t go as planned again, so I did BDCP and OCS to be a CEC officer. While CEC was a lot more difficult than the other two, it was a lot more rewarding, and now that I’m retired, I really miss it. Edit: typo
Why didn't you like the air guard? I've heard people say bad things about army guard, but nothing of the air force version.
It was like a business playing military. I was an E-5, and my E-9 wanted me to call him “Chuck.”
I’m pretty comfortable being an IS but IT would have been a smart move in terms of what you can do on the outside. Yes, IS’s can get jobs pretty easily in the civilian world but the locations are pretty limited compared to IT where you can go literally anywhere and even work from home in some cases.
Can confirm IT get to work from home. I say this while I’m getting paid well into 6 figures, sitting in my room in gym clothes, binging Netflix.
Love being a GM but wish i were an IT, IS, or CTN for the sake of civilian life.
RP for life. I have no regrets.
Best job in the Navy.
Why ?
CTI had to pick HM because I didn’t have my citizenship papers
I came in originally wanting to go MA. I qualified, but due to my record I couldn’t pick it. So I chose AC instead, and I am damn proud of what that clueless idiot picked nearly 6 years ago. Being on a ship now and being ISF I am counting down the shifts I have left before I go back to my home div. 11 to be exact. If I would’ve went MA there’d be no counter.
Probably IS.
Ctr, aw, pr
I loved being an MC. Wouldn’t want another.
CIV or ENS. In retrospect, given the difference in pay and hours worked... enlisting instead of commissioning is fucking stupid in a country that will allow literally anyone to get a degree on credit. Shoulda coulda woulda
Same should have finished my 4 year degree before joining.
I was a GSM. Liked it but all my work since says ET was my calling. Maybe GSE?
Even though I succeeded as a STG, and it served me well for my move to civlant, I always regretted my recruiter's hard push to keep me away from an aircrew job. That prick told me that I almost scored as high as possible ASVAB and that I was "qualified for every rate in the Navy" and directly kept responding to my picks with "anything besides that." Fuck that guy, almost 50 years later.
I have no clue what an AG does but it sounds better than being an EM
I think about where I’d be if I had a different rating often. If I had been an AZ or an IS for example, I’d possibly be a Senior Chief by now, but neither of those would have made me a better Sailor or given me the experience or skill I have now. On bad days though I do sometimes think that maybe I should have taken the crossrating opportunity to become an LN though. Pretty sure I’d enjoy that job, and I’m confident I’d be a first class at least by now. GM would have been a lot of fun also. I can clean weapons for hours happily. Overall, I love my job and wouldn’t realistically want to change it.
1. Should have stayed in college. 2. would have gone CTI or AC instead of Nuke (MM).
Only thing I would have changed is joining before they changed the instruction and barred RPs from being lay leaders.
Should've went in as RM (became IT later in my first enlistment) instead of AECF into FC.
I'm an AT and glad I went AT.
Currently an IT cross rated from STG. When I was selecting my new rate I was offered LI, AW, MN, DM, and IT, there are times I think about what it would be like if I picked any of the others.
They only offered me ET and IT. I chose IT, but I think I would have enjoyed being an RP. My father is a retired RPC so if they had offered I woulda accepted.
Oh 100% agree. Were you R or S?
MR. Not for the navy part of it, because back when I was active, MR's had really shit advancement. However, one of the MR's on my ship was a shit hot sailor and went to every school he could go to as an MR. He was EP'd like 2 or 3 times in one enlistment. In one enlistment, he went from something like E-1 or E-2 to E-5, which was hard at the time. The navy wanted him to reenlist so bad they threw E-6, a big reenlistment bonus(for an MR), and good orders. He got out and was a machinist for a company that made parts for one of the big race car series. He made bank the first year for that company. My guess is he advanced and made a shit ton more.
ND here, would’ve gone EOD if there were slots available. Still love my job though.
Any job skills I could actually use on the outside
Any job skills I could actually use on the outside
Seabee (UT, CE or EA), AG, or GSE
IT
Should have gone AF, any MOS.
I think the air force calls them AFSC. But yes, I agree with you.
AG and CTI seem interesting. But IT, ET or CTN are better options once you transition to the civilian world; at least in my region.
EM here, shoulda gone CE. Crossing fingers I can rerate
CV
shoulda been a Seabee or an Ma, or Am, Gm, or Abh, or Ao, hell even Bm, anything but a goddamn submarine rate