What is life like in today's US Navy?

One thing I have heard is that if you’re stationed on an aircraft carrier, you will almost never see the sun (unless you’re one of the few to be working on the flight deck). I think it’s a pretty claustrophobic existence, much like being in a sub (although I’m sure it’s not nearly as bad).

What are the most sought after jobs?
That really depends upon the “someone close” and what they want to do. Engineer rates work extremely hard in hot, humid environments belowdecks and are usually assigned scheduled checks of various shipboard mechanical equipment. Boatswain’s mates take care of quite a bit of the shipboard maintenance.. they know how to tie a lot of knots, how to scrape paint and repaint, and are in charge of things such as the hookups for underway replenishment .

Fire controlman work with badass guns such as the CIWS (aka “sea whiz”)

Electronic technicians work on a slew of equipment and are trusted with caring for pretty much anything that has to do with electronics.

There are quite a few rates out there.. “someone close” should take a look and research the ones that look interesting to him/her.

What should a person considering joining up know?
Your rack (bunk) will be pretty small.. get used to sleeping in tight quarters and if at all possible, do not get the bottom rack as everyone above you will have a tendency to step on your rack as they climb up to theirs. Get the middle rack! =)

Don’t worry about getting lost on a ship .. you will become familiar with the layout.

Physical training is done on a personal level (except in a schoolhouse setting). The Navy’s perspective is that you can take care of your own physical training. If you fail to do so, you will fail the test .. at which point you will have to join the “fat boy” program.. which can potentially be very grueling.

Don’t have a soft skin. Sailors like to joke around, drink, and have an all around good time. If you can’t handle jokes at your expense than you have no business joining any military branch.

Promotion is based upon how much time you have in, how many awards you have, and most importantly how well you know your job. The more you know your job, the more you will excel.

You will stand shipboard watches. Usually 4 hours at a time.. and on average you will do this once per week or so. (depending upon the ship you are assigned to)

I could go on all day in this subject. If “someone close” would like to ask some more specific questions (via msg or w/e) I’d be happy to answer. I spent almost a decade as a squid.

What will the recruiter not tell a prospect that is important information?
Personally, I did not have any issues with my recruiter. He was very professional and didn’t keep any secrets. What he signed me up for is exactly what I did. There isn’t any general rule about recruiters as they are all different people. Some suck. Some don’t. If you don’t like the looks of one recruiter.. go to another.. there are offices all over the place.

What’s the most effective way to get in?
Effective how? Not sure what you mean by this.

What questions have I left out?
You didn’t ask about:
Wog Day
Sinkex (sorry about the buzzing, it is caused by the various shipboard radars, etc)
Duty Stations
Any of this
..and a lot of other things..

As I mentioned above.. if you have more specific questions, I’d be happy to answer via msg rather than filling up this entire screen with info.

It depends on the job and demand. There are jobs that are mostly shore, some are mostly ship, and some have an equal rotation. Some jobs are physical labor, there office jobs etc. I would choose a job that can be used when one gets out, of course. Some navy schools convert to college credits, for example.

I don’t know what is in demand at the moment.

Recruiters are only salesman, I wouldn’t bother asking them deep questions because they may lie so I would ask someone already in who has been in for awhile.

You already know of the benefits and security. The rest is inconvenience some civilians aren’t used to: living with little things and small space on a ship, having to follow orders, even from the dumbasses etc.

Its hard on relationships because of so many deployments.
Tell them not a screw up. Its not a regular job that you can quit. The only way you get out is either, do your term and leave or you get medical discharge or you get pushed out by getting a dishonorable discharge. A dishonorable discharge can really screw up your life for while. Its almost as bad as getting prison time. Many future employers will be former military or have love ones in the military and they don’t care for people who get booted out.

I think a recruiteer would be glad to answer most of your question. I suggest you talk to several different ones to get a cross section.

My son thought he was prepared for the Navy by being a member of U S Naval Sea Cadets and working his way through the ranks for several years. It turned out he made a mistake, and was (fired) asked to leave the Navy after three years. His discharge is not dishonorable but rather, unsuited for Military Service – the same wording they use for gay people.

Negative Nancy x 2.

If you are the type of person who is smart enough to: stay away from drugs, not drink and drive, be where you’re supposed to be on time, etc… then you won’t be getting “fired”. There are very specific guidelines for separating someone from service. If someone got separated.. they did something wrong or they were unable to follow orders.

Suffice it to say that for me… of the dozens of jobs I’ve had during my lifetime.. the Navy is the one I miss the most. Yes there were hard working days! Yes there were days I didn’t like it at all! But there were so many more days that were amazing. One of the decisions I regret the most during my life was getting out.

Why did I get out? Because I was still young and dumb. I had no idea what I had. I wanted to be free to go where I wanted and wear what I wanted to wear and become a millionaire on my own. I was very foolish and I had my head in the clouds. I failed to see the benefits I had been granted (which became painfully obvious afterwards).

The next question I usually get is “why don’t you go back in?”...
Well, now I’m on another adventure.. one that is equally rewarding… just a little less fun.