Great Lakes A School Q&A

bex - Are you already here in SD?  Or does your spouse have orders coming here?  There are different application processes for each. 

Anti M

I informed my son of what you said and his response was: 

Start here:  HEAT  It's the Navy's Housing Early Application Tool.  Also, if you want "on base" housing, which is actually privatized housing, you can get the housing application here:  Lincoln Military Housing - San Diego

You have to go through the Navy housing office first, to get approval before you can get on the waitlist for Lincoln.  When you fill out the online form for HEAT, you will get an email with forms to download and some info in it.  Concentrate on getting together the HEAT stuff before worrying about Lincoln.  The HEAT office will go over your application and make sure it's all there and ready and will forward it to housing.  I loved that they sent me an email telling me they were doing it and gave me the name and phone number of the person they were sending it to.  They will give you a list of everything you need.  PM me if you have questions!  I also have a LONG discussion post on the wive/fiances/girlfriends page about our Do It Yourself move and how we did all that. 

Hello Ladies! So my husband just graduated boot camp this Friday! :) He's currently at his A school for Fire Control at Great Lakes. My plan is to head down there every other weekend or so to spend some time with him until we're able to move down there. I told him that I was thinking of staying at the Navy Gateway but he told me that he is not allowed to go there, does anyone know why that is??? 

Michelle, you can stay at  Navy Lodge.  

Riverlady.... seems as though he's made up his mind.  If there is new policy coming out of BUPERS about issuing orders to married students vs. unmarried students over housing of dependents, it would be good to know the source, and good to know this new information.  Information is useful to more than just the one sailor/couple, sharing hard facts which can be referenced with an instruction is priceless in planning.   Would he be willing to fill s in?

I know Great Lakes is the strictest A school in the Navy.  My husband and myself and my ET1 in Japan all went through A school there.  Not unfamiliar with how things go and how things change all the time.  

Thanks Angie. 

Anti M, thank you for helping. I will ask him to share the info...but might wait until our visit over the holidays and I will let you know what I learn.

Thanks Riverlady.  I asked on the AECF group too, in case others have heard.  I'm afraid I might start a panic with some of the wives, so I'm trying to be careful.  I don't always do that well.  

I hope your holiday is wonderful!  

Thanks for the help ladies! Just curious though, would they still not let him go to the Gateway even if he explains that he's wife and daughter are the ones staying there? I stayed at the Navy Lodge for PIR so I don't have a problem staying there again, I just want to know if there's any other options. 

@Michelle ... off limits is off limits, they won't care who or why.  Try the Navy Lodge, it is not off limits to them and is very family oriented.

My daughter is leaving from A School in January for Japan.  Can she apply for a passport somewhere on base?

Yes, although she may have to ask for them to process her civilian one as her orders won't require a passport.... good idea to have one, but some of the personnel folks can be oblivious to anything but what's on the paperwork

 Note: All Numbers Are 847-688-XXXX Unless Otherwise Listed or DSN 792.

My son is checking into GL A school on dec 22nd than will be on leave until jan 6th.  Do I need to bring an empty suitcase with me for his uniforms and stuff from bootcamp or will he leave most of it at A school?  What is he allowed to bring with him back from home to A school?  Does he need to bring any civilian clothes?  This is all so new to me, I feel like a dunce...Have all these questions already been asked somewhere on this page?  Thanks

rkstein...Your son will want certain items at A School. Especially considering he's about to experience a winter on the lake (it can get awfully windy). So, he will want some of his civvies. His uniform and military stuff will stay at A School and he'll have a place to lock it up. I have found it better to just let him mail stuff home once he figures out what he won't be needing.

Can Anyone me. Im looking into moving to the Great Lakes in Jan. b/c I am pregnant & my husband is there till April maybe even May & im due in March. We were going to try & get a waiver for them to let me move there & him stay with me. does anyone know how to go about doing this? What does he need to do on his part? if we cant do it that way we are just going to move me up there on our own. B/c I can dp whatever I want as a civilian correct?

Once your husband is in A school, he can find out of they will let him live offbase with you. He will put in a LIve Ashore package asking to stay in an apartment not the barracks.  If his school is not 20 weeks long, they'll probably say no.

 However, you can move there on your own and rent a place, it is America and no one will stop you.  Then he can spend time with you as he earns his liberty phases.  At first, it will be a few hours each day, and weekend days.  He should be able to spend weekend nights by February or so.  

Thanks, Angie and Anit M.  I think we will try to get the passport when she comes home at Christmas. I hope we can get it done before she goes back to GL.

I have a question about base housing in Great Lakes, how do they work? If my husband can't live with us could we still get base housing?? He's A school is more then a year. He most likely will have night classes so he might not be able to live with us but we still want to move to be closer to him. Since I'll pretty much be on my own with my daughter the majority of the time, I would prefer to live on base to feel safer since I don't know the area at all. 

I've got a question about the length of school for GSEs. Anyone who's had a loved one with this rate, can you tell me how long their A-school was? When will my husband know for sure how long his schooling is? Everything I find online has a different answer...

Thanks Rebecca. That's the same print out my husband had with his paperwork...though apparently he has the old version. The one you posted has been revised more recently and is an additional 5wks longer... and then someone else had sent me another link a while back saying it was even longer! (https://api.ning.com/files/33OVWmTQZqbS2XRng1YjcHCKXjCkCvpyxa0psUNY...*4afNLTu-aiajRqj9CN1N0AlNpBXiaqS*F*4PbCmtV2jZIGO/GSE.pdf) I was really hoping someone with experience knew for sure. :/

With an A school, expect it to be even longer than the official dates, they may be on hold waiting to class up, plus they have to go to indoc to learn about the base and liberty policies... always add on a few extra weeks.

Michelle, base housing isn't always on base.  It can be privatized housing just off base.  To get in, you must be on his orders and  they can assign you a unit, utilities included, and take all the BAH in return.  I have heard of very few (if any) A school wives using that option, most of them rent near the base, and pocket the leftover BAH.  Have you joined the fiances,wives and girlfriends group?  Some of the wives there could give you their firsthand experiences and advice.

My son is in A-School Great Lakes. He gets leave from 12/21 to 1/04....will he have transportation to airport? He has already made his flight plans and is getting a rental from airport when he arrives in our home state. I am unable to pick him up from airport due to I have to work. He hasn't let me know much information than that. I haven't heard from him in a few weeks! I'm certain he is very busy with his classes. His schooling is for MM!! He said he should graduate from A-School sometime in March! Will he get to come home before he is stationed anywhere? My daughter is due to have her baby the last of March! I am crossing my fingers he will be home for the birth of his first niece!! :) Any information would be greatly appreciated! Thanks! <3

He can sign up for on e of the base shuttles, they will be running several.

Yes, they often get to take leave after A school.  

Tammie - you may way to pass along to him that he will need a special chit to be allowed to drive.  My husband had to take a "Driving for Life" course and give them a copy of the certificate and his license.  The course is computer based and only takes a few hours to do.  I had originally thought that they were just not allowed to drive on base while in A School, but even when he came home, he could not drive at all.  We only lived about 2 hours away, so he came home most weekends when he could.  Once he got his chit approved, it was WAY easier, I didn't have to drive both ways!

Thanks for the info ladies! :)

I just got a letter from my husband in BC and he said he found out his A-school will be 20weeks - longer than we were originally told/expecting. Can anyone tell me - will the Navy pay to move my daughter and I there with him or will we have to wait for his first duty station? 

He's GSE rate. 

I've been trying to find out online for weeks how long his school is but every time I think I have an answer, I'm directed to yet another link that has a different time length. :/  I had asked my husband if he'd been given any information and one of his letters today said he'd been told it was 20wks. So then I just wondered about the move orders. I knew I could probably move on our own dime but wasn't sure if he met the min for the Navy to move us. If part of the school is self-paced, does that mean the 20 weeks is averaged, the shortest, or the longest amount of time?? 

One reason you can't find a concrete timeline, is GSE also attends ATT before beginning A school.  That is not factored in for some of the seat times given.  While everything is self-paced, they are in classes which must meet a timeline.  

How long is A school for Sonar Tech (surface)...here at GL .... he is just PIR tomorrow...

Thank you! At least now it makes a little more sense why I've seen so many different time lines. Anti M - what is ATT?

Apprentice Technical Training... like a prep school for all the surface ratings which deal with electronics.   Aviation ratings have it too, but they go to P-cola.  

If she is going to A school at Great Lakes, she will have Saturday and Sunday during the day, with a curfew each evening.  There's a slim chance she'll have duty, but it is very unusual.  

My son's PIR is 2/1, his girlfriends PIR is 2/8...so we will be staying at the Navy Lodge for the whole week...I understand that he will have "on base" liberty after classes every day, is that correct?  And what time do they usually get out of classes?

Hi my son's PIR will be on 1/4 and he will be staying in GL for A school.  I am curious if I can bring him his civilian clothes, cell phone and any other personal items when we come out from AZ.   Does anyone know if he will be able to take his personal items back with him then or if we will have to ship them later?

Thanks - Natalie

They usually don't begin their classes right away, they have indoc and may be on hold waiting to class up.  It varies a lot by the individual school commands.  Also, they will have duty part of the time (cannot leave the barracks except to go to the chow hall) and many schools have a night schedule.  There is no one simple answer, sorry.

Oh, and he cannot go over to RTC to attend his GF's PIR, not without specific and special written permission.  RTC is off limits to TSC students.  He will need to ask when he checks into his school about putting in a special request chit.

Does anyone here have a loved one in IC school? My son is in THU awaiting orders to "cross the street" and I was wondering if anyone had info on when the class will start?

Anti M:  thanks so much...hopefully I will learn more once I get a phone call!

GMA of a SR- my SR is still in BC, but has the same job. His job description said about 6 wks of ATT, probably plus some time waiting.

what time does leave start? my boyfriend's leave is from the 24th-27th and i'm pretty sure i've read on here that leave starts at 0600. does the time differ between people?

The time is pretty standard, however, they must pick up their leave papers and check out.  Because there are hundreds of other sailors doing the same thing at the same time at Great Lakes, it can take a few hours!  That's why it is never recommended for the student sailors to make early morning travel plans, and probably why you can't get him on the phone.

It is in the same geographic location,  although boot camp (RTC) and A school (TSC) are two completely different bases... "across the street" is how you'll hear it.

Hello everyone my son just went thru PIR on 12-21-2012 and will be attending Great Lakes on 1-6-2013.  I am looking forward to following this blog like I did for bootcamp.  I found it very helpful.