CTN

I texted with my son last night and he is really ready to be home.  I think it's hard for him to be at Corry when all these other job classes come & go and he's still there.  He doesn't graduate til July - I'm a little worried about him.  I hope he doesn't give up.

Karen - I thought it was halarious too.  Not sure if you know this, but with colored blind people, if they stands at like a 11 O'clock angle above the object (say you computer screen is at a 90 degree angle, you look down at the screen at 85 degrees), then he will actually be able to read it. 

Something like this picture except the screen is facing you... (just like 5 degrees away)

But looking at the screen at a normal 180 degrees (if the screen is 90 degrees) he will never know what it says...

Something like this picture...

 This is how people cheat on the colored blind test, thus why they have you 10 feet away...   Weird how the body works....

Kelly - Everyone needs to recharge their batteries.  I'm not sure where you are from, but my nephew comes back to Colorado once or twice every month (he's trying to keep a long term relationship going).  Last week he took his GF to a concert here, this week he's taking her to prom. 

All he does is puts in an "Out of Bounds" chit saying he's going home for the weekend.  It only cost $240.00 round trip.  What else does he spend him money on? Nothing. So he spends it flying home and spending time inside his GF.   (I bet you thought I would end that last sentence with "House" huh?) 

Hello,

 I've not posted before. I've just been following and gleaning information.

My son is 3 weeks from graduation and then on to Ft. Meade. He has been in the navy for about 14 months. He started as a SEA L candidate and was doing very well.  After 2 bouts with pneumonia and getting a severe foot infection when a stingray got him at the beginning of an ocean swim he was rolled back medically to another class and faced repeating the previous 6 weeks of training (or hell as I called it). He made the decision to leave BUD s and look for something else with the idea of trying again(for BUD s) when he was older and well. CTN was available and even though he knew it was a tough school he also knew it gives lot's of good options after the Navy. He also has an interest in trying to eventually get attached to a SEA L team as their tech guy. He realizes going back to BUD s probably won't happen since it's unlikely the Navy would allow it after sinking the money into training him for CTN.

 He's really stepped up and learned how to persevere through some tough things. First Buds and now CTN. He has learned how to budget his time and study, study, study. BUDs taught him how far he could go physically and mentally. He has matured a lot through it all.

 His Grandmother, Aunt and I are going down for his graduation. When he gets to Meade he'll only be about 1 1/2 hour away from us. Looking forward to it. I tell him everything I learn here about CTN. Thanks for the information.

Prov2324mom

Sounds like our sons are in the same boat. My son was also a spec ops start and ended up in CTN. Did your son PIR 4/23/10?

northchannel & momoffour,

 Nice to talk to others with son's in the same situation. Mine PIR'd 4/9/10. Seems like a long time ago. He had a lot to deal with after BUD s, as you both know. There wasn't much encouragement when he got to Corry. In fact he was told by some that he would fail and they expected him to get in trouble  regularly. I'm sure there have been more than a few difficult Spec Ops guys but the attitude towards him and the others was really horrible. It made me mad but he took it in stride and said he's prove them wrong.(And he has) He said the school has been challenging but after BUD s he knew he could do anything if he worked hard. Not likely to get pneumonia or stung by a ray in CTN class so it was up to him if he finished or not! LOL

 Momoffour is your son already with a team or just working toward that?

Prov2324mom

When my son left spec ops he was really down in the dumps. Ended up choosing CTN because he had about 45 minutes on a Monday morning to decide between about 6 things. School was tough, but he made it through. He just checked into Ft. Meade this morning.

Clockard

Freedom? phoned me at 1:30 this afternoon that he was done for day. No room at barricks so in hotel for a week or so. Doesn't have to report in a.m. until 8. Yes he is enjoying no 5 a.m. starts or night study groups.

Northchannel- there may be some waiting before starting his job. My son got there in Oct and just started something beside a "keeping busy" job.

Prov2324mom- No, I believe that is probably a while away, hard to say how long.

Curious,

Does anyone know of a website which explains how one can get college credit and how the credit transfers as far as courses for the joint cyber analysis course. My son tells me that it is the equivalent of 23 lower division credit hours plus 4 upper division credit hours. Now that he is at Ft. Meade, would like to map these credits plus some stuff he earned prior to enlisting into at least an associate degree program.

North - Here is the link...(since I know clockard has been missing them ~ha) 

https://www.navycollege.navy.mil/smart_info.cfm

but the bottomline is a sailor can tell their parents alot of stuff about how many credits they have earned, but it's alot of bullsh*t (Navy term)...  You only get it for the schools that are offering those credits.  So lets say the college that is offering the entire amount is some place in Alaska, then you must go to that college in Alaska.  Not all the credits transfers to all colleges.   Sailors always get big head thinking they will receive those credits, but I bet only about 5% ever go on to getting there AS or BS degree.  I've beening b*tching (another Navy term) at my kid to get off his butt and get his degree, but he hasn't yet...

I guess it's time for me to read my book again...

Here is what the offical Navy site lists for degree opportunities for CTN's...

https://www.navycollege.navy.mil/rates/rates.cfm?rate=CTN

Karen - That was an OUTSTANDING video!!!! 

Thanks for the link Craig. It's saved! 

Enjoyed your video Karen. I would be super proud too!! Heck, I'm proud of them and I don't even know them other than the pride I feel as Navy Mom for all Sailors.

:-)

Thank you all for the support.. My son will graduate BC on 6/3/11 not quite a sailor yet, but almost there.. So worried about that, but can't wait to see him.. I am very proud of him and what he has accomplished thus far and his decision to join the Navy..

Do you happen to know if most SR's that go to CTN are a grad&go situation?? also are they most always land lovers assigned to a base or are they stationed on ships etc?

That is why he asked me to bring his cell and IPod with me to graduation.. Will he be able to have it then or strickly when we meet him at the airport?.. As far as calling and texting.. don't think that will be a problem after BC.. LOL

They have to pay for thier own transport don't they?.. Dang six months, but it will be worth it for him.. Hopefully he'll get the 7/4 .. do they get labor day or when would be the next long weekend?

Patti A (CTN mom); momoffour (ship11 div 119); and clockard.. All of you are fantastic with the straight forward answers and providing the information us newbees ask.. along with the encouraging words..it means a lot...

Also your joking around with each other, puts a smile on face :o)

Thank You

I'll have to look up the milage to Jacksonville where my older son lives.. bet it is over 300 miles though.. Oh well the phone and hearing his voice is better than what I'm getting now.. My older son is getting pestered all the time..

I had to laugh this morning when he called (my oldest that is).. called me really early.. a lot earlier than is his normal.. in which he doesn't call every day.. anyway I asked if everything was alright because of the hour.. he replied "just thought I'd call & get a jump on your call, which I know will come." of course I said me.. naaaaaaaaa I wouldn't do that and we both laughed.

Yes he does.. there is 11 years difference in age between them, but now that they are older they are buddies, which makes it nice..

I don't think it matters the radius anyway.. I'm pretty sure from when I lived in Panama City.. that it is farther than the guesstimated radius..

Wow.. Is he deployed yet.. I might have missed it before if you told me..

Patti A Good to know.. He packed everything he wanted in a box before BC, but you should see the box.. :o)..

Umh... I must've missed something.. What does CTN is number one for a rating mean?

Giraffe - Welcome to the group.  What Patti means is out of all the ratings (jobs) in the Navy, CTN is #1.  Which if totally correct.  CTN's have so much more opportunities than the regular Navy.  However, the rating will show a slow down in advancement opportunity for this cycle coming up, but because so many sailors put in for the recent early out, the advancement opportunity will go back up quite a bit. 

Like clockard said, he can put in an "Out-of-Bounds" chit and come home for the weekend.  My nephew is going to CTT "A" school and flies home about every 3 weeks.  The only time after boot camp that a sailor normally can go home is if they are in the Thanksgiving or Christmas PIR group.  My son was in the Christmas PIR goup... God know how that happen... 

momoffour - I would love to discuss why CTN's are #1 compared to Nukes. 

Both rating presently are getting way too many people in them.  It's because of our sucky economy.  It use to be they couldn't get enough Nuke, now they seem to have just a little bit too many. Just like CTN's.  Both Nukes and CTN's have the pride thing going on. Those that like it, like it. Those that don't, don't.

Just to give you some of my thoughts...

I'm a retired Navy guy. I went to my basic electronics class on the Nuke "A" school base in Orlando. My room mates were both Nukes. Yea, they were a weird breed, with the calculators hooked to their belts and constant studying.

But then I went to my ship. While most of us "normal" sailors (I was a CTM) were on liberty, drinking and chasing women, the Nukes were still on the ship doing their qualification and other stuff that Nukes do. In most of the ports,  I was receiving maximum liberty, and could go on tours, while the Nuke stayed behind.  Nukes were always the last ones to leave the ship, and the 1st ones that had to return because of their job. 
For me, I joined the Navy to see the world (and to chase women), and I did. I had the best time ever. For the Nukes, these guys never saw much pleasure in their liberty time because they were putting in 14 hour days. However, these guys have great pride in their job!
If you like extremely hard work, little appreciation, long hours, and little liberty, then people go Nuke. But if you want to see the world, go on tours while in-port in different countries, and to go drinking and have a wild time, then go any rating except Nuke.
This is just my opinion, but I'm sure most of the Nuke would agree.  Clockard, your thoughts?

Can anyone tell me if the bleep sound I'm hearing in the background is chat room? I don't follow it, but was wondering..

Also, I just found out my sons Div in BC was pushed and what it meant.. sounds brutal. Did any of your sailors have this

clockard.. I thought that was what it was.. I tried a chat room a couple times, but it moved way to fast for me.. but then again there were a lot of people chatting.. It got confusing.. so I had to give it up LOL..  I'll have to remember the double click for future reference..

momoffour.. does that mean my future CTN will have to wait for classes to start?