Corpsman Moms

Welcome Charlotte's Mom, I'll take the first stab at your questions, but if you haven't already you should join the A school for Corpsman group where your answers can be answered by moms (and dads) who are where you are now

http://www.navyformoms.com/group/sailorsinaschoolforcorpsmen

A School is now located in San Antonio, Texas.

It is 14 weeks long; 12 weeks class and 2 weeks clinicals.

C School is determined by "the needs of the Navy" and your sailors' class ranking in A School. The higher the class rank, the more chance of getting a C School billet (job). Some classes have more C School openings than others, my son's class for example only had 7 C School openings. So study, study, study in A School for the best chance to get one!

Good luck and strap yourself in for the roller coaster ride!

Most corpsman go to FMTB (see link above) either at Camp Pendleton or Camp Lajuene....that way if they are ever needed (see John's Needs of the Navy comment!) to go greenside with a Marine battalion they are ready trained. Some go directly to C Schools, some are offered C School after FMTB...

 A lot of links above for you to take a look at...welcome!!

Wow Darsete!  17 years is something to be proud of!!  My son's been in for one year and loves it so far! 

Marine Docs hate MEU cruises, there's nothing to do but run Marines up and down stairs and around the deck dodging sailors working...ports seemed fun from the amount of money I saw spent on those days! Even now, when my son is being offered any C school, he tells them "I have a job, I'm a corpsman. I like being a corpsman." To him, that's FMF with the Marines. Who knows how they think?

Hi all.. My son is in A school and I to heard that there is a wait for FMTB and they are directing them to C school...once my son hears this I know he will not like it,, He really wants to go straight to Marines,, that is the whole thing he wanted when he signed.  Of course I wont mention this to him.. in case its not true and I have learned to let him tell me things. :)  

So my question is.. IF there is a wait for FMTB and there is not enough openings in C school......what would be the other option?  If you normally have to score high to get a C school then how do they have all these openings now?

Independent Corpsman info

Basically, it's training as Phys Assistant, kinda generally speaking...one that can do pretty much anything and does it under the supervision of a doctor. Requires more years and rank in the Navy...

Thanks,, trying to understand all the lingo I run across..

As wonderful as the opportunity is, we all have to realize that this education and experience does not qualify them for squat after leaving the military because there is no comparable civilian certification of it. There are experienced FMF and other corpsmen testifying in front of Congress right now sharing their experiences of not being able to find work after leaving a successful medical career in the Navy. Call your local community colleges and universities. Inquire if they have programs for vets leaving the military, allowing them to challenge courses they do not need, and a program to help them gain certification in the civilian world for jobs many have been doing for years. I think California has some, but most states do not. It's one reason my son is on the fence about staying in or getting out...no employment for his skills since he is not certified by any one but the USN. And he is an instructor! That stinks.

I don't know if it's trash talking but yes FMF corpsmen are know as the toughest MF's around (as told to me by a Marine vet of Viet Nam). And that appeals to many young men....

TDM - I sure hope they pass some resolution to be certified outside of the Navy.  It just boggles my mind that so much money is spent on training these Sailors for their respective jobs and yet, the military is the only one that sees fit to employ them.  Civilian life is not easy to adjust to (my husband was prior service Army and swore for a year after he got out he was going back in!!).  My son has four years left on his current contract, so I'll keep my fingers crossed something happens before that time.

Welcome Patrick's Mom!  Good for your son going on to C School!!

Patricks Mom

what C school is he going too? When did he find out his C school orders?

Re post-military civilian work - I believe Navy surgical technicians are qualified to work as same in hospitals.  I know one active-duty corpsman gal who is concurrently getting her RN at a community college, and her work on the wards at the Navy medical center was accepted in lieu of the "clinicals" requirement at the college.

If you go to http://www.indeed.com and enter 'corpsman,'you'll see such jobs as ER tech, critical care tech, and medical assistant that accept prior corpsman service as qualification

Licensing is different in every state for every Medical career.  If I become an RN in the state of Iowa, and then move to New Mexico, I have to become licensed again, which could involve more school, and sitting for another board exam.  My nephew just got out of the Air Force, and has it made.  When I went to college I had to pay all my college expenses and work to cover my living expenses.  My nephew gets his tuition paid for and get $1,000 a month for living expenses.  I do acknowledge that the women and men who serve are country should receive some credit for their work experience when they leave the military and join the civilan world, though.

My mother was a RN for over 50 years...as a Navy wife she was licensed in several states, and kept those licenses up for her whole life even after her retirement, she simply wasn't going through that again if she ever decided to move to another state.

Karenmjm, you need to understand that these corpsman are coming out of the military with YEARS of experience. I'm not talking about just the young corpsman who come in for 2-4 years and then leave the military and use their vet benefits for their education a benefit every vet deserves, in my opinion. There are Navy corpsmen who have served 20 years doing their jobs, they deserve to be civilian certified immediately. They are professionals. They laid their lives on the line in many cases for this country. They should not be required to back pedal their professionalism even if someone might be thinking "they have it made " by living and taking care of a family on $1000 a month after doing the job professionally for 20 years. I guess it's very generous of you to "acknowledge that the women and men who serve are country should receive some credit for their work experience when they leave the military and join the civilian world, though." 

I'll tell my son and his fellow Docs to keep that thought in their heads the next time they are on the side of the road in Afghanistan performing triage on a patrol of bleeding Marines, while they're dodging bullets from the snipers.

By the way, I paid my way my whole life, and I do not begrudge our military or vets one red cent. They've earned it, they earn it every single day. You would not have the opportunity to go to college, work a job and support yourself in this country without the US military paying your way by laying their lives down for you since 1776.

One of the things about this transition to the civilian world, and the pointless delays in putting highly trained, experienced professionals to work, is the absolute WASTE!  When you hire a corpsman fom the military, you are not only getting the medical-experienced person who has a proven and well documented track record, you are hiring someone who has served his/her country and has EARNED a spot.  Colleges do credit transfers all the time with each other.  There is no reason for this to be any different.  All these certifications and trainings should be listed, rated, and used to put trained and deserving perrsonnel to work.  THAT'S ALL THEY WANT - TO WORK.    

Wonder how Head Related Trauma is different than TBI ( Traumatic Brain Injury)...my nephew is a brain injury survivor, brain injury is so intricate, so hard to detect sometimes.

eurekamom, you're right, they have earned their rights to a place at the table.

Jacqueline...my point exactly. There should be no gray areas, this should be part of a national movement, the transition out of the military, the ability to challenge courses, or take state boards right off the bat, determine if any areas are lacking in skill, academics or techniques and focus on those areas to take the exam again.

My dad was an aircraft mechanic, he came out of the Navy after 30 years and was able to join a welder's union. They tested him, I assume...and he must have passed. Kinda how it should work to me. My mom, when she went back to work as an RN after his death, took a 6 week orientation course at the county hospital (in a Navy town, set up for military wives originally!) and took her licensing test and went back to work.

If this was available in the 1950's, why not now?

TDM. . .it's good to have a passion in life and a cause to champion, my hats off to you.  I'll first say that any military personnel who has been asked to be in a hostile area or has been injuried (physically, mentally, or emotionally) as a result of their service to our country deserves the very best of everything.  I believe that to be a non-negotiable.  My family has many members who have served their country, my father was in the navy, I had 4 uncles in the army and an uncle in the Airforce, a nephew in the Airforce, a husband who is retired navy (I married him after his retirement from the service) and now a son in the navy.  Here's my family legacy from the military. . .my 2 uncles and my nephew left the military with addiction issues.  The one uncle who served in Vietnam (this one doesn't have addiction issues) has, as my family kindy says, a good dose of crazy.  My husband, is eligible for free medical care the rest of his life, gets half of the amount I make in monthly wages in retirement benefits from the Navy, and was able to complete a college degree that didn't cost him a cent, while working full-time at another job.  I have a four year college education myself, that I earned without any help from my parents, and earned my degree while being a single mother.  In my profession, if I chose to move to another state, I have to sit for another exam and get certified again, because every state has different criteria for licensing in my profession.  Yes, the women and men who serve our country deserve acknowledgement and credit for the education they received while in the military.  The point I was trying to make is leaving the military is like moving from one state to another.  You simply, again, have to prove you are qualified for the job you want to perform, I believe is you can pass the licensing exam for the state you wish to reside in, you should then be considered qualified to perform the job.

"The point I was trying to make is leaving the military is like moving from one state to another.  You simply, again, have to prove you are qualified for the job you want to perform, I believe is you can pass the licensing exam for the state you wish to reside in, you should then be considered qualified to perform the job." (sic)

Unfortunately, karenmjm, that is not the case, which is why I've "championed" this "cause"...my son's future after he leaves the military. I actually just considered it being a military mom, but that's just me.

 To my knowledge, with the exception of possibly California, there are few states that will allow the "education" and training received in the military to count towards any degree or the opportunity to take any licensing exam without going to civilian colleges...and the civilian colleges that allow any challanges to their courses are few and far between. That is why I simply asked folks on this group and on other groups I admin to please check their areas to see how their community colleges and universities handle this situation. For those that follow through, thanks so much!

It would depend on the specialty (C school) tranining, too.  I just looked into 'pharmacy tech' (HM8482) as an example to see what I could find out.  The national certification board - PTCB, https://www.ptcb.org - allows a corpsman who had that rating to take their licensing exam for $29.  Average PT salary offered on indeed.com is currently $43,000.  

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Hi Everyone - Just reading about the college equivaliency info.

Another option is for the guys/gals to go to the base university. Whatever campus they have should be able to take all military classes and give them credits for them. While the guys are in the military their classes are paid for as long as they get a C or above, they do have to pay for books. So technically they could have their degree or part of it before they get out and not even touch their GI bill. This way they have a certification to take with them. It stinks that the military doesn't give these guys some kind of certificate to take with them. If they chose to work for the government there is tons of understanding for what they have done there. Hope that info helps. Prayers to everyone and their kiddo's.

Hi Ladies, I am new here. My son just graduated bc on May 20th. So, I guess this is my next group to join..My son is in San Antonio..Just trying to get info on what's going on with his new journey.If there are other groups that relate to A school or Corpsmen would you please let me know.

And just say that graduation was awesome!

Thank you Ladies!

Have a great day!

Welcome, Kelly! check the links above the discussion area right above this comment box, lots of information there, and links to some of the other groups around that have corpsmen's moms in them!

So your son did "grad and go"? That's one thing we're trying to figure out with the new school in SA, when do they leave Great Lakes to go to SA...? It's a frequent question lately!

Hi Ladies..1wind, yes I did. It is so nice to be able to be in a group with other moms. I met so many friends on here and got to meet them in GL at the meet and greet. It was awesome!

Texasdoc, yes my son was a grad n go..He left after grad at 4:00am to the airport and waited until 11:00 am to fly out. From what I have been told that is the way they do it..

Well, I just wanted to say HI! And I am thankful for Navy for moms!

Have a wonderful day!