Nuclear School

[meryl (ship 09 division 208)]

Hi. I recently joined Navy for Moms.  My son is finishing high school this year and is in the deferred entry program. He took the ASFAB, scored well and was encouraged to sign up for the nuclear program, which he did.  He is getting cold feet and is fearful that he "can't cut" the nuclear program. Any suggestions on how we can encourage him? His dad and I think the Navy would be ideal for him.

[Ginny__K'sProudMom]

wow...you are all awesome and reading all of your posts make me feel soooo much better. My son is a high school senior right now -- 4 years of high school NJROTC. He is enlisted in the DEP for NUKE. He ships off to boot camp 7/20/10. He too is EXACTLY as you describe most NUKE recruits. He is a solid "C" student and I know he can do so much better, loves computer and video games, even likes to create them, he is not exactly a social butterfly, kind of quiet and shy but well liked by his peers. I know he is having mixed emotions, I think moslty because of the unknown. I am wondering if there we can do now to help prepare him? Its not like he is an avid reader, doesnt spend alot of time studying...etc. He knows Nuke school will be very hard and I think right now he is taking things easy because he knows how hard things will be for him very soon. He may be even doubting his ability to get through NUKE school. I tell him its up to him to apply himself but I also tell him that the NAVY would not have offered him this opportunity if he was not qualified. Am I right? He is truly has a "senioritis" mentality. This thinking concerns me, because I feel he could be doing more to prepare himself so he is not too shocked. I beleive he is looking forward to finally getting out of high school. Any words of advise on what he can be doing now to prepare? Also, during NUKE school, do the recruits earn college credits? any advise would be very helpful

[Michdang]

Relax. Just enjoy him. The Navy will get him up and running just fine. My son was the same, and kinda antsy because it was delayed entry til the February after he graduated. He just wanted to get on with it. Your son is very aware his life is going to be totally different come July. He has enough pressure with that and just getting thru school and knowing everyone will be gone and off on their own ways. He has a lot on his plate right now, even tho it may not seem like it. My advice to you, step back, look at him, enjoy him, soak him up with your eyes. Because boy you are gonna miss him. Smile at him, tell him how proud you are of him - just because, no particular reason. Cuz the person living with you for the next six months you will never see again. Next time you see him at boot camp graduation, you know he is your son, he looks like your son, but he is this new and improved, version. Its fabulous, but bittersweet - because there is no turning back the clock to this indecisive, scared kid that is walking around your house now. Enjoy the ride, it is an exciting one.

[pmgcakes]

Hi Ginny... I think the "Senioritis" is a good thing, make me think that he is ready to move onto the next stage of his life. My Son was the same way, so it is amazing to me that he is preparing to do another 18/24 mo. of School. I have been trying to do research on the college credits as well, this is what I have found:
"The American Council on Education (ACE) has verified the extensive nature and unsurpassed quality of the Navy’s nuclear propulsion training program by recommending up to 77 semester hours of college credit.", My understanding and Im still researching this is that: the hours are not "automatically" given, and 77 are not enought for a Associates degree in Nuclear Technology, Also, they will not able to take the extra courses needed while they are at NNPTC, but they should be able to complete that, after they get there duty assignments.... its up to them to follow thru and get the extra schooling needed. ( i will let you know if I find any additional info...) As for Preparing himself, what we are doing in the house now is focusing on physical fitness, My Son too is a Computer junkie.....He has dropped almost 30lbs (6'4" and now 209lbs, his BMI was too high for meps so he had no choice, if he came in under 211 he didnt need to do waist/neck measurements) Now he needs to build his upper body strength, and increase his cardio. 17 to 19 yrs old are in the category required to have the most physical ability within the least amount of time. when he gets to boot camp, we dont want him falling behind because he wont be ready for PRT (physical readiness test) . "mentally" As I said in my early post that the navy will teach them everything they need.
You are absolutely correct... he would have never been offered the Nuke contract if he didnt look good "on paper".. I know that doesnt sound right, but the people (navy) making the selections are looking at the high school transcripts, asbav test scores, nuke test (if applicable) medical records, security clearance..., they dont know our son's likes, dislikes, character, personality etc....

[Maureen]

PMG, where are you finding the info on credit hours? I wonder how those hours could be applied for my son (he just finished power school) since he already has a BS in biology? Could that be enough to get him a second BS?

[BarbaraJoe'sMom]

My son is currently in A school, he signed up for the DEP NUKE program after one semester in college. He fits the 'profile' I see listed in this posting over and over. Bright, active, always scored high on math APT tests. Got average to above average grades in high school without even trying, always knew he could do better, but wasn't motivated. Didn't know what he wanted to do with his life. Always excelled in sports, loves video games, especially ones like world of warcraft. Very competitive, does this sound like your kid?

I was very worried about him because he poo pooed my warnings about boot camp, I think his expectations were off. He thought boot camp stunk, but doesn't everyone? He learned how to survive it - great advice - volunteer early.

He called me after his first exam in GC very excited that he scored so well, I don't think he had that much confidence in himself. I have grown to believe that the Navy, especially this NUKE program is his saving grace. I'm not sure he would have had the dicipline to go through college on his own, but he is doing very well in this program.

Of course he says his last exam wasn't so great, but he is more than 1/2 way through the 24 week EM training. It's a lot of work, he says he's working a lot, but that isn't necessarily bad. The NAVY wants these kids to succeed. If they didn't think he had it in him, they wouldn't offer it. It's a very intensive program, which also means that the NAVY is spending a lot of money on them, they are an investment that they want to protect. I think that he likes the fact that he's getting paid to learn instead of paying to learn.

[NicksMom-Nuke-MM- ELT Training]

Wow- thanks everyone here for all your comments they are so encouraging. My son is in Boot camp now and is headed to Nuke A school after PIR on 3/5. I am hoping the maturity he gains at BC will help him be more focused on his courses at Nuke school. He did 1 1/2 semesters at college and wasn't really putting in that much effort.

Ginny- it is my understanding that they are in school about 18 months and will earn the equivalent of 77 credit hours of nuclear engineering courses. They need to work out how they get actual credit with A college that recognizes the Navy's program to complete the rest of the degree. If your son is taking any Physics or Calculus now in High School that should help him when he gets to A school.

[Casey~ Ryan's Wife, Nuke ELT MM2]

Yes yes and yes to what everyone's saying :) Ryan was really worried too, both before and during Boot Camp, that he wouldn't do well in Nuke school. He's incredibly smart, but he was worried about dropping out and leaving me and him with an undecided future (I'm in grad school - no "real" job yet). Right now I'm proud to say he's ranked 3rd (sometimes 4th) out of 300ish in his class at Power School!

I was a Marine brat for the first 21 years of my life, and now a Navy wife... I'd like to offer this little two cents' worth that I tell my friends and other N4Ms women when they start to worry about military life. Especially if they have no experience whatsoever with military living - I'm sure it can be very unnerving. However, while I'm not blind and I know that military life is different than civilian life in many ways, I like to direct attention to the ways that it's a lot LIKE civilian life!

- In a lot of jobs, you may be sent halfway around the world "on business". In the military it's "on deployment".
- You may be moved to a few different places over the years, especially if you land a certain promotion or move closer to a new job within the same company - in the military, it's just called PCS-ing (Permanent Change of Station).
- You will most likely have a boss that chews you out if you screw up (in the Navy it's a Captain's Mast), but also gives you praise when you do well.


However, unlike a lot of civilian jobs, you will be honored on July 4th, people may pay for your meals if you're in your "work attire", you get amazing health/car/dental insurance, an $80,000 bonus on top of what you already make if you sign up for 2 more years after your 6-year contract expires, discounts at innumerable businesses, if you live on base you won't pay utilities, etc. etc.

Hope that helps, if there's any fear of living a military life as opposed to a "normal" civilian life. Focus on the similarities - you may find that there are more than you thought, and that can be very helpful/calming! :)

[Michdang]

Just an FYI the military bonus for the nukes was dropped down to 40,000.00. Something Obama changed.

[PhillyBeth]

1) The current SRB for nukes maxes out at $75,000.00 (http://www.navycs.com/blogs/2010/01/22/navy-srb-guidance-as-of-22ja...)
2) President Obama has nothing whatsoever to do with the bonus levels - the Needs of the Navy rule here with a limited amount of responsibility laid on Congress and the Senate where overall funding levels are set.

If you believe our armed forces are underfunded (I believe they are largely due to 8 years of neglect and procurement corruption) look carefully at your Senator's and Representative's voting records and then do the right thing this November.

[Michdang]

my son was notified by his officers, that it was changed, just passing on who told him and what was said to him, that it was cuts obama made.

[PhillyBeth]

How sad (and possibly criminal) if officers are lying to the men they command and politicizing the actions of their Commander In Chief. Encourage your son to carefully read the relevant NAVADMINs.

Interestingly, for fiscal 2009, the last year for which the previous administration was responsible, SRB actually ran out of money in June: http://www.navycs.com/blogs/2009/06/11/navy-srb-suspended-until-2010

In any case, the President has most definitely not made any cuts in the SRB program. If you read the guidance document you will see that it is dependent on congressional authorization and of course The Needs of The Navy.

So far President Obama has been the best thing to happen to the military in a decade. He's asked for increases in most areas (which Congress doesn't always approve), VASTLY improved funding for healthcare, particularly in regards to wounded veterans (remember the VA hospital scandals under the last administration?) and improved a wide range of dependent support issues.

Here are some actual facts for FIscal 2010, the first year for which President Obama is responsible: http://www.defense.gov/news/2010%20Budget%20Proposal.pdf

And here are the actual facts for Fiscal 2011:
http://comptroller.defense.gov/budget.html
http://www.defense.gov/news/FINAL%20PRESS%20RELEASE%20v3%20%201.pdf

[Michdang]

Well I'm not about to get into a political debate here on this thread or any other. I am just passing on the information that was given to him firsthand. Sorry for going off thread Aurora, hope all is well with the decisions and cold feet. Keep us updated.