Nuke School Questions!!!

[Skins Mom (Ship 12 Div 186)]

Hi All! My son is getting ready for PIR, 5/14/10. It will then be off to A School in Goose Creek. I have so many questions! He is a Grad N Go I still don't know if we will get to spend time together before he leaves, so I am asking the "MOMS". When or how can I find out if he will have liberty for a few hours before he leaves Great Lakes? What can he expect upon arrival at Goose Creek? Does school start right away? If not what do they do until it does start? I am planning on taking his cell phone, laptop, I-pod and possibly some clothes to the airport when he leaves for A school. Is it truly OK for him to take this stuff with him and arrive with these items? When will I be able to ship his other personal belongings to him. The kid wants his stuff driven down there in his car!! I know that he can not wear civilian clothes for awhile or drive his car. Where the heck would he park his car??!! What about a TV for his room?  What items are they allowed to have there? And when? Also can he use his cell phone & call people during down time, or do they have to earn that? Also what exactly is an EM N/SS? He told me his rank would change from SR to Fireman after graduating Battle Stations. What the heck does that mean???  This is just the tip of the iceberg as far as questions go! Any input would be greatly appreciated! I think I need a handbook for this!!
I have checked out a lot of the forums for answers but a lot of times run into the post being a year or 2 old!

[Anti M]

This is the group you want:

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

In the meantime, I can try a few, my nephew is a nuke at prototype. Actually, he's home on emergency leave.

He may not have much time after PIR, the nukes usually leave that day. He'll know more toward the end of boot camp.

A schools will not start right away, but he will have other classes. There's a good timeline on the group. He will be on hold at some time, but they keep them busy.

He can have his things. He may want to settle in before getting his TV and such. He will have to "phase up" to earn liberty privileges; he will not be able to wear civvies for several weeks. I know there's been some problems with cars, so he will have to ask when he can have one. There have been recent changes according to my nephew, but I can't recall what that might be! Certainly not right away. He can call during his down times. Texting works well. I stay in touch with my nephew through Facebook.

Sr is an E-1 (paygrade). FN is is an E-3. He gets to skip E-2! There are Seamen, Firemen and Airmen (and a few others), all E-3 of different kinds. Fireman does not mean fighting fires, although all sailors are trained to do that. It applies to rates which work more with engineering/below decks (roughly, very roughly). EM is for Electrician's Mate. The "N: is for nuclear. SS is for sub service (I think). Battle stations is like the final hands on exam in boot camp. Very tough, and what makes them advance from recruit to sailor!

[EMC (SS)]

Ma'am,
I hate to tell you, but you can't take him to the airport, he will be dropped off by bus from boot camp under orders. Unless the policy has changed then he won't be able to have any of those personal items with him at boot camp, so I don't know how you would get them to him up there. There is nothing in a policy against having any of those things in Charleston. He will have an address to provide for you once he gets here that you can send packages to. However, we encourage them not to build up huge piles of stuff, because when they arrive on their ship they will be living onboard is going surface or in another BEQ if going Submarines. This means that they will have no where to put it all other then getting themselves a storage unit out in town.
As far as his room goes it will be two people to a room with 2 rooms (4 people) sharing a bathroom. The rooms are about 15 ft by 10 ft.
He will go to a week of indoctrination when he gets here that will explain what the process will be. I posted a discussion about the standard process for this under the misperceptions forum. Please take a look at those.
He will not be allowed to drive the car until he gets to phase 2 NMT (Naval Military Training). This normally takes 4 weeks, but will depend upon his military bearing (behavior) and if he passes the PFA (physical fitness assessment). Since he will have to take the car to get base stickers and command stickers to park it on base, do not bring it down until he can drive it otherwise he will have no where to keep it. The same idea applies to civilian clothing as he will not be allowed to wear it anywhere until after he is on Phase 2 NMT. Frankly, the easiest answer would be to tell him when he comes up to get it, he can drive it all back with him. Provided that he has a good plan he will be allowed to travel home and return while on liberty or leave.
Fireman is an E-3 (sleeve has 3 red slashes), Seaman is blue, Airman is green and Construction-man is light blue. Fireman (FN) is a engineering or damage control rating. However, to fully explain the process he is spot promoted to E-3 provided he passes A school, should he fail out for any reason he will be reduced to E-1. Once he graduates from A school (24 weeks) he is promoted to E-4 (Petty Officer) and as an electrician's mate his title would be EM3 at that point.
He will not be officially assigned to submarines until he graduates from Prototype, as that is when he is assigned orders to a ship. Just because he volunteered submarines doesn't mean that he will be sent to one. Additionally, even if he is he won't be SS (Submarine Service) until he is warfare qualified onboard (12-18 months), until then he will be SU (submarines unqualified) but no one puts that after their name except on forms where it is required. Normally this is assigned to them at Sub School, but since Nukes don't go they have it as soon as assigned to a submarine.
A good reference for some of your questions would be a Blue Jackets Manual. You can purchase one thru Amazon, or ask your son to get a copy for you through the NEX (Navy Exchange) and send it to you. I hope this helped answer some of your questions.
Very Respectfully,
EMC (SS)

[Skins Mom (Ship 12 Div 186)]

Thank you for taking the time to clear some of this up for me! I just want to make sure that I am well informed and I think you have pointed me in the right direction! So many different answers, forums and websites that it gets confusing! I think that the car stays here! Lol! I will be checking out your discussion to get a better understanding of the whole process! Thanks again!

[Zephyr]

Appreciate your tips!

[Zephyr]

Hi there. Thanks for asking many of the questions that I'm wondering about myself. My son began at Goose Creek in Sept 2010, and I've had nearly zero feedback about his school, life, etc. So glad that we can now communicate via email. I know your post is old, however, I'd appreciate your feedback on what comfort/entertainment/electronic items he can have, how much space they have in dorms, and how to best support my sailor for a successful, happy Navy experience.

[JessicaB-Sailor Mom]

Zephyr have you joined the Nuke School group....there are a few to chose from.