Commissioning Question

[hockeygirl]

I have learned of two additional commissioning (or at least I believe are commissioning) options that I could possibly take advantage of in place of (or in addition to?) NROTC or USNA. One is called NUPOC, which I have heard glowing responses to. The other called STA (Seaman to Admiral)- which I have just discovered this evening. In what situations do these programs benefit an individual? How might one determine which program is the correct one to pursue?

STA: http://www.sta-21.navy.mil/index.html
NUPOC: https://nupocaccessions.blogspot.com

Thank you for your advice?

 

[lucky8]

Well limited knowledge here, but STA21 is very hard to get into. You need to enlist and then excel and be accepted into that program. NUPOC is only for commissioning as a nuke officer, and while you get a stipend, you still have to pay for college.

 

[kinnem]

Navy was desperate for Nuke officers a few years back and I understand some folks were voluntold they were going that route. Don't know if it's still the case, but I guess as long as you have the academic prereqs of Calc, Physics, and who knows what, while still being well-rounded with leadership abilities, you should have a fair chance of being accepted.

 

[UHBlackhawk]

Navy was desperate for Nuke officers a few years back and I understand some folks were voluntold they were going that route. Don't know if it's still the case, but I guess as long as you have the academic prereqs of Calc, Physics, and who knows what, while still being well-rounded with leadership abilities, you should have a fair chance of being accepted.

I have not heard of this being done since the Rickover days. I know my brothers went to USNA back then, and the trick was to do well enough for flight school but not so well that you were "voluntold" for Nukes.

 

[AirsoftRanger]

I have not heard of this being done since the Rickover days. I know my brothers went to USNA back then, and the trick was to do well enough for flight school but not so well that you were "voluntold" for Nukes.

When I was in NROTC it was 'strongly encouraged' as a freshman to transfer to the technological institute and the engineering program. As a sophomore we were told the stories of the upperclassmen, who planned on majoring in EE, or programming, or mechanical engineering....that is until they were ushered in one by one to see Rickover and they all came out, to a man, as nuclear engineering majors...

 

[BDHuff09]

I have not heard of this being done since the Rickover days. I know my brothers went to USNA back then, and the trick was to do well enough for flight school but not so well that you were "voluntold" for Nukes.

The sub draft is still VERY MUCH alive and well. They only had 94 people put subs first in the class of 2017, and the community needed ~130 from USNA, so almost 40 people got drafted. It was so bad this year that they had to grab a few people who had putted subs 5th or 6th on their service selection preferences.

Apparently more people in the class of 2018 are interested in subs this year, so hopefully the community won't have as hard of a time filling their quota.

 

[hockeygirl]

The sub draft is still VERY MUCH alive and well. They only had 94 people put subs first in the class of 2017, and the community needed ~130 from USNA, so almost 40 people got drafted. It was so bad this year that they had to grab a few people who had putted subs 5th or 6th on their service selection preferences.

Apparently more people in the class of 2018 are interested in subs this year, so hopefully the community won't have as hard of a time filling their quota.

Yikes! As someone who really (thinks) they want to go Subs, would attending USNA vs NROTC change the statistics for sub commissioning? If not, how would one increase their odds while participating in NROTC, other than the obvious reapplication to USNA?

 

[Capt MJ]

Explore the NUPOC program too if you want subs.

https://www.navy.com/joining/college-options/nupoc

I don't know how that works if you are already doing NROTC.

 

[BDHuff09]

Yikes! As someone who really (thinks) they want to go Subs, would attending USNA vs NROTC change the statistics for sub commissioning? If not, how would one increase their odds while participating in NROTC, other than the obvious reapplication to USNA?

Well, there are a certain number of billets reserved for USNA and ROTC. It is not like they allocate more billets to ROTC if they don't fill enough of them from USNA. I'm not in NROTC, so I don't know specifics, but if you want subs I would choose a technical major, and take and do very well in your chemistry, physics, and thermodynamics.

Noticing your profile name, the fact that you are a female will make it significantly more difficult to choose submarines. There have only recently been female officers on subs, and right now I believe only SSBNs have females. It's an issue with berthing/bathroom facilities. They are going to expand this to fast attacks soon, but the Navy is moving very slowly on this. As consequence, there are very few female submarine officer billets, which means that the competition for them is extremely stiff. For USNA, I believe there are around 12 female submarine spots every year, and usually the girls that get them all have 3.8-4.0 GPAs. I really wish the Navy would move faster on integrating women into submarines, because it would help alleviate some of their manning issues in regards to the officer corps. Personally I think its silly to turn away qualified and motivated female applicants and then draft men that have zero desire or motivation to be in the community.

I don't want to discourage you, but I think its important to tell you how competitive it is for women upfront, so you can keep this in mind when you go through college. Hopefully in 4-5 years when you get ready to join the fleet there will be more female submarine billets.

 

[DesertCaliMom]

The first ever female chief on a sub got her pin this week . Some good info in this story.

https://www.navytimes.com/story/mil...rst-woman-earn-silver-submarine-pin/88030104/

 

[conrack]

of course if you are an MD, RN or JD you can qualify for a direct commission.

 

[MabryPsyD]

of course if you are an MD, RN or JD you can qualify for a direct commission.

BSNs or higher qualify for a direct commission AND ONLY if they have at least 1-2 years of post BSN experience. Only two bachelor-level medical "providers" qualify for direct commission: dietitians and BSNs.

 

[conrack]

well not exactly, the BSN rule applies to ACTIVE duty, ADNs who also have a Bachelors in certain fields can get direct commissioned into the Reserve and Guard.

 

[MabryPsyD]

well not exactly, the BSN rule applies to ACTIVE duty, ADNs who also have a Bachelors in certain fields can get direct commissioned into the Reserve and Guard.

Sorta true...

It's more of a trial period. They have roughly 2-4 years (depends on constructive credit) to earn their BSN (yes it has to be a BSN or higher...no other field). If they haven't earned their BSN prior to their O-3 board, they are separated from service.

To add to the confusion, the AMEDD recruiters "might" get 15-20 slots for this program a year and it fluctuates based on need.

 

[conrack]

well something must have changed because there was no such rule when I left the ARNG in '13