What major for future active duty officer?

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parker1842

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If I wanted to graduate as an active duty officer in one of the Armed Forces, what major do they prefer midshipman to take(Marine Transportation, Maritime Logistics and Security, or Marine Engineering)? Or do they not look at what major you're taking and look at other things such as grades, interviews, resumes, etc.?
 
My best advice would be to apply to USAFA or AFROTC and declare a major in cyber security. The closest thing at USMMA that might help in that field would be Marine Engineering Systems, but that is still only remotely related to what your goal is.
 
Hi, I am a high school freshman who is looking to apply to USMMA for the class of 2026 and I have a question that relates to this thread. What would be a good major for someone who wants to be a Surface Warfare Officer (SWO) or a Seabee in the Navy?
 
Make sure you understand that there are only 5 majors to choose from at USMMA, 2 deck and 3 engineering. Read the USMMA website thoroughly. The curriculum is very rigorous and fast moving and is geared to prepare you for specialization in the maritime industry. The Navy has recently come to realize how valuable a degree (and license) from Kings Point is. Currently everyone who graduates from Kings Point has a guaranteed spot as a Navy SWO if they want it. As an engineer, you will also be in high demand. If you elect to apply to/attend USMMA, you should at least be open to a career in the maritime industry. Many Midshipmen change their minds after sea year and decide to change from active duty to maritime career and vice versa. If you have already 100% decided that you don't want anything to do with the maritime industry, Kings Point is probably not the place for you, and you will probably not be successful there.
 
I know Mids who majored in Marine Engineering Systems who went SWO, and I know Mids who majored in Marine Transportation (straight deck) who became seabees. Active duty does not necessarily care about what classes you are taking. You have Mids at USNA majoring in History going Subs, SWO, Aviation, etc. You should choose your major based not only on your interests, but your strengths. Keep in mind that 90%+ mids at USMMA change their minds about what they wanna do post-graduation, usually more than once. In terms of getting your GPA as high as you can, which is what Active Duty billets look at (among some other things), the understanding is that the Marine Transportation major (straight deck) is the way to go. Keep your mind open though.
 
Agree with these guys. For SWO just pick a major that interests you. Lots more to SWO than ship driving.
 
kpmom2013 said:
Deck major is best for SWO. Engineering major is best for Seabee.
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All the tier 1 majors for NROTC are engineering degrees. I’d say the Navy likes the idea of their officers having engineering degrees regardless of the warfare community.
 
KP Eng said:
kpmom2013 said:
Deck major is best for SWO. Engineering major is best for Seabee.
Click to expand...
All the tier 1 majors for NROTC are engineering degrees. I’d say the Navy likes the idea of their officers having engineering degrees regardless of the warfare community.
Click to expand...
I would have agreed with you last year, but with the numerous collisions at sea and other near disasters, the Navy is currently putting a premium on trained and licensed deck officers for SWO. So much so that they are offering deckies their first choice of initial duty station right out of KP.
 
kpmom2013 said:
KP Eng said:
kpmom2013 said:
Deck major is best for SWO. Engineering major is best for Seabee.
Click to expand...
All the tier 1 majors for NROTC are engineering degrees. I’d say the Navy likes the idea of their officers having engineering degrees regardless of the warfare community.
Click to expand...
I would have agreed with you last year, but with the numerous collisions at sea and other near disasters, the Navy is currently putting a premium on trained and licensed deck officers for SWO. So much so that they are offering deckies their first choice of initial duty station right out of KP.
Click to expand...

Actually, this year 3 people went SWO. 2Engine/1Deck. The Deckie got last pick of duty station, the two engineers picked first. The State Maritime Academy guys picked before the Kings Point deckie.

DO NOT become a deckie because you think it would be good for SWO. Your major DOES NOT MATTER. This is just terrible advice, do what you are interested in not what you think would look good. The Navy took a business major at a regular college NROTC for the nuke program and REJECTED a Kings Point engineering major. I assume they thought the business major would be a better fit. This is first hand.
 
kpmom2013 said:
KP Eng said:
kpmom2013 said:
Deck major is best for SWO. Engineering major is best for Seabee.
Click to expand...
All the tier 1 majors for NROTC are engineering degrees. I’d say the Navy likes the idea of their officers having engineering degrees regardless of the warfare community.
Click to expand...
I would have agreed with you last year, but with the numerous collisions at sea and other near disasters, the Navy is currently putting a premium on trained and licensed deck officers for SWO. So much so that they are offering deckies their first choice of initial duty station right out of KP.
Click to expand...
Sorry but licensed has absolutely NOTHING to do with getting a SWO billet as it has no bearing on the very important SWO qualification as in the license does not give any shortcut through the process and the KP training helps with a small part of the qual but the vast majority of it is very different from what a Navy ship does. I served with and helped train (approved qualifications) for a variety of Maritime grads as well as baby SWOs from other sources and I will agree that the KP background can help with actually being able to stand the watch when they first report to a ship but that advantage disappears pretty quickly.
 
kpmidmanguy20 said:
I know Mids who majored in Marine Transportation (straight deck) who became seabees.
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Quite a trick since one doesn't get accepted into the SeaBees but into the Civil Engineer Corps of which the SeaBees is only one component and an ABET accredited engineering degree is a requirement for the US Navy Civil Engineer Corps. I'm not saying it didn't happen only that I am surprised.

Other than that ... Your major has pretty close to zero relevance to being accepted in to any particular Active Duty Service or program.
 
KPEngineer said:
kpmidmanguy20 said:
I know Mids who majored in Marine Transportation (straight deck) who became seabees.
Click to expand...
Quite a trick since one doesn't get accepted into the SeaBees but into the Civil Engineer Corps of which the SeaBees is only one component and an ABET accredited engineering degree is a requirement for the US Navy Civil Engineer Corps. I'm not saying it didn't happen only that I am surprised.

Other than that ... Your major has pretty close to zero relevance to being accepted in to any particular Active Duty Service or program.
Click to expand...

I stand corrected. I misremembered the mid I was referring to as he was 1/C my plebe year. Turns out he was Engine. I was using the (false) example to convey that I’ve been told academic major does not necessarily affect an active duty billet. Good to learn that, in the case of Seabees, it does.
 
kpmidmanguy20 said:
I stand corrected. I misremembered the mid I was referring to as he was 1/C my plebe year. Turns out he was Engine. I was using the (false) example to convey that I’ve been told academic major does not necessarily affect an active duty billet. Good to learn that, in the case of Seabees, it does.
Click to expand...
As far as the Navy is concerned, the URL communities won't care about your major coming out of KP. The RL and Staff communities mostly have requirements that you major in specific things. This will limit deckies for some jobs and both deckies and engineers for others.
 
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