Newly enlisted looking for advises

[ntn9720]

I'm a 22 yrs old Asian women with US citizen. I'm a newly grad from college with a BS degree in Biomedical engineering (BME), GPA ~3.3, have a hard time looking for a job in the industry. Hiring freeze and all require so many yrs of experiences that I don't have
I just enlisted in the Navy as an avionic technician (AV) E-3, ship out in march 2011. Everything doesn't seem to fit together, a grad with BS in BME vs. Enlisted Navy AV. I'm confused myself too.  I chose the Navy bc I love to travel and I don't want to stuck to a boring civilian job, looking at computer screen all day. I feel that the Navy will bring challenge and make my life more interesting. Is my thinking correct?
Why not the officer program? For some reason, I want to first spend time doing the hand on jobs as an enlisted and later apply for the officer program (more leadership jobs). I feel that without doing the hand on jobs first, I won't be a good officer (especially I'm kind of a shy person, i don't feel like I'm qualify for military leadership just yet). Is my thinking normal or crazy? How hard is it to go from an enlisted to officer after 1-2 yrs? Is my chances higher with my degree?
Ok, now to the job. So I enlisted as an avionic technician, but my recruiter just called me and ask if I want to be an enlisted nuke. My line score is 245 so I need to score at least 50 on the other test (I forgot the name) to be qualify to be in the NUKE program. Should I stick with avionic technician or go for nuke? Which one pay more both in the navy and in civilian world? What are all the extra pay with NUKE? Is it easier to become a AV officer than the nuke officer? Which one is easier to find a job in the civilian world? I'm interesting in both so I'm totally confused right now. Are there many women in the NUKe program? different ethnic?
I know this is a nuke website but do any one know friends that are avionic technicians? I'm interesting to hear from their side of view too.

THanks for taking time to read this post

[sovbob]

Lots of questions, I'll do my best to answer the ones I know.

I chose the Navy bc I love to travel and I don't want to stuck to a boring civilian job, looking at computer screen all day. I feel that the Navy will bring challenge and make my life more interesting. Is my thinking correct?

Challenge?  Yes.
Interesting?  Yes.
Travel?  Eh...some. 

Why not the officer program? For some reason, I want to first spend time doing the hand on jobs as an enlisted and later apply for the officer program (more leadership jobs). I feel that without doing the hand on jobs first, I won't be a good officer (especially I'm kind of a shy person, i don't feel like I'm qualify for military leadership just yet). Is my thinking normal or crazy?

It's not crazy.  But be aware that converting from enlisted to officer is harder than a direct officer.  Already having a bachelor's degree will make things easier, but it's still not easy.

How hard is it to go from an enlisted to officer after 1-2 yrs?

Relatively difficult.

Is my chances higher with my degree?

Yes.  Considerably.

My line score is 245 so I need to score at least 50 on the other test (I forgot the name) to be qualify to be in the NUKE program.

The NAPT (Navy Advanced Programs Test) aka the "nuke test"

Should I stick with avionic technician or go for nuke?

I couldn't possibly answer that for you.  The nuclear world has much higher standards for its personnel.  The challenges are more difficult, but it also means that the people you work with will be (on average) higher quality.

Which one pay more both in the navy and in civilian world?

Civilian jobs have better pay. Usually.

What are all the extra pay with NUKE?

Enlisted nukes get $150 / month extra (if they're a supervisor nuke, it's $375).  I'm not sure about officers.

Is it easier to become a AV officer than the nuke officer?

Pilots are the most desired officer, and have the most competition.  Nukes are somewhere in the middle.

Which one is easier to find a job in the civilian world?

If you're willing to move across the country, there's plenty of jobs in both areas.

I'm interesting in both so I'm totally confused right now. Are there many women in the NUKe program?

No, about 8% of nukes are women.

different ethnic?

Some, yes.  I don't have specific numbers.

[MMM]

If you want to go OCS, I recommend staying an AV, as you're likely to be a hot runner compared to everybody else. If you want to work in nuclear power, obviously go nuke. Although if you want to be an officer, talk to an officer recruiter, as it'll be easier now than as an enlisted. Regardless of anything else, if you want to start enlisted and become an officer, try to get any leadership postion you can, class leader (when in school), Work Center Supervisor or whatever there is.

Something to keep in mind, pay more attention to your spelling and grammar. This applies whether you're trying to become an officer or get a civilian job. If your resume/cover letter are full of errors, the person reading it and deciding whether to give you a job will assume you don't care and it could cost you the opportunity.

By the way, I believe nuke officers typically get about $30K per year, but I could be wrong.

[spekkio]

Being a prior enlisted will not necessarily make you a better officer. It will allow you to have a better understanding of the day-to-day life your Sailors lead, but being, say, a junior nuke ET or AV is not going to help you prepare an OPS brief or prepare a visual search plan. Enlisted Sailors are the technical experts, operators, and maintenance people...the officers are the managers, tacticians, planners, and policy makers. The jobs overlap a bit at the senior enlisted/junior officer level, but it diverges from there as you go more junior enlisted and more senior officer.

Additionally, your chances of getting into OCS at the 1-2 year mark are extremely small. Once you join the Navy, the primary factor determining your selection for commissioning is going to be your service record. Considering that you will still be in power school or prototype at that point and thus have absolutely no real operational experience if you go nuke (not sure with AV, but you're not going to have a lot of experience at that point even if their training pipeline is significantly shorter), your service record is going to be relatively meager. On top of that, you'd also be circumventing the entire reason you want to enlist.

Your chances aren't any higher with a degree, considering that you need a degree to be eligible for OCS. Your degree just makes you ineligible for the STA-21 program, which is the primary way enlisted nukes get picked up for a commissioning program during the training pipeline.

If you want to go officer, apply directly as a civilian. Enlisting for the sole purpose of becoming an officer later when you are already eligible and have a competitive resume is counter-productive.

I don't know why you didn't ask these questions prior to signing an enlisted contract, but there you are.

Some other things...

-There is no such thing as an "AV officer." Your DIVO will most likely be a pilot or NFO. Yes, the designator is competitive and the medical requirements for flight status are more stringent, as is the age requirement (27 vs. 29 with no prior service).
-The $30k/yr nuke pay is for nuke officers who sign a 3/4/5 yr contract past their initial commitment. The initial bonus is $17k...15 upon signing the contract, 2k when you graduate prototype.
-There are females in the nuke program, and up until recently they were restricted to CVN assignments. Enlisted women have not hit submarines yet, though.
-Joining the Navy for a civilian opportunity is typically not the best idea in the world. You are committing yourself to 4-6 years of a profession that is going to take a lot of time and sacrifice...that's a lot to give up just so you can come out the other end with a job.

Additionally, employers are usually looking for people with experience in the field; your experience as an AV, nuke, or officer probably won't help you much with a career in biomedical engineering, since you won't be doing any of that in the Navy and will forget most of what you learned in college by the time you get out in 4-6 years.

What you really need to be competitive in your field is a graduate degree and some lab/intern experience. Without that, your bachelor's isn't going to be worth very much. A commissioning program would offer a better opportunity for getting a master's via your first shore duty...not guaranteed, of course, but there are many options available provided you don't get shafted with an IA or Pentagon duty.