Three years ago I was in your shoes. 1/3/06 my only child arrived at Great Lakes for boot Camp. My son is an intelligent young man, however, he had some significant motivational challenges coming out of high school (I'm thinking apple-tree analogy here). He was a completely different person at PIR (3/3/06) and after. "A" school (ET) in Charleston was an adjustment, however, he made it through somewhere in the top 1/3, if memory serves. My son found his stride in Power School missing honors by less than 1/10 of a point. He went to Ballston Spa for Prototype where he became the first in his class to qualify. He then "volunteered" for SPU and is still in Ballston Spa on staff today.
My son is making his third attempt at STA-21 this year. If he is accepted, things change dramatically:
1. Nuke is not one of his preferences--his job will be very different.
2. He goes to college, gets a degree, and becomes an officer (God willin' and the creek don't rise).
If he is not accepted STA-21, sometime around June 2010 he goes to the fleet (sub vol) and finishes his commitment. There are no bad choices for those who serve as Nukes and do their jobs well. At the same time they can use the Navy for any and all opportunities available.
I never served, but I believe the Navy Nuke community is an elite group that deserve respect and gratitude. Yes, they are special. Not everyone can be a Navy Nuke. The veterans on this board earned the right to complain that it was hard, that the working conditions were bad, and that the pay was bad. None of them say they made a mistake becoming a Nuke. I can only surmise that there are significant intangible benefits for Nukes--self confidence and self reliance to name a few.
I received an email from my son today that contained the following:
"...Found a student's blog that gives a fairly accurate account of both Power school and Prototype if you're curious.
http://swordvspen.blogspot.com/2008/08/power-school-rundown.html
You can read about prototype if you look for the link on the right hand side. Keep in mind it's from the perspective of a student and they don't have anything to do or be worried about except getting qualified. Overall it's a very articulate description of the training aspect of my job.
The only difference is that we don't have T-week anymore or its "glorious" 4 day weekend."
Hope this helps.