Age at Nuke School

[Neverender]

I am a new 'Nuke' and will be entering A school this August.  What I am worried about is the fact that I am 23 years old.  Will I be an old fart at Nuke School?  I am looking forward to the experience though, and am so appreciative of this site and all of the questions it has answered.  THank you!

[Fermi2]

I was 23 when I entered. Don't sweat it, you'll have a great time.

[JustinHEMI05]

Never allow underagers and alcohol in your presence at the same time. That is my free advice. Good luck and keep us posted!

[Gamecock]

Never allow underagers and alcohol in your presence at the same time. That is my free advice. Good luck and keep us posted!

Read and Heed the above.

Cheers,
GC

[Fermi2]

Agreed. When I was in Nuke School I never really hung with anyone under 21 unless it was going to a movie or to Mickey Ds.
Otherwise I hung out with the adults.

[yota]

If it makes you feel any better, I will be almost 27 when I leave for basic training. 

[HydroDave63]

Agreed. When I was in Nuke School I never really hung with anyone under 21 unless it was going to a movie or to Mickey Ds.
Otherwise I hung out with the adults.

...and called them NUBS too!   

[shifty.07]

I'm currently at NNPTC and there are plenty of 23/24 year olds here. 

[goobs22xx]

There will probably be a pretty good amount of 18-19 year olds when you go. Things are pretty cyclical with the age distribution for classes. Classes in August-Octoberish have a higher number of young guys due to people signing on to leave right after high school.

I started ASchool in May, so we had a fair amount of "older" (read:22-26) students in my classes.

Its all irrelevant though, as others have said.

[Fermi2]

...and called them NUBS too!   

YEP!!

[ravenuke]

I'm 24 years old and I am not the oldest in my class.  About half of my classmates are over 21.  You won't stand out.  Just use your age and experience to help the younger guys.  I definitely see a maturity gap, and NEVER buy them alcohol.

[Neverender]

Thanks for all the responses, it does relieve me to hear that there are a decent number of over 21 year olds, and I will DEFINITELY heed the advice regarding underagers and alcohol.

[Samabby]

Best of luck, Never, but please don't underestimate how determined those 18 year old wannabe drunken monkeys can be when the pursuit of alcohol is concerned. 

[Neverender]

Best of luck, Never, but please don't underestimate how determined those 18 year old wannabe drunken monkeys can be when the pursuit of alcohol is concerned. 

haha, oh I remember all too well the relentless quest of obtaining alcohol my first year in the dorms, thanks for the advice though, I will take care to avoid putting myself in compromising situations.  I assume the over 21 year olds go out occassionally?

[sovbob]

Yes, students are allowed (and even encouraged) to find recreational activities in their off time.

During the first few weeks you are there, your privileges are fairly restrictive.  If I remember correctly the phases are...

Phase I
- Must be in uniform at all times
- Cannot drive a vehicle
- Must be in barracks room by 12:15AM
- Cannot drink alcohol

Phase II
- Can wear civilian clothes off base
- Can drive a vehicle
- Must be in barracks room by 12:15AM
- Alcohol consumption allowed off base (if over 21)

Phase III
- Can wear civilian clothes except during school hours
- Can drive a vehicle
- Must be in barracks room by 12:15AM
- Overnight liberty allowed by special request
- Alcohol consumption allowed off base (if over 21)

Phase IV
- Can wear civilian clothes except during school hours
- Can drive a vehicle
- No curfew
- Overnight liberty allowed
- Alcohol consumption allowed off base (if over 21)

Alcohol is never allowed on-base, although there is (was?) a bowling alley that served beer right outside the gate.

[imthehoopa]

Phase II
- Can wear civilian clothes off base
- Can drive a vehicle
- Must be in barracks room by 12:15AM
- Alcohol consumption allowed off base (if over 21)
- Overnight liberty allowed by special request

Phase III
- Can wear civilian clothes except during school hours
- Can drive a vehicle
- Must be in barracks room by 12:15AM only on days preceding academic days
- Overnight liberty allowed within 75 miles of base on days not preceding academic days. Outside 75 miles allowed by special request chit
- Alcohol consumption allowed off base (if over 21)

Alcohol is never allowed on-base, although there is (was?) a bowling alley that served beer right outside the gate. And a bar (The Dive) right next door to the bowling alley.

Current policy is as stated with the changes in red. Anything requiring a special request chit is performace based as well. So if you aren't doing too well, don't count on making that weekend trip home. Phase IV doesn't exist anymore. Once you hit Phase III, the rules don't change any. Even when you graduate A-school. We call it Phase Blue for Power School badges, but nothing changes unless you get into trouble. You can always "earn" yourself a little, red Phase I sticker no matter how far along you are at NNPTC.

[sovbob]

Thanks for the corrections, imthehoopa.  It's been a while since I went through.

The Dive is now a bar?!  Back when I was there all they had was soda and greasy food to clog your arteries and fail your PFA.

[klsas]

I required an age wavier when I went to Nuke School in 1981. I was 24 and I was the old man. Due to being out of high school for several years, I ended up in section 1 of 8104. I was more than able to keep up with all of the young bucks (education wise). This was on top of being married and my wife giving birth halfway through nuke school. Sometimes age does have its advantages. Stability, maturity and the fact that a lot of the wild times were already over with. Just don't get caught contributing to minors.

Keith

[imthehoopa]

Thanks for the corrections, imthehoopa.  It's been a while since I went through.

The Dive is now a bar?!  Back when I was there all they had was soda and greasy food to clog your arteries and fail your PFA.

Haha.. Well, they still have the greasy food. Not sure how big it was when you were here, but now (along with the kegs and well picked selection of mircobrews) there's darts, poker tables, a ping pong table, pool tables, a foosball table, some computers, a bunch of flat screens, and MWR proudly boasts Charleston's largest high-definition projection screen. They also hold concerts and comedy shows from time to time. It's a pretty convenient location to go blow off some steam.

[Neutron_Dodger]

I went through enlisted pipeline in 2001 (age 24) and officer side in 2005.  Obviously the enlisted side was more restrictive than the officer side given most of the enlisted students are straight out of high school or college dropouts (like me).  One note, though:  if you are married (like I was) you don't have the same limits.  You still have the same uniform limitations, but that's about it.

One bonus to being married at boot camp... your paycheck is much larger than everyone else's bc you are getting BAH, not to mention you get E3 pay while most non-nukes get E1 or E2 pay.

A note on nuke school... it isn't in "Charleston".  It is in Goose Creek... the buttcrack of Charleston as my wife calls it. 

A note on career progression... if you have a desire to make it a career, put in an STA-21 app while you are at NNPTC.  You should be able to put in your app while in power school.  If your recruiter hasn't told you about it Google it.  It is one of the best deals in the Navy.  You get your regular pay plus they send you back to college to get your commission.  I when through the program and it was awesome. 

All in all you'll serve yourself well to be in shape before you go to boot camp, but it all depends on the attitude of your RDCs.  Mine had short timers but there were some that loved to break their recruits.  Being physically fit will put you on top of your peers.  Nukes usually get tapped for leadership positions within their boot camp division, so look up the chain of command of a boot camp division before you get there and mention to your RDC what you want to do... if there is anything.

Good luck and have fun!!  By the way... highly recommend EM for a rate.  It was my first choice and I got it.  I'm sure anyone here can tell you the differences.

[Jechtm]

Just got out of Basic last week. Im 23 and most people here are around 18-25. Its pretty much like a small college campus.
MM ftw.

Good luck at Basic, its pretty easy. If your RDCs know you by name or if you try to stick out, don't do stupid stuff.