NUPOC vs Working at a Shipyard?

[silverstar808]

Hi all,

I am a senior electric engineer student living in Hawaii. A local recruiter talked to me about the NUPOC program and I had thought about it for a while now. My main question is, how does working 5-6 years in the shipyard (i.e. Pearl Harbor) compares to being commissioned for 5-6 years in the navy as a surface warfare officer? There are so many different opinions online. Some say that the program provides decent leadership skills and I would be highly desirable to civilian industry after I leave the navy, while others say if you don't have the experience that the company is looking for on your resume, they will not hire you. After all, 5-6 year is a somewhat long period of time... so I want to gather more opinions on my options right now. Bottom line is, which of the follow options would have a better industry career outlook in the future?

Here is my 3 main options after graduation

1) work in Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard as an entry level electrical or nuclear engineer
2) work in Norfolk Naval Shipyard as an entry level electrical engineer
3) participate in the NUPOC program and hope for the best for the next 5-6 years

I am a first generation college student, and I am grateful for the existence of this forum because I don't really have other professionals to seek opinions from.

Thank you

[Gamecock]

Hi all,

I am a senior electric engineer student living in Hawaii. A local recruiter talked to me about the NUPOC program and I had thought about it for a while now. My main question is, how does working 5-6 years in the shipyard (i.e. Pearl Harbor) compares to being commissioned for 5-6 years in the navy as a surface warfare officer? There are so many different opinions online. Some say that the program provides decent leadership skills and I would be highly desirable to civilian industry after I leave the navy, while others say if you don't have the experience that the company is looking for on your resume, they will not hire you. After all, 5-6 year is a somewhat long period of time... so I want to gather more opinions on my options right now. Bottom line is, which of the follow options would have a better industry career outlook in the future?

Here is my 3 main options after graduation

1) work in Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard as an entry level electrical or nuclear engineer
2) work in Norfolk Naval Shipyard as an entry level electrical engineer
3) participate in the NUPOC program and hope for the best for the next 5-6 years

I am a first generation college student, and I am grateful for the existence of this forum because I don't really have other professionals to seek opinions from.

Thank you

Regardless of whether you decide to go NUPOC or not.....

I would not recommend working in a shipyard as a civilian. 

Cheers,

GC


FYI....As far as commissioning programs go, NUPOC is a good deal.

[HydroDave63]

I would not recommend working in a shipyard as a civilian. 

C'mon now...nothing like being 30 feet above a drydock floor, walking on old bowing wiggling planks saturated with rainwater with inadequate/nonexistent safety railing and missing pieces of scaffold  while checking various hull cuts and ballast tanks. Or hours of inhaling welding fumes because 'ain't got time' to haul in exhaust trunks prior to arcing...   

[cheme09]

Working at Newport News Shipbuilding didn't seem that bad.  But that may be the difference between a government shipyard and civilian shipyard.

[silverstar808]

Regardless of whether you decide to go NUPOC or not.....

I would not recommend working in a shipyard as a civilian. 

Cheers,

GC


FYI....As far as commissioning programs go, NUPOC is a good deal.

Could you elaborate on why you would not recommend working in a shipyard as a civilian? Also if my goal is to be an expert in a field, build up a reputable name, and hopefully start a contracting company, would NUPOC be a good start for me?

[silverstar808]

C'mon now...nothing like being 30 feet above a drydock floor, walking on old bowing wiggling planks saturated with rainwater with inadequate/nonexistent safety railing and missing pieces of scaffold  while checking various hull cuts and ballast tanks. Or hours of inhaling welding fumes because 'ain't got time' to haul in exhaust trunks prior to arcing...   

hmm are you describing how the working environment is not so good? or are you saying people who works in the shipyard don't really learn much, but rather work their butt off?

[silverstar808]

I guess to make my question more specific, typically where could I be in the industry after commissioned as a surface warfare officer? Defense companies(Raytheon, Northrop, Lockheed, etc), commercial power plant company, or others? Would the navy's experience plus the navy graduate school make myself marketable?   

[cheme09]

Just the same way you could end up in nuclear, communications, semiconductors or power with an EE degree, you can end up in defense, commercial nuclear power, and a whole list of other industries with experience gained as a naval officer.

Sure, some jobs in the navy may make you more marketable to a certain industry or certain job function (read: give you a certain skill set), but in no way does that mean you cannot make it elsewhere.  The navy will give you certain skills the same way your degree does.  How you choose to leverage those skills is up to you.

[silverstar808]

Is there a difference between working in the shipyard as a civilian vs navy nuke officer?

[Gamecock]

Is there a difference between working in the shipyard as a civilian vs navy nuke officer?

Yes.....

Big difference.

[HydroDave63]

Is there a difference between working in the shipyard as a civilian vs navy nuke officer?

If you have to ask, no explanation will suffice...

[silverstar808]

Possible to make a brief summarize between the two? =D

I mean I'm really trying to decide one of the two routes to go for and I don't have the information to compare. I have a pretty good knowledge of the career outlook for NUPOC, but as for engineering at the shipyard, I don't know what is going to be there 5-10 years later besides pay increase.

[cheme09]

I have a pretty good knowledge of the career outlook for NUPOC, but as for engineering at the shipyard, I don't know what is going to be there 5-10 years later besides pay increase.

My brief experience is from working at a shipyard as a civilian.

As far as carriers go, every carrier goes through an RCOH around mid-life (~25yrs).  Then decommissioning at end of life.  The RCOH process takes about 6 years (~3yrs to plan, then ~3yrs to execute).  The Roosevelt is currently in RCOH.  Planning for the Lincoln has been happening for about the same amount of time so that execution of its RCOH should start when the Roosevelt is done (roughly).  This process will repeat until the rest of the carriers have been overhauled/refueled.  Then sometime before all of them are overhauled, the first of the class should be getting decommissioned.  The Enterprise will also be decommissioned sometime in the near future.

The kicker is that all the above work can only be performed at one shipyard (which is currently looking to hire upwards of 10,000 people over the next few years).  Look up how many carriers are in the fleet, then work out the math and timing.  That should give you a good idea of how many more years of required work there are in the future (required by law IIRC).  Hint: look up hull numbers

This, of course, doesn't take into account building new carriers which can also only be built at the same shipyard.

[HydroDave63]

Speaking of hazards and shipyards...

http://news.yahoo.com/no-radiation-threat-fire-russian-nuclear-sub-155353941.html

Scratch one Delta-IV!  zdrava! 

[Starkist]

Speaking of hazards and shipyards...

http://news.yahoo.com/no-radiation-threat-fire-russian-nuclear-sub-155353941.html

Scratch one Delta-IV!  zdrava! 

Oh good lord... when have the russians ever screwed up a nuclear plant... I mean cmon dave.

[HydroDave63]

Oh good lord... when have the russians ever screwed up a nuclear plant... I mean cmon dave.

Either that, or they are pioneering a new shipyard technique....anneal the hull by fire, then quench with Arctic flooded seawater...

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/12/29/us-russia-submarine-fire-idUSTRE7BS0MJ20111229

No toxic plume to last for years there, no sirree! Oh, by the way, some brands of crab legs come from those same Russian waters. Check the labeling...

[Starkist]

Either that, or they are pioneering a new shipyard technique....anneal the hull by fire, then quench with Arctic flooded seawater...

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/12/29/us-russia-submarine-fire-idUSTRE7BS0MJ20111229

No toxic plume to last for years there, no sirree! Oh, by the way, some brands of crab legs come from those same Russian waters. Check the labeling...

I figured it was just some dumb welders being stupid .

[HydroDave63]

I figured it was just some dumb welders being stupid .

Either that, or the scaffold guys/carpenters weren't properly trained....

[Starkist]

Either that, or the scaffold guys/carpenters weren't properly trained....

Well, from what I hear, they have Grand training in the artic Gulf on Fire Safety and Scaffolding... but thats just what I hear :p