The New Guy

[Kb54]

Hello all. My name is Kyle. Just thought I would introduce myself. I'm 18 years old. I went to MEPS on Thursday, and tomorrow I have to take my NAPT to see if I qualify for the Nuclear Program. I'm awfully nervous about this test, because if I don't pass it, I have no idea what job I would want besides that. I've read discussion after discussion on this test for hours now. And, I'd like to say that I feel like you have all prepared me for it. I just have some general questions about the Navy, which I'm sure have been answered countless times on this forum, but I hadn't found.

1. I've played football for nine ten years now, I'm physically fit, and I workout everyday. How physically demanding is bootcamp? Also, how does bootcamp work? The day to dayy experience. How often I will be able to contact my loved ones, etc.

2. I've been dating this girl for nearly three years now. She says she supports my decisions of going into the Navy and she will stick by me no matter what. In reality, how hard is it to keep a girlfriend in the navy?

3. After bootcamp, if I'm in the nuclear feild, what happens? I go to Charleston for how long? Then what? My recruiter hasn't filled me in with any of these concerns.

4. I know being in the nuclear feild you automatically go in as an E3, or so I've heard. Which from my research they make about $2000 a month. Signing bonuses, salaries, the whole nine yards, can you guys help?

5. How often do you get to come home and see your family?

6. When your done with your six years, how is it when you get out?


Thank you everyone who contributes to my questions, It's greatly appreciated. Just a young guy who is looking for some answers.

[Marlin]

1. I've played football for nine ten years now, I'm physically fit, and I workout everyday. How physically demanding is bootcamp? Also, how does bootcamp work? The day to dayy experience. How often I will be able to contact my loved ones, etc.

I did not find it that challenging except the for the punitive drills, I got several. Holding a rifle outstretched and parallel to the grounds for 5 minutes or so will wear on anyone.

2. I've been dating this girl for nearly three years now. She says she supports my decisions of going into the Navy and she will stick by me no matter what. In reality, how hard is it to keep a girlfriend in the navy?

Part of the reason I did not make it a career is that I heard "your wife did not come in your seabag" one too many times, but that is dependent on each command. Many of the members of my SubVets group are still married to their wives from their Navy careers (however long).

6. When your done with your six years, how is it when you get out?

   I'll let someone else pitch in about questions 3,4, & 5 as I have been out for a while. When I got out the job market was a little different so I'll leave that to others as well, but the general feeling was liberating and exciting. Many of my shipmates did not go for the "Golden Handcuffs" of commercial power operation even though there were plenty of jobs in an expanding industry unlike today. One of my shipmates became a Chimmey Sweep, a couple hog farmers, a couple became boiler inspectors for commercial boilers, and I almost took a job as a steam plant operator for Anheiser Busch. We also had a few become operators Rad Techs and Instrument Control. The Navy is long hours, fast paced, and stressfull the sudden change to a slower pace, overtime hours that you where paid for and you could turn down, employment I could leave at any time, and lower stress was wonderful but like an addict it took me a while to adjust. Due to a MMPI exam I took I had the opportunity to see a psychologist that was familiar with the exams and the military. He explained that the MMPI was looking for normal and that someone who lived in a sewerpipe for long periods of time isolated from society in general frequently did not show up in the expected normal band.

Thanks for your service, good luck.

[eaton1981]

I sent you a PM with my contact info. I'll fill you in on the details when you have time.

[Kb54]

Thanks guys. My recruiter just called me and I passed the NAPT!

[DadofMM-ELT]

Speaking as a Dad with a son in the pipeline (who just took the 50% exam in prototype)...

First, thank you for your service and congratulations on making the grade for the nuclear field.

Your recruiter will fill you in on what you need to know for the immediate future. Chances are that will include a lengthy DEP period. Son of DadofFutureNuke was in DEP 11 months. Basically, stay fit, show up at DEP meetings, and don't get involved with any "legal issues".

Our son was also a high school athlete (football, track and crew) and like Kb54 had no problem at all with the PT part of boot camp. If you don't swim, DEP would be a good time to learn.

Good luck!

[gogamecocks]

I'll give you my 2cents on the relationship part of the question. My husband and I had been married 2 years(we got married young) when he joined the Navy and went to Nuke school. Almost 23 yrs later we are still married and he's retiring soon. In my experience, the problems come more from guys marrying the girls that hang out around the base. These girl's are just looking for a paycheck. Hard to believe since I always thought the pay was awful but for some people that's a lot of money. Even so, the separation is hard on the sailors and spouses and many can't handle it. Just don't give up easy and if it's meant to be it will last. Good luck =)

[AmmonSalmo]

3. After bootcamp, if I'm in the nuclear feild, what happens? I go to Charleston for how long? Then what? My recruiter hasn't filled me in with any of these concerns.

4. I know being in the nuclear feild you automatically go in as an E3, or so I've heard. Which from my research they make about $2000 a month. Signing bonuses, salaries, the whole nine yards, can you guys help?

Nuke in training here. I'm sure you might have gotten a good gist of it from your recruiter by now...but after boot camp you'll be flown here to the NNPTC in Goose Creek.

This is how it works:

There are 3 rates of nuke: MM, EM, and ET.
There are 3 schools of nuke: A-School, Power School and Prototype

Power and Prototype are 6 mon each, regardless of rate. A-school is a little different. If you are an MM, you have a 3 mon A school, if you are EM/ET you have a 6 mon.

In between each school you have a break, only god knows how long that is, sometimes it can be as short as a week, but I know people who have been on prototype hold for 8 mon now... Depending on the kind of person you are, you might not mind a short break; trust me it gets boring not doing anything after a while.

----

You come in E3, I would have to look up the pay charts for exact details, but me with the MGIB and no TSP pockets about $700 every 15 days (sorry for the engrissh) so $1400 a month that actually makes it into your wallet. After A-school you automatically become E4; that translates to like $150 more in your pocket a month.

Concerning signing bonuses...you have to ask your recruiter. 2 years ago it was $25000, when I came in last year it was $12000, but due to recent events (the pipeline is a little clogged up right now) you might not get a signing bonus at all. Dont let that stop you from becoming a nuke however, the opportunities inside and outside the Big Blue are incredible, and its not like $12000 actually means TWELVE-THOUSAND DOLLARS (I might get half that amount after they steal what they need to steal)

----

In summary: this is awesome. Go tell your friends what you're doing, your family too. See where they are in 2 years vs what you are doing. Sure you bitch, squirm and squeal some days but it's just work.

Work. Dont ever be afraid of work. If theres something incredible out there, dont be afraid to grab it because its too much work. I have too many 'friends' who cry rivers every time I pull them from playing WoW or StarCrap on their computers to do duty or study hours. Too many a-holes who bitch themselves out of the pipeline because they would rather be leveling up on Diablo than leveling up their careers and livelihood. Good for them. We dont want them here.

This is the United States Navy, most of us have forgotten about this already...but we're here to save the world. We make sure all the bogies stay where they are and pound them straight if they ever get the balls to test that.

Hooya...yeah I'm stowing the soapbox now, anyways good luck bro and thank you for your service!

[eaton1981]

Well spoken from someone actually in the pipeline as a trainee. Most of us embittered instructors wouldn't have summed it up as well.

Keep that attitude. It will get you far.

[walrusrampage]

Hey Kyle,
Glad to hear you are looking into becoming a Navy Nuke. I am on board the Big E in Newport News and have been out of the pipeline for 2 years, but I thought I would try to answer your questions.

2. I saw alot of relationships fail in the pipeline, and even more once we went on our first and second deployments. I was on low hours, but the stress on family life can be very high in Power School and especially Prototype with the shift work. I married my wife right after I left Prototype, and making it through the deployments wasn't so bad now that Skype means we can talk every port, and the sailor phones are open 24/7 and there is email access. That's definitely not the case from what I have heard about submarines (I believe they do have email but its infrequent), so that's one of the perks of the surface fleet

4. I saw the money in A school was already addressed. Once you make it to the fleet and put on E-5 and take in BAH, the money is alot better. Married as an E-5 over 4 years, I get around 2200$ per paycheck with my sea pay. Also, if you decide you like the Navy, you can STAR Re-enlist and bring in anywhere from $ 60 - 90 K (mine was 75) and you can get it tax free if you do so in a combat zone. The money is there, but it will be pretty lean for your first year or two in. (I definitely remember eating in the galley on saturday nights then meeting my friends after they went out to dinner because I was broke)

5. Deployments are very wide ranging and inconsistent. Certain submarines are out for 2 months, in for 2, others are out for 3, in for 3, and some do regular deployments of 6 -7 months with any amount of time in between and yard periods for everything. They recently changed the carrier deployment schedule to 10 month deployments and only 6 months off, and I believe it's being talked about that they are changing it back since they have more funding now or something. The point is, you won't really know until you get your orders from prototype, and even then the schedules can be mirky.

Hope this is helpful, if you have any more questions, you can PM me.

[Rain Man]

I did not find it that challenging except the for the punitive drills, I got several. Holding a rifle outstretched and parallel to the grounds for 5 minutes or so will wear on anyone.

Marlin in "Happy Hour"??  I'm shocked.  At Great Lakes we humped a de-miled 1903 Springfield to the a tune called "The 98 Count"...which had 108 beats in it.  Could never figure that one out...but then I wasn't supposed to.  

A very humbling experience in sub-zero January northern Illinois.

All Kyle needs to understand is "Underway is the only way".  Now grab that paint brush and lay on the red lead.

[Marlin]

Marlin in "Happy Hour"??  I'm shocked.  At Great Lakes we humped a de-miled 1903 Springfield to the a tune called "The 98 Count"...which had 108 beats in it.  Could never figure that one out...but then I wasn't supposed to.  

A very humbling experience in sub-zero January northern Illinois.

All Kyle needs to understand is "Underway is the only way".  Now grab that paint brush and lay on the red lead.

My CC was a first class Boatswain's mate who hated Nukes, all I had to do was sneeze to get a "Happy Hour" but I think he believed that everyone should experience one I think half of us had at least one over the three months we were there. I did my time mid winter as well finishing up in January, thankfully we did a lot of our drills inside those big Drill Halls.

[GLW]

My CC was a first class Boatswain's mate who hated Nukes, all I had to do was sneeze to get a "Happy Hour" but I think he believed that everyone should experience one I think half of us had at least one over the three months we were there. I did my time mid winter as well finishing up in January, thankfully we did a lot of our drills inside those big Drill Halls.

This is pert much a dead thread as the OP has not returned to NW.com for over a year,...

Still, I'm sorry to hear of your horrid boot camp adventure,..

I had to do mine in Orlando in late winter and early spring,.....oh the horror!!!!!

And then there was that whole sister company thing where the sister company was populated by actual women,...

I did not find it that challenging except the for the punitive drills, I got several. Holding a rifle outstretched and parallel to the grounds for 5 minutes or so will wear on anyone.......

What's a rifle?!?!?!?

[Marlin]

This is pert much a dead thread as the OP has not returned to NW.com for over a year,...

From GLW the sites premier Necromancer and Archivist 

[Rain Man]

What's a rifle?!?!?!?

The jarheads will tell you the rifle is for fighting the gun is for fun.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4kU0XCVey_U

[GLW]

The jarheads will tell you the rifle is for fighting the gun is for fun.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4kU0XCVey_U

Jarheads can talk?!?!?!?!

[Ksheed]

Jarheads can talk?!?!?!?!

Some of us can, and a few of us can even type. You know the old infinite monkey theorem. 

[Rain Man]

Jarheads can talk?!?!?!?!

Worked with a grunt at Portsmouth who used to give me crap about the Navy being the Marine's taxi service.  The conversation went like this:

Me:  "Your taxi service?!?  What was your MOI?"
Grunt:  "I was a cook."
Me:  "So you know 50 different ways to kill me with a spatula.........51 if you cook."

[EM UMPTY SQUAT]

1663.77 is my per paycheck pay as an E-4 Prototype student who is married with max SGLI and Dental Coverage being deducted (27 and 31 dollars respectively)

so thats roughly 3300/month

hope this helps you

[spekkio]

You should use the IRS W-2 calculator to figure out how to adjust your W-2 withholding. According to your post, you've paid more in federal income taxes in two paychecks than you owe for the entire year.

[EM UMPTY SQUAT]

The w-2 withholding is set such that I get a fat refund check come tax time. Thank you though, nice of you to be looking out for someone you don't even know. No sarcasm intended.

[HeavyD]

You are giving the US government an interest free loan with your higher than necessary witholdings.  That's the reality of your fat return check each year.  The alternative is you could be putting that extra money in some type of investment each month, still have the same level of disposable income, and be better off later on down the line.

And yes, some of us spent years looking out for each other and continue to do so.  That's what the Nuke community does, albeit a bit harshly at times.

Best of luck during the remainder of your time in the pipeline.

[spekkio]

What Heavy said.

At your income level, you should owe something like $350/year in federal income tax (you'd have to calculate it yourself using the online calculator provided by the IRS to get a more precise number...it's quick and easy). You could use the extra 1-2 hundred a month for a lot of things like paying off CC debt or saving it in a CD at 1-1.25% to buy property. Hell, you could use it to get a smartphone with an internet plan instead of one of those old bricks if that's what tickles your fancy.

While investing $1200/year at an average 6-8% return won't yield a whole lot and interest rates are so low that saving money is losing money, it's better than losing 1-3% on your money due to inflation on the interest free loan you're giving Uncle Sam.

Point is, it's YOUR money that YOU are GIVING to the federal government to hold onto AT YOUR EXPENSE. Don't do that.

[holicisms]

1. I was a neet who didn't exercise prior to going to bootcamp, and it was a breeze.


2. you'll be better off breaking up now rather than later, unless you really want to get married.


3.You'll be in charleston for at least a year, and very likely a year and a half. You will spend at least 6 months at either the charleston prototype or ballston spa. I reccommend going to New York just because it allows you to see something different.

4.E-3 makes like 1500 a month while in school. I have no idea what kind of bonus you will get, I know  mine was $12k

5.During school you will have the opportunity to take leave after you graduate A school, after power school/ christmas leave, and possibly on hold and your mandatory transfer leave if you go to new york.

6.  I'm still in prototype

[Adamdg51]

3.You'll be in charleston for at least a year, and very likely a year and a half. You will spend at least 6 months at either the charleston prototype or ballston spa. I reccommend going to New York just because it allows you to see something different.

Did you mean to imply that you have a choice in wether or not you go to Ballston Spa or stay in Charleston for prototype?

[Golly Orby]

Did you mean to imply that you have a choice in wether or not you go to Ballston Spa or stay in Charleston for prototype?

Yes and no, and also yes.

In my time through the pipeline, my class was given the chance to request either New York or South Carolina near the end of our time in Power School.  We could write our preference, but it wasn't guaranteed that we would get it.  Our fates were still in the hands of other people (as they often are).

Now, that doesn't mean that it will be the same way with you, and that's not even what ultimately happened to me. No two Navy experiences are the same.

Because of complications at the prototypes, the barracks were becoming very crowded at NNPTC.  They began to "upgrade" the suites to accommodate twice as many beds, but the process was too slow to house the number of students that were on grad hold.  I was asked if I wanted to "prefill" for Charleston prototype.  By doing this, I was given orders to Charleston while I was still in Power School, allowing me to move out of my barracks and collect BAH.  So, in a way: Yes, I chose my prototype.