Tiny clarification needed for an impatient Navy Nuke Mom :)

[Nuke Jayhawk Mom]

My son is in Boot Camp and got to make a call on Saturday. This week was his dad's turn (my ex) to receive one. The ex hasn't spoken to me for more than 2 years, haha, and he's not about to start now.   All I know is that our daughter told me that Navyboy said his rate was "the one that deals with the circuits."

Trying to get clarification on whether that would more likely be the EM or ET rate...

I am not posting for an "easy answer" as I have done my due diligence and lurked obsessively on this site and MANY others for literally months...but just can't discern from the info I have read to gain insight.  I am sure my son SAID his correct rate but his dad was probably clueless, and likely responded with a "Huh?"... dad definitely has not done any reading on this matter, I am certain, so our son probably shorthanded it by saying "the one that deals with the circuits." 

What do ya'll think? I am thinking ET but please help this impatient momma!!!

Thank you so much...   

[HydroDave63]

My son is in Boot Camp and got to make a call on Saturday. This week was his dad's turn (my ex) to receive one. The ex hasn't spoken to me for more than 2 years, haha, and he's not about to start now.   All I know is that our daughter told me that Navyboy said his rate was "the one that deals with the circuits."

Trying to get clarification on whether that would more likely be the EM or ET rate...

I am not posting for an "easy answer" as I have done my due diligence and lurked obsessively on this site and MANY others for literally months...but just can't discern from the info I have read to gain insight.  I am sure my son SAID his correct rate but his dad was probably clueless, and likely responded with a "Huh?"... dad definitely has not done any reading on this matter, I am certain, so our son probably shorthanded it by saying "the one that deals with the circuits." 

What do ya'll think? I am thinking ET but please help this impatient momma!!!

Thank you so much...   

Probably ET. But the ELTs have the most fun!

Signed,
A former EM

[Nuke Jayhawk Mom]

I'll bet! That's what he wanted apparently, and I told him after his ASVAB that from what I had looked up and researched at that point, the Navy wouldn't let him get away from an ET rate because of where his high scores fell in the subcategories. Plus his mechanical knowledge base is pretty much null and void. ha!

I know he listed his first choice as MM, and second choice as EM. He wasn't interested in ET from what he understood the ET role to be, as far as what the physical day-to-day job function was explained to be.

He wanted to mess with pipes and pumps and valves. Something he is familiar with as I had a pool service business for the first 8 years of his life, and my ex has been in that biz for about 15 years now.

He would have been fine even to mess with all that scary electrical stuff too... he just didn't really want to be sitting in front of a bunch of gauges all shift, recording data every 15 min. (even though in DEP for the last 9 months he has sat in front of his computer for what, 15 hours a day haha).

I got a call from him the previous week, and he was all excited that he learned about this ELT option for MMs at the end of power school. I decided to be happy for him if he got MM, what he wanted.

In the end, he'll be fine, he said worst case scenario is he gets ET, and even that is great because he can find a way to transition into the civilian sector easier with ET. (or that is what we understood at the time)

Thanks for your reply

[HeavyD]

One point of clarity +1

In the end, he'll be fine, he said worst case scenario is he gets ET, and even that is great because he can find a way to transition into the civilian sector easier with ET. (or that is what we understood at the time)

This statement, as told to him, is not necessarily true.  Transition to commercial nuclear power, if that is what he decides to do after his service, is dependent almost entirely on what he does AFTER he finally gets his rate.  Personnel performance and accomplishments, qualifications achieved, leadership qualities, these are the things that will help him transition into commercial. 

A couple of things that can help with the transition are qualifying (and actually standing watch for a minimum of 2 years) as Engineering Watch supervisor (EWS - subs) or Propulsion Plant Watch Supervisor (PPWS - carrier) and finishing a technical degree. 

I have seen guys and gals from all 3 rates transition easily and fall flat on their faces.  Which category he ends up in is almost entirely up to him.

Lastly, thanks to him for volunteering to serve and best of luck!   

[Nuke Jayhawk Mom]

Hey thanks HeavyD. It wasn't told to him as a definite thing, just referenced I think more as a "here's the benefit if you don't get MM or EM" suggesting there is somewhat of a consolation prize if he got the one he least preferred. Before he left for boot camp I told him that the subscores on his ASVAB are probably used to clarify his strengths in order to determine his rate.


He was crazy high scoring  on the areas of abstract puzzle piece visualization/spatial recognition and coding speed/pattern recognition stuff. I think his mechanical and electrical knowledge is very limited, and math/patterns/problem solving type stuff has always been his forté.   

  I appreciate the insights on what to do in his Navy journey that will increase the ease of transition to civilian. I will make a note of it and be sure to provide encouragement to him along those lines!

Geez, I really appreciate the members on this site, who are willing to share their experience.

Thank you all. (even the funny replies...which came from experience as well haha)