Suggestions for Officers joining the Nuke program

[Trinian23]

All,

I am talking to about 4 soon to be graduates of engineering at my school who are starting out on their new career in the Navy Nuke program as officers. I can give them everything and anything they want (aside from the classified info) that they need based on my experience as an enlisted nuke, however, any hints from you officer types that I could pass along would be greatly appreciated. Some of topics I plan on covering are as follows:

1) The program is not easy.

2) Just because you have your engineering degree doesn't mean that you will make it.

3) Learn your steam tables front to back

4) Don't think that you are the smartest person there. There are smarter officers and enlisted then you.

5) LISTEN to your enlisted crew members.

6) The overall pipeline

7) What to expect as a submarine officer (bottom of the pole, quals, quals, quals, etc.)

Overall expectations of an officer from an enlisted standpoint.

etc.

Any other suggestions would be greatly appreciated. This is an opportunity for me to help these guys and gals become better officers before they even go in. Any info from a surface officer standpoint would be appreciated also. For example, I am not sure if this is the same now, but it used to be that the surface officers would go to see prior to their nuke training for a year to get their SWO quals done, then would go through nuke school, so they would end up being a lt. jg by the time they went through prototype. Thanks for all of your help!

Bill

[Marlin]

Hair cuts, military discipline, and other traditional conduct is a reflection of the command. Admiral Zumwalt in the 70's was famous for his Z-grams that loosened some of these restrictions. On one of my boats during a visit by the skippers wife, she saw one of our electricians with longer wavy hair and complemented him on it. He got to keep his hair at that length except for external inspections. Buzz cuts and ultra short hair cuts were not common for most of us on the boats, but then it was the 70's and long hippie/beatle style hair was in. Beards were common but again also at the discretion of the command I didn't have to shave to wear a respirator until I got out, darn federal regs.

[cincinnatinuke]

Cycoticpenguin,

RTFQ......

Trinian23 was asking for OFFICER replies.  (HINT: You are an enlisted sailor ...and... you've not even graduated NNPS yet.)

Read before you reply in the future.

Jason

HC,

I think #5 and  gave him some wiggle room to comment.  And besides his dad was a Colonel.

CP,

You are obviously motivated as evidenced by the number of posts recently.  Listen to HC when he tells you to slow up and RTFQ.  He is a good guy from what I have seen him post and another who I consider motivated.  Best to use him for good advice when you need it, rather than piss him off. 

David

[Rad Sponge]

HC,

I think #5 and  gave him some wiggle room to comment.  And besides his dad was a Colonel.

CP,

You are obviously motivated as evidenced by the number of posts recently.  Listen to HC when he tells you to slow up and RTFQ.  He is a good guy from what I have seen him post and another who I consider motivated.  Best to use him for good advice when you need it, rather than piss him off. 

David

Can we all just get back to the main purpose of this discussion.

I don't really give a fig if you are an officer or not an officer when answering this question. Good advice is good advice. Just answer the figging question and move on.

[Trinian23]

Thanks guys,

I really don't care whether or not the advice comes from an officer or an enlisted. However, I have experienced the enlisted side of things and have had good officers and bad officers in charge of me. The reason why I asked for specific input from any of the O-dogs out there is that often times there are things that we as enlisted just don't get (just as there are things that officers just don't get, unless they are a good officer...hmmm...maybe I answered part of my own question). Any input is appreciated, however, the haircut thing, the makeup thing, etc... that stuff will be taken care of by the command if and only if the officer (or sailor for that matter) understands why those requirements are there. Having said that, some of the best officers I have ever had, had the sloppiest uniforms. I am looking more specifically for input on surface officer life (as I have no real idea of what that is like), tips and tricks on how to survive the YEARS spent qualifying the various watchstations on a sub, then going to engineering school, then coming back and requalling, and just when you figured it all out, off to a shore command.  I am looking for an officers input on how to be an effective leader of enlisted sailors when you just got to the boat straight out of prototype and sub school and you are given RL div and have a crusty 20 year 1st class who some where along the lines got passed over for chief, but does really in fact know everything and he'll be damned if some runt with butter bars onhis shoulder is going to tell him how to run his division. Does this help? These kids are going to be handed a division and have close to zero idea what to do. The Navy does have stuff in place to help ease that, but I would like to offer these kids a couple of tidbits of advice that maybe they will remember and go "Aha! That is what he was talkign about!" when the time comes.

Any input from experienced sailors would be appreciated also.

Thanks,
Bill