Hubby to join US Military

[LANCER1562]

Dirka;

First, I want to thank your husband for concidering joining the military.

You are doing what I advise everyone who's though about enlisting: talk to the recruiters, ask questions and talk to people who have served. When you talk to the recruiters, ask them about their time in. Some of them will talk about it honestly if you ask them.

[berserkbishop]

And they aren't as militaristic as other branches. They have some really good MOSes that really aren't ocean-oriented. .

MM3 Bishop doesnt like the sound of this statement. Who is this Moses and why is he so good? Oh you mean Rating. Yeah. We do have some pretty sweet ratings. I am a Nuclear Machinist Mate. You make it sound like the Navy is a walk in the park. Sure we arent quite as focused on silly things like marching and cadence but most of us work on boats! Not much marching to be done there. The Navy is steeped in tradition and is just as much of a challenge as any other branch even if we arent "warriors" like our sister service.

I agree with all of the previous statements and have witnessed second hand and personally what kind of strain the service, regardless of branch, can cause on a relationship/marriage. Take that into consideration. The hardest job in the Navy is that of a Navy wife. Im sure that stands for the other branches as well.

Just a shameless plug: I feel that the Navy is under represented in this crowd of responses and I wouldnt rule it out. Most of our jobs correspond to jobs in the civilian world and we are highly sought after. Plus for a lot of rates the reenlistment bonuses rock. Oh and also accelerated advancement! I have been in a year and have been an E-4 for six months. That may not mean much to a civilian but ask some other service members how ridiculous that is!

Feel free to pm me about opportunities and straight talk about Navy life if you would like!

(sorry if I offended anyone with my first paragraph. Just like to joke at other branches expenses as well as offer an insiders view on the navy!)

Regards
MM3 Bishop

[davedove]

(sorry if I offended anyone with my first paragraph. Just like to joke at other branches expenses as well as offer an insiders view on the navy!)

Hey, everyone who has ever served knows that one of the privileges earned is the right to make fun of the other services.

It's kind of like a family. I can make fun of my brother, but nobody else can.

[###KILTEDKIWI###]

but most of us work on boats!

yikes...

Remember me old matelot, that boats go on ships, but a ship can never go on a boat...

Actually BB, Could you please explain to me the E4 "rating" thing...

[Dirka Skene]

Well, we talked to an Air Force recruiter today. She told my husband if he enlisted for 6 years up front that he would be an E3 after only 20 weeks of service. It took our brother-in-law a year to get that rank. I guess that's Uncle Sam's way of hooking you in for two more years. She acted like it would take him months to get into the Air Force after he gets his Adult High School Diploma. The Army recruiter said he'd be shipping off next week if he already had it. Any reason for the difference? And, lets say I wanted to finish my Bachelor's while he's enlisted. Are there any acedemic perks that would benefit spouses of servicemen? I meant to ask the recruiter about that but I was distracted by my very active Wee Bitty trying to pull an air freshener out of the wall and rearrange a very neat pile of military magazines.

[SteveB]

I will second the statements of MM3 Bishop. First the Navy has been under reported in this thread. Second, like my tour in the Air Force, the opportunities for advancement are very sweet in some career fields. I was E-3 straight out of A.I.T. (MOS School for the Army and Marines). Within a year I was an E-4. The career field that MM3 Bishop has chosen is one that the military has designated for fast track advancement. He should do well in the Navy.

For all you civilians out there.
Enlisted pay grades are E-1 through E-9, with E-1 being the lowest pay, and E-9 the highest.
MOS = Military Oriented Specialty, A.I.T. = Air Institute of Technology.
In the Marines, Army and Air Force, people are addressed by their rank. E.G. Private, Sergeant, Specialist, Master Sergeant. In the Navy, people are addressed by their function MM = Machinist Mate

Also in the Navy... if it floats it is called a vessel, if it travels below the surface it's a boat, or at least when I was stationed on a vessel called a sub tender.

Inter service digs:
U.S. Army = Uncle Sam Ain't Released Me Yet or Gravel Crunchers.
U.S. M.C. = Uncle Sam's Misguided Children or Jarheads
U.S.A.F = U Sure Are F......d or Uncle Sams Flying Funny Farm, or Fly boys.
U.S.C.G. = Uncle Sams Creative Gourmets.
U.S. Navy = The squids.
and many more... I have had the privilege to be stationed with Marines, Army and Navy. The Marines were my tent mates in Vietnam, The Army in a transportation unit in Germany, and during NATO operations with the Navy on board a sub tender. All of us would dig each other's service, but it was our own means of respect for each other and the service to which each of us belonged.

Serving in the Air Force almost guarantees being on aircraft at some point or another. Serving in the Navy almost guarantees being aboard a ship at some point or another. A Navy vessel is so huge it is like being in a city on a large island. The Army can almost guarantee seeing the sandbox at some point or another. The Marine Corps can guarantee that you might not be in the sandbox on rare occasions. The Coast Guard has been moved from the Department of defense to the Department of Homeland Security, and I am wicked out of date as to the conditions in that service.

Choose well based on how you wish to honour our forefathers in keeping the torch of freedom alive.

Slainte

[thescot]

berserkbishop chided me for my seemingly disparaging remarks about the Marine Corps Taxi Service, aka, the Navy. I would never say anything intentionally derogatory about so fine a group of warrior chauffers.

Nuff joking.

I would advise anyone interested in the military to give the Navy a very serious look. It is big, it has everything all the other services have, it has more money, they eat well, and--I say again--they are more interested in getting the job done than in being "military." They don't spend so much time marching, standing in straight lines, or polishing brass as the Army or the Corps. That's not derogatory, just a fact.

Don't sign on the dotted line until you check them out. Naval Intelliegence is really a great option, but then, so is a Machinist's Mate.

My father was in the Seabees in WWII, and there's not a better construction outfit than that.

[dfmacliam]

On most bases.. Several schools offer classes for education.. When I was in, it was refered to as continueing education... as I previously mentioned, my Dad earned a Masters Degree... it was through night school and such..

[Inchessi]

He's seriously considering the Air Force. He wants to be MP. He also wants to get a degree in Criminal Justice while enlisted and persue a job as a Police Officer when he gets out. I think it sounds like a good plan, if he's motivated enough.

Even though I am a Marine, inactive for 15 years:
Every Branch of the military, and the Air Force have MP's, this is coming from experience of having been in trouble with all of them. Do not think that only the Army and Air Force are the options.

If he wants to learn how to do the most with the least, I personally recommend the Marines.

There have been several times when my unit landed on Air Force installations to refuel, we were always passengers. We loved this for two reasons. They had Women, real, soft, beautiful, and delicate women. I digress, more important, their chow hall was five star to us. Their food was cooked! It looked like real food! and most importantly of all, it tasted like real food.

[berserkbishop]

Glad to see the Navy getting some positive review in this thread now. I dont Chauffeur, I PUSH. Thats what we like to call it in my rate. . . . Anyway this might have been cleared up already but in the Navy your job is called a Rating, other branches call this an MOS. As to my reference on "boats," technically nearly every vessel we use should be called a ship, but Submarines are commonly referred to as boats in the Navy. Everything else is a TARGET! Little submariner joke. It would be impossible to join the Navy without a HS diploma or GED. It is just a requirement now.

E-4 is just a paygrade. E1-E9 are enlisted rates. It just is a military standard system that determines how much money you make and your respective rank.

As to tuition assistance for military dependants. . . Currently the Navy is working on helping spouses train for long term portable employment but as far as paying for college while he is in, no programs exist that I know of. The new GI bill is transferable to dependent after a finite number of years of service, but I really havent taken the time to learn the specifics. Take your time, do your research and get the most out of the military that you can. Lots of opportunities that come with a lot of sacrifice.

Squids. . . havent heard that term recently. Mostly we in the Navy say that Navy stands for NEVER AGAIN VOLUNTEER YOURSELF.

Cheers
MM3 (MM=Machinist Mate, 3= Petty Officer 3rd Class)