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My 14year old son has been interested in a career in the navy for many years now. As he is entering 9th grade this fall, I was wondering if there was anything specific he should be doing at this time. We are not from this country, although he was born here and we live in the states, so we are unsure of how to go about this.
Any and all advice and opinions will be taken into consideration. He does not have ROTC in his school. He does play football and wants to begin Rugby this year. His grades are from A to C . He is capable of doing honors history and math. He is a hard worker, volutneered a lot in his old school but as we moved this year, he is still getting his feet wet in the new school.
Looking this far out he can prepare himself to ROTC scholarship/Naval Academy if he tightens his grades up. That would allow him to go to college right after HS and enter the Navy as an officer. As well train with the NAvy during the summer while in college as well as NROTC throughout the school year.
For enlisting the only thing that wil get him promoted, outside of JROTC, is a certain amount of college credits (15 if I recall) or being an Eagle Scout. Though all extracurriclular activites help, Eagle Scout is also something looked very highly upon for ROTC/Military Academy scholarships. Moreso than high school JROTC, unless you're a unit commander or something. I'll add more later but have to go.
Short answer is english, math, and athletics all four years of school.
My 14year old son has been interested in a career in the navy for many years now. As he is entering 9th grade this fall, I was wondering if there was anything specific he should be doing at this time. We are not from this country, although he was born here and we live in the states, so we are unsure of how to go about this.
Any and all advice and opinions will be taken into consideration. He does not have ROTC in his school. He does play football and wants to begin Rugby this year. His grades are from A to C . He is capable of doing honors history and math. He is a hard worker, volutneered a lot in his old school but as we moved this year, he is still getting his feet wet in the new school.
Thank you
d
To be enlisted (I started my service career enlisted): keep his record scrupulously clean (no police involvement is best, no drug issues-they both require waivers, which aren't being granted often these days), work on basic English and math to do well at the entrance tests, participate in athletics.
To be officer (I finished my enlisted service and was later an officer): for a chance at a service academy-take the hardest classes he can get an A or MAYBE a B in (shoot for 3.8+ nonweighted as a minimum), then do as many of the following as he can handle: get fairly good SATs or ACTs, take AP or honors courses, have a varsity team sport (two is better), be a varsity team captain, participate in several clubs, and if you can do some sort of community service volunteering. Bonuses that really help a record if he's done all that are Boy's State, Eagle Scout, and foreign exchang.
Basically do several things pretty good, and make sure that those things indicate he is a scholar, an athlete AND a leader. There is no requirement to do everything, or do everything perfectly, but you can't have a glaring weak area. For Army, Navy, Air Force, and Merchant Marine, you also usually need a Senator or Representative to select and sponsor you (there are other people, like the Vice President, who can do it for a few people, but mostly it's your state's elected representatives that are your best bet). Coast Guard is straight merit.
One little-known, but very risky way to get into an academy is to enlist, and during the enlistment apply for an academy in the same service. Roughly 100 slots are reserved in Army and Navy service academies for active duty enlisted members, and the competition is much less stiff than straight out of high school. It's risky because if you don't get the appointment, you stay enlisted until your term of service is up-so if that's the only reason you enlisted, you are likely to be disappointed.
For ROTC scholarship, the same sorts of things as for USMA/USNA/USAFA/USMMA/USCGA, but it's slightly easier to get a scholarship offer in ROTC than to get a service academy appointment, so you could get away with fewer activities and maybe a 3.6+ GPA and/or lower SAT/ACT. You do need sports of some kind and some kind of club activities, preferably as an officer.
It's very easy to just enter Army ROTC as a non-scholarship freshman, just get into college, but I don't know if Navy has any non-scholarship options.
JROTC does not do very much for officer programs. It's a different focus, and in many schools is more of a character-building activity and salvage program to make students good citizens and more competitive for life in general-it's not oriented towards getting into or succeeding in senior ROTC.
Location: Finally escaped The People's Republic of California
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he was born in this country, he a citizen..no worries
You didin't say he wanted to be an officer??
Get good grades, stay off drugs, don't get fat, know how to swim and enlist...very easy
I joined the Navy on my 17th birthday, my signiture, my Dad's signiture and a test..
Of course back then it wasn't a job it was adventure,
now it's a global force for good...
This biggest things are not to disqualify himself. As a recruiter, I see plenty of high school students with gaged ears, tattoos in visible places, or with girlfriends that are pregnant. Those will stop him from joining. If he is in a car with friends who have weed and gets a ticket, then he won't be able to join, etc.
So far he is a good kid. I know he is only 14, but he has seen others wanting to sign up only to have to wait it out until probation is up ; luckily they do not live near us. Also has seen others spending their teens in jail. He is not into tattoos or earrings etc and he even begs us to take him to get his hair cut once it touches his ears.
If we can keep him like this and get him more focused on his grades, he will be ok. He likes to volunteer, help, teach other kids and lead. Just wanted to know about grades and what he can do to make his dream come true. We can only take him so far, he knows he has to do the rest.
Many areas have the 'Sea Cadet' program ran by a Naval Reserve Center.
It is all free, and includes a meeting once or twice every month, plus 2 weeks every summer. The first summer the cadets go to Navy Recruit Center for a quickie bootcamp. Then each summer after that they can go on-board a Navy Ship for 2 weeks.
Being active in Sea Cadets will give a Navy recruit an added bonus in his/her rank when they first enlist. [Generally E3]
I was in Sea Cadets when I was a teenager. I did 2 weeks in San Diego Recruit Training Center; then 2 weeks on a Mine Sweeper home ported at Treasure Island in San Francisco; then 2 weeks on a Destroyer [I do not recall where the destroyer was homeported]; and finally I did 2 weeks at Subase Groton going through a mini submarine school.
When I enlisted I got an accelerated advancement. Because I was already familiar with submarines I knew I wanted to be on submarines, and I knew which job I wanted on submarines. Whereas most of the recruits I was at bootcamp with, had no idea of where they were going, or what it would be like serving on US Navy vessels.
I would say that Sea Cadets helped me a great deal.
I served 20 years and retired.
I suggest that you call your nearest Navy Reserve Center and ask them about Sea Cadets.
If he wants to be in the Navy, he needs to be sure he can pass the swim test. A lot of us took this for granted, but there were always a few guys who struggled with it, terribly.
Lots of good input here. Your town may not have JROTC but perhaps a nearby town does? Doesn't have to be Navy I don't think. Like others said, just stay clean - no DUI's, don't let friends get you in trouble. A certain amount of college will sometimes get you an extra stripe when you graduate boot camp which is really nice. A good score on the military apptitudes test will give a better selection of career fields, you can buy practice books.
One thing I've seen put damper on navy careers (I was AF but talked to some Navy here and there) - sea sickness. If he's prone to motion sickness he either needs to get a career field that doesn't float or pick a different service.
looking back I wish I'd considered Coast Guard too. Interesting missions, small enough to have a more comraderly intimate feel. But then, I have terrible issues with motion sickness so AF was probably best
Lots of good input here. Your town may not have JROTC but perhaps a nearby town does? Doesn't have to be Navy I don't think. Like others said, just stay clean - no DUI's, don't let friends get you in trouble. A certain amount of college will sometimes get you an extra stripe when you graduate boot camp which is really nice. A good score on the military apptitudes test will give a better selection of career fields, you can buy practice books.
One thing I've seen put damper on navy careers (I was AF but talked to some Navy here and there) - sea sickness. If he's prone to motion sickness he either needs to get a career field that doesn't float or pick a different service.
looking back I wish I'd considered Coast Guard too. Interesting missions, small enough to have a more comraderly intimate feel. But then, I have terrible issues with motion sickness so AF was probably best
Good point, I am subject to motion-sickness. I can't go near the surface of the water without my pills, or else I become very sick. I always have.
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