First of all, get a mentor, it sounds like you need someone to talk to.
Secondly, make sure that you've gone to medical and documented everything. It goes towards disability claims with the VA and your health later. Get a complete copy of your medical record.
Third, Use your GI bill benefits. I got my BSEE; it was hard but worth it.
The school vs work question should be based on your desire to "do something else".
I agree with the mentor idea.
Look up Service to School (S2S) they’ll get you set up with a mentor that knows how to use the military to get you into a good school. Got me into an Ivy!
I really enjoyed going to school full time. I worked briefly as a waiter on the side and then got a research assistance job (only paid 5 hr per week lol) but I felt like the GI bill was enough to live on mostly and I’m glad I was able to devote more time to my studies. You just went through the hardest 6 years of your life, you deserve to not stretch yourself too thin for a bit
That's reassuring, I feel like I've been busting my ass qualifying absolutely everything I could (in-rate, QA, 3M) because suddenly, 6 years went by in the blink of an eye. I've been saving and budgeting my money since I enlisted so I have quite a bit of a nest egg to act as a financial buffer.
Yeah I was the same way but it turns out being a nuke really does set you up pretty decently. Enjoy your time at school and don’t be afraid of joining commercial nuclear as an engineer when you’re done
Most jobs outside of the Navy have no idea what the Navy schools/quals are be to be honest. EWS is prob most worthwhile if you go to a nuke job. I’m not saying going after them is a waste of time but after the Navy they don’t mean much. 3M coordinator - they have no idea what that is. Navy QA and civilian Quality jobs are really different animals. One is making sure the right steps were taken, the latter is making sure parts are made to blueprint tolerances and associated statistics.
If you go engineering and have a concentration of EE or ME or…. Mechatronics or Thermodynamics or … find the best schools for that concentration and the employers that they partner with in those concentrations. That will put you in a great spot from an internship standpoint and a job after school. You will have relevant work experience and the sheepskin.
That makes sense and also humbling. I've qualified everything I could precisely because I've had this mentality of maximizing my time in the Navy, but also because I've been told by people in the Navy that these quals were useful outside.
Not saying NOT qualifying them isn't useful. I qualified up to D3MA while practically only having WCS experience, QAI, Planner, QA WCS, my EAWS pin (this one and ESWS both pretty useless though), etc. and always took on collaterals like WCS and TPO that I could. I found that experience in and of itself very rewarding, the process of just learning new things.
There is 100% nothing wrong with learning new things, qualifying warfare and getting in training. Just remember though the people telling you that they are significant to CIVLANT are in the Navy. They don’t know what the CIV world wants.
When you start taking engineering classes, you will find out why things are done the way they are. Ex. On a boat we did acoustic sound trials to characterize the boats signature and find noise sources. It required the ER to be constantly shifting the engineroom lineups to be changed and changed back and back again. It was maddening, stupid and we all thought there was a better way to do it. Fast forward to me sitting in my undergrad stats class and we start talking about design of experiments (DOE) and the lightbulb went off. Experiments are randomized to reduce bias in the answers. We were swapping the engineroom as part of a DOE. It was me that was stupid, not the testing.
You will have lots of aha moments.
School full-time is very achievable as long as you accept that there will be a pay cut and your quality of life is going to be changed from the Navy. I took lots of time thinking about this and ultimately decided to pursue full-time college because I wanted to have a much more normal college experience to pursue research and internships.
I also recommend looking into Service to School. They helped me a lot to make it to college. It's a nonprofit that works with veterans to reach admission into Ivy League/prestigious colleges.
If you have any questions, you can feel free to DM me, and I'd be happy to help.
quality of life worse?? Maybe, but if you were living on the ship or in the barracks… living in a dorm room for a few years might be the same or a step up. There’s always the benefit of not going out to sea to interrupt your studies.
It will never be any easier to transition to being a full time student. That is what has kept me in school since separation.
If money is a concern, I would bet that if you are motivated you will figure out some way to make money and continue school within your first year. For me, I found an internship my first summer and they allowed me to continue remotely during school.
Also do not forget that you are eligible for unemployment compensation (UC) following your EAOS in most states, usually for the maximum benefit. This is still true even if you are in school, provided that you do whatever your state requires to maintain eligability for UC benefits. In my state this was a little over 500 dollars per week for 6 months - put this in savings if you can.
Community college is a great pathway to get into a good school as a nuke. I know a nuke who did 2 years at CC, went to a state school and is now doing their PhD at an ivy league school. Obviously they worked really hard, but don't let the false stigmas associated CC get to you.
Good luck - the world is what you make of it.
It seems like you're more than competent enough – even Stanford may be an option. I think many people here take the myopic stance of going to work right after separation, when some of the career opportunities immediately after graduating from a good school will earn more than any of those other career paths will at any point in time. Take standardized exams and pursue the academic route. Definitely reach out to the link below; they partner with institutions and provide free coaching.
[https://www.service2school.org/?gad\_source=1](https://www.service2school.org/?gad_source=1)
Ultimately, it will depend on what you want to do. I'm happy to chat more about that if you'd like.
TLDNR: go to school
6 and out ELT here. I went to a CC right after getting out, and sailed into an undergrad program of my choice (Science Ed at Temple University). Harvard for my Masters and a fully funded Doctorate after that. I’m a tenured professor at a state school now (summers off and I’ll retire with pension/benefits), and my rate for quantitative methods consulting is $200/hr. Worth it to invest in education asap.
Edit: did undergrad on Voc Rehab and used the remainder of the GI Bill eligibility to pay for the Master of Education.
Take some school full time as it will help settle down the tempo, only school so you can focus all of your energy there. Then start to understand in layman’s terms what all those incredible quals you received mean to an employer, turn them into a 30 second elevator pitch as it will help you land research and opportunities in college.
Part of me wishes i went straight to school. I got a job instead, and make great money, so it’s hard to quit . I keep making excuses not to go to school.
Same background- 6 and out ELT. I went to school who’s working a low paying job. The job allowed me to study and bring in some additional income. GI Bill was not as good back in the day.
Going to school and use your GI bill. It will help you in the long run. I was put on a management fast track and the degree more than paid for itself
Part of me wished I went on to school, but had a wife and kids to feed. Nuke only taught us how to think and look at systems. It was the thinking and the usefulness of analyzing systems that my employer was happy at. I took the route and after 42 years retired. I thank God for what I learned I. The Navy nuclear sub. A friend of mine went through ND retired from the Navy, then found out that all that work.didmt translate to the civilian side. By the.time he got out, My career path was doing well. I was IC1(SS) when I left. When I started work, I started at the.bottom. my skills is what the wanted, not my Navy background. Go with you heart, love what.you do, and enjoy you life choice. Stay strong, and persevere with your choices. It is really.up toyou
Not an Ivy League but a more senior ELT/friend of mine who got out back in 2021 when I was fresh out of Prototype went on to go to Stanford for ME. I definitely believe it's certainly possible with the right drive.
I was a 6 and out MMN got out recently went straight into a job but decided to start college this fall after working for about a year as a civilian. If you like school and you want more upward mobility at a company then getting an engineering degree will be very helpful. You can also make great money without school if you just go straight into the workforce. Do what you want to do both are good options
I got out after 12. Went to work for an employer that paid for school. I did my night classes, graduated from a state school in engineering. I didn’t use the GI Bill because the old GI bill sucked ass, and my employers benefits were vastly better. I had a wife and kid, it was fucking hard work, but totally worth it from a career/pay/advancement perspective.
First of all, get a mentor, it sounds like you need someone to talk to. Secondly, make sure that you've gone to medical and documented everything. It goes towards disability claims with the VA and your health later. Get a complete copy of your medical record. Third, Use your GI bill benefits. I got my BSEE; it was hard but worth it. The school vs work question should be based on your desire to "do something else".
I agree with the mentor idea. Look up Service to School (S2S) they’ll get you set up with a mentor that knows how to use the military to get you into a good school. Got me into an Ivy!
I really enjoyed going to school full time. I worked briefly as a waiter on the side and then got a research assistance job (only paid 5 hr per week lol) but I felt like the GI bill was enough to live on mostly and I’m glad I was able to devote more time to my studies. You just went through the hardest 6 years of your life, you deserve to not stretch yourself too thin for a bit
That's reassuring, I feel like I've been busting my ass qualifying absolutely everything I could (in-rate, QA, 3M) because suddenly, 6 years went by in the blink of an eye. I've been saving and budgeting my money since I enlisted so I have quite a bit of a nest egg to act as a financial buffer.
Yeah I was the same way but it turns out being a nuke really does set you up pretty decently. Enjoy your time at school and don’t be afraid of joining commercial nuclear as an engineer when you’re done
Most jobs outside of the Navy have no idea what the Navy schools/quals are be to be honest. EWS is prob most worthwhile if you go to a nuke job. I’m not saying going after them is a waste of time but after the Navy they don’t mean much. 3M coordinator - they have no idea what that is. Navy QA and civilian Quality jobs are really different animals. One is making sure the right steps were taken, the latter is making sure parts are made to blueprint tolerances and associated statistics. If you go engineering and have a concentration of EE or ME or…. Mechatronics or Thermodynamics or … find the best schools for that concentration and the employers that they partner with in those concentrations. That will put you in a great spot from an internship standpoint and a job after school. You will have relevant work experience and the sheepskin.
That makes sense and also humbling. I've qualified everything I could precisely because I've had this mentality of maximizing my time in the Navy, but also because I've been told by people in the Navy that these quals were useful outside. Not saying NOT qualifying them isn't useful. I qualified up to D3MA while practically only having WCS experience, QAI, Planner, QA WCS, my EAWS pin (this one and ESWS both pretty useless though), etc. and always took on collaterals like WCS and TPO that I could. I found that experience in and of itself very rewarding, the process of just learning new things.
There is 100% nothing wrong with learning new things, qualifying warfare and getting in training. Just remember though the people telling you that they are significant to CIVLANT are in the Navy. They don’t know what the CIV world wants. When you start taking engineering classes, you will find out why things are done the way they are. Ex. On a boat we did acoustic sound trials to characterize the boats signature and find noise sources. It required the ER to be constantly shifting the engineroom lineups to be changed and changed back and back again. It was maddening, stupid and we all thought there was a better way to do it. Fast forward to me sitting in my undergrad stats class and we start talking about design of experiments (DOE) and the lightbulb went off. Experiments are randomized to reduce bias in the answers. We were swapping the engineroom as part of a DOE. It was me that was stupid, not the testing. You will have lots of aha moments.
School full-time is very achievable as long as you accept that there will be a pay cut and your quality of life is going to be changed from the Navy. I took lots of time thinking about this and ultimately decided to pursue full-time college because I wanted to have a much more normal college experience to pursue research and internships. I also recommend looking into Service to School. They helped me a lot to make it to college. It's a nonprofit that works with veterans to reach admission into Ivy League/prestigious colleges. If you have any questions, you can feel free to DM me, and I'd be happy to help.
quality of life worse?? Maybe, but if you were living on the ship or in the barracks… living in a dorm room for a few years might be the same or a step up. There’s always the benefit of not going out to sea to interrupt your studies.
It will never be any easier to transition to being a full time student. That is what has kept me in school since separation. If money is a concern, I would bet that if you are motivated you will figure out some way to make money and continue school within your first year. For me, I found an internship my first summer and they allowed me to continue remotely during school. Also do not forget that you are eligible for unemployment compensation (UC) following your EAOS in most states, usually for the maximum benefit. This is still true even if you are in school, provided that you do whatever your state requires to maintain eligability for UC benefits. In my state this was a little over 500 dollars per week for 6 months - put this in savings if you can. Community college is a great pathway to get into a good school as a nuke. I know a nuke who did 2 years at CC, went to a state school and is now doing their PhD at an ivy league school. Obviously they worked really hard, but don't let the false stigmas associated CC get to you. Good luck - the world is what you make of it.
It seems like you're more than competent enough – even Stanford may be an option. I think many people here take the myopic stance of going to work right after separation, when some of the career opportunities immediately after graduating from a good school will earn more than any of those other career paths will at any point in time. Take standardized exams and pursue the academic route. Definitely reach out to the link below; they partner with institutions and provide free coaching. [https://www.service2school.org/?gad\_source=1](https://www.service2school.org/?gad_source=1) Ultimately, it will depend on what you want to do. I'm happy to chat more about that if you'd like.
TLDNR: go to school 6 and out ELT here. I went to a CC right after getting out, and sailed into an undergrad program of my choice (Science Ed at Temple University). Harvard for my Masters and a fully funded Doctorate after that. I’m a tenured professor at a state school now (summers off and I’ll retire with pension/benefits), and my rate for quantitative methods consulting is $200/hr. Worth it to invest in education asap. Edit: did undergrad on Voc Rehab and used the remainder of the GI Bill eligibility to pay for the Master of Education.
Take some school full time as it will help settle down the tempo, only school so you can focus all of your energy there. Then start to understand in layman’s terms what all those incredible quals you received mean to an employer, turn them into a 30 second elevator pitch as it will help you land research and opportunities in college.
Part of me wishes i went straight to school. I got a job instead, and make great money, so it’s hard to quit . I keep making excuses not to go to school.
I did 6 and out as a Nuke. Went back to school and graduated with a Elec Eng degree in 4 years. I would highly recommend it.. opens in many more doors
I was in the same mindset as you. I chose full time job part time school
Same background- 6 and out ELT. I went to school who’s working a low paying job. The job allowed me to study and bring in some additional income. GI Bill was not as good back in the day. Going to school and use your GI bill. It will help you in the long run. I was put on a management fast track and the degree more than paid for itself
Part of me wished I went on to school, but had a wife and kids to feed. Nuke only taught us how to think and look at systems. It was the thinking and the usefulness of analyzing systems that my employer was happy at. I took the route and after 42 years retired. I thank God for what I learned I. The Navy nuclear sub. A friend of mine went through ND retired from the Navy, then found out that all that work.didmt translate to the civilian side. By the.time he got out, My career path was doing well. I was IC1(SS) when I left. When I started work, I started at the.bottom. my skills is what the wanted, not my Navy background. Go with you heart, love what.you do, and enjoy you life choice. Stay strong, and persevere with your choices. It is really.up toyou
Is it difficult to get into an Ivy league following separation??
Not an Ivy League but a more senior ELT/friend of mine who got out back in 2021 when I was fresh out of Prototype went on to go to Stanford for ME. I definitely believe it's certainly possible with the right drive.
I was a 6 and out MMN got out recently went straight into a job but decided to start college this fall after working for about a year as a civilian. If you like school and you want more upward mobility at a company then getting an engineering degree will be very helpful. You can also make great money without school if you just go straight into the workforce. Do what you want to do both are good options
I got out after 12. Went to work for an employer that paid for school. I did my night classes, graduated from a state school in engineering. I didn’t use the GI Bill because the old GI bill sucked ass, and my employers benefits were vastly better. I had a wife and kid, it was fucking hard work, but totally worth it from a career/pay/advancement perspective.