Broad OCS Questions - Can Anyone Help?

[Schuette]

Hi all,

I am recently interested in applying to become a USN commissioned officer. I keep hearing from family and friends about the opportunities, and after a few years' spent adrift, I feel like I hear a noble call to action.

Before I begin writing anything more, I need to explain that I am totally new to the prospect of the OCS application process and USN. Hence why I am here: I need any and all accurate information I can obtain.

Firstly, when should I apply for OCS? Is there a specific timeframe of which I should be aware?

Secondly, would I be required to first attend basic training, or would I fast-tracked to OCS in lieu of a college degree (a BA in International Studies)?

Thirdly, how intensive is the security clearance/background check? I have a pretty spotless criminal record, except for three traffic-related citations on my permanent record. But what does a clearance/check look like? I ask because it could get complicated - I lived abroad during the last year, in Africa of all places, and traveled around Western Europe several years ago. Are they looking for character references? Verification of employment history?

Fourthly, what kind of tests will I need to take in order to be admitted into OCS? I am completely unfamiliar with several of the acronyms on this board.

Fifthly, I keep hearing conflicting accounts about OCS branch selection and preference. Ideally, I would like to do Navy Public Affairs or Intelligence as a commissioned officer - I have an extensive public relations/public affairs background - but what is the likelihood of me receiving commissions in either of these fields, let alone my branch of choice? If I failed the cut, would the Army or Air Force be able to recruit me to where they need me?

I understand this is somewhat extensive. Thanks in advance to all who can bear my relative ignorance and answer these questions to the best of their ability.

Best,
Ryan

 

[Picaroon]

Firstly, when should I apply for OCS? Is there a specific timeframe of which I should be aware?

Today? As soon as you want, provided you aren't too old.

Secondly, would I be required to first attend basic training, or would I fast-tracked to OCS in lieu of a college degree (a BA in International Studies)?

OCS essentially is "basic training" for officers. You will not go to enlisted boot camp. Also I think we have different ideas of what "in lieu of" means

Thirdly, how intensive is the security clearance/background check? I have a pretty spotless criminal record, except for three traffic-related citations on my permanent record. But what does a clearance/check look like? I ask because it could get complicated - I lived abroad during the last year, in Africa of all places, and traveled around Western Europe several years ago. Are they looking for character references? Verification of employment history?

It's going to be a pain in the ass filling out the form. You will have to put down everywhere you've been and when. I had to detail a European vacation and it was a lot of digging around in old records. You will need character references, such as roommates and close friends.

Fourthly, what kind of tests will I need to take in order to be admitted into OCS? I am completely unfamiliar with several of the acronyms on this board.

MEPS (medical), ASTB (Aviation Selection Test Battery, depending on what job you want you may not have to take the whole test) and PRT (physical readiness test)

Fifthly, I keep hearing conflicting accounts about OCS branch selection and preference. Ideally, I would like to do Navy Public Affairs or Intelligence as a commissioned officer - I have an extensive public relations/public affairs background - but what is the likelihood of me receiving commissions in either of these fields, let alone my branch of choice? If I failed the cut, would the Army or Air Force be able to recruit me to where they need me?

When you apply for OCS, you apply for a set of up to 3 top choices. When you get the results, you are told which of the three you got. So if you get a pro-rec (search for that term) for PAO, you will be guaranteed a PAO job if you pass OCS and all the training. Navy OCS is a completely separate entity from Air Force, Army, and Marines officer training schools.

The best thing you can do is search this site for more info.

 

[blarged]

Hi all,

I am recently interested in applying to become a USN commissioned officer. I keep hearing from family and friends about the opportunities, and after a few years' spent adrift, I feel like I hear a noble call to action.

Welcome

Before I begin writing anything more, I need to explain that I am totally new to the prospect of the OCS application process and USN. Hence why I am here: I need any and all accurate information I can obtain.

Firstly, when should I apply for OCS? Is there a specific timeframe of which I should be aware?

You can apply to OCS within 6 months of graduating college with a baccalaureate degree. If you are still in school, you can apply to the Baccalaureate Degree Completion Program (BDCP) within 3 years of graduation for a technical degree (engineering/math) or within 2 years with a non-technical degree (criminal justice/poly sci). Check the BDCP forum on here for more info there.

Secondly, would I be required to first attend basic training, or would I fast-tracked to OCS in lieu of a college degree (a BA in International Studies)?

After you graduate college you go to OCS. OCS is the "basic training" for Officers.

Thirdly, how intensive is the security clearance/background check? I have a pretty spotless criminal record, except for three traffic-related citations on my permanent record. But what does a clearance/check look like? I ask because it could get complicated - I lived abroad during the last year, in Africa of all places, and traveled around Western Europe several years ago. Are they looking for character references? Verification of employment history?

They want to know if you will blab secrets ... if you were going around Africa with foreign business partners making shady deals ... you might have issues. They will dig, but (it is my experience) they aren't going to make something out of nothing.

Fourthly, what kind of tests will I need to take in order to be admitted into OCS? I am completely unfamiliar with several of the acronyms on this board.

You will need to take the ASTB. Check the ASTB forum on this site for more details.

Fifthly, I keep hearing conflicting accounts about OCS branch selection and preference. Ideally, I would like to do Navy Public Affairs or Intelligence as a commissioned officer - I have an extensive public relations/public affairs background - but what is the likelihood of me receiving commissions in either of these fields, let alone my branch of choice? If I failed the cut, would the Army or Air Force be able to recruit me to where they need me?

PA is extremely competitive from what I hear. But if it is your passion, definitely apply. You get to apply to three communities at a time and rank them in order of preference. As for other branches ... they have separate application processes.

I understand this is somewhat extensive. Thanks in advance to all who can bear my relative ignorance and answer these questions to the best of their ability.

Best,
Ryan

You asked a lot of very basic questions that are talked about nonstop on this forum. Check the forums I made reference to and also if you would like, feel free to check my blog (in my signature) for my application process.

When you are read up a bit more and have more specific questions, jump in on some threads already in progress or start your own.

Good luck on your application!

 

[blarged]

picaroooooon ... you beat me ... :icon_tong

 

[OnTopTime]

Here's the form you will have to complete for the security clearance investigation. It takes most people at least several hours to gather all the required information and fill out the form.

For answers to most of your other questions, I recommend that you use this site's search function first, before posting again with more specific questions for which you haven't already found an answer.

 

[beaverslayer]

But what does a clearance/check look like? I ask because it could get complicated - I lived abroad during the last year, in Africa of all places, and traveled around Western Europe several years ago.

Don't worry about living abroad. My parents are missionaries and I spent roughly 15 years of my life living in West Africa before I graduated from high school and came back to the US to go to college. The clearance form is a royal PITA, but once I finally got it all filled out the Navy didn't have any problems with it at all. Good luck with your application!

 

[LET73]

Thirdly, how intensive is the security clearance/background check? I have a pretty spotless criminal record, except for three traffic-related citations on my permanent record. But what does a clearance/check look like? I ask because it could get complicated - I lived abroad during the last year, in Africa of all places, and traveled around Western Europe several years ago. Are they looking for character references? Verification of employment history?

They will look for all of the above. Foreign travel makes the process take longer (I did some study abroad and other foreign travel, so I'm speaking from experience here), and the African travel will complicate things. Western Europe, probably not so much.

Fifthly, I keep hearing conflicting accounts about OCS branch selection and preference. Ideally, I would like to do Navy Public Affairs or Intelligence as a commissioned officer - I have an extensive public relations/public affairs background - but what is the likelihood of me receiving commissions in either of these fields, let alone my branch of choice? If I failed the cut, would the Army or Air Force be able to recruit me to where they need me?

You've picked two of the most competitive fields in the Navy. PAOs are almost invariably picked from the fleet (not always; I know one who was picked up for OCS as a civilian), and Intel is not easy to get into, either. That said, asking questions along the lines of "what are my chances?" is a bit pointless. Do you have good grades? Test scores? Work experience? Leadership experience? Motivation to be a Naval officer first and PAO/IntelO/whatever second? If yes, apply. Your chances are zero percent if you don't, and that's about as precise as anyone can get.

Look around this forum for some good gouge. The search function is your friend. Also, navy.com has extremely basic information on the application process, requirements for the various officer communities, and contact info for an officer recruiter in your area. (Don't accidentally talk to an enlisted recruiter; there's a big difference.) Good luck.

 

[priceless529]

Hello all. I have been on here for a long time as a guest but this is the first time I actually registered/wrote anything.

Schuette-
here's some advice about PAO. That's what I'm applying for too and while this forum is really helpful about broader based ocs questions, there's not a lot about PAO specifically.

Someone mentioned that it is very competitive and they didn't take anyone last year and are only taking 5 this year and that is correct based on what my OR told me. Also, the boards for it only meet once a year, and the deadline has just passed for this year. They were supposed to meet Nov. 15th, but got pushed back to Dec. 3rd. (since it's such a small pool of applicants my OR said i should be hearing within a week, I'm getting nervous!)

anyways, I don't know when exactly you wanted to go to OCS, but if you really want to do PAO, it'll prob be around a year wait before the boards come up again. However, if that's really what you want to do, go for it! My OR told me right off the bat how hard it was to get accepted, but i figure it can't hurt to apply and hope, you never know what they might be looking for. Just make sure you have an awsome package and do really well on the ASTB, and basically anything that would set you apart from other applicants. good luck and i hope this helped some

sidenote: thanks to everyone on here for contributing to giving some insider scoop on ocs, it's a lifesaver!

 

[SWCS242]

I have a great idea, none of you want to be PAOs...you want to be SWOs... I mean, who doesnt want to drive a ship? Driving a ship is pretty bad a$$ :icon_smil