How to get the ball rolling?

[Flying Toaster]

Well after a year debating between the USMC/AF/ANG/USN, I decided Naval Aviation would be the best fit for me for a variety of reasons. Looking to apply SNA, and just doing straight OCS (not BDCP, not sure if it's possible at this stage anyway). I'm a year and a few months away from graduation (may 11') and wondering how/when I should go about contacting my OR? It seems as if my closest OR is a bit of a ways away but I have no problem giving them a call and driving down immediately, or waiting a while. Also what sort of relationship can I expect to have with my OR? From what I've read/seen I think it's a pretty safe assumption they aren't in desperate need of SNA's, so will I be just another number, or should I make an attempt to be known a bit more than that? It doesn't really phase me either way, just wondering if I should stay out of their hair except when I need to be submitting things or stay in somewhat regular contact.

My GPA should be a 3.3-3.6 when I graduate so that seems to be in line with what I need. My MC PFT is around a 250 so I would assume I'm in good shape for the PRT (correct me if I'm wrong). While considering the USMC the recruiter had me take the ASTB, which with no studying I scored a 5/6/5, under what it seems like I should have. I think +1/2 points is very possible, so studying/retaking it is definitely near the top of list. In the meantime I've also done some flying which I have to imagine would help (seemed like a wise idea to spend a little and make sure it was something I really wanted to do, and unsuprisingly I've had a blast doing it). Speaking of that is there any specific number of hours that looks favorable? It's unlikely I'll make my PPL by graduation due to money, I'm going to continue simply because I enjoy it, but if there is some magic number I need to get I'd probably go for that. Any other advice for making my packet better is welcome as well. Thanks in advance.

 

[OUSOONER]

1) Contact recruiter 2) set up a date for ASTB 3) study for ASTB 4) start piecing your application kit together with the guidance of your recruiter 5) PT throughout all of this and keep up your grades.

That's how you do it.

 

[Boomhower]

Sounds like you are on the right track. From what I'm reading from the recruit-ees on here, you will probably want to go ahead and talk to the recruiter right away. It's not that you are late or anything, but it takes some time to get everything in to them, approvals, boards, etc. If you want to have an OCS date soon after you graduate, go ahead and give them a call. They can get the ball rolling for you and tell you everything you need to gather up. So, to answer your question: Call the recruiter. He'll get the ball rolling.

Your flight time probably won't help you too much. It may show that you are committed to, and enjoy, flying. But, unless you actually have the PPL it won't do too much. Truth is, I don't even know how much it helps when you have a PPL. A 3.6 GPA will trump the guy with a 2.8 and a PPL any day.

There is all kinds of information on here about the recruiting process, so read up on that. Best of luck to you.

 

[Uncle Fester]

...In the meantime I've also done some flying which I have to imagine would help (seemed like a wise idea to spend a little and make sure it was something I really wanted to do, and unsuprisingly I've had a blast doing it). Speaking of that is there any specific number of hours that looks favorable? It's unlikely I'll make my PPL by graduation due to money, I'm going to continue simply because I enjoy it, but if there is some magic number I need to get I'd probably go for that.

This is a subject that comes up here frequently. You've flown enough to know you know you enjoy it and aren't barfing your lungs out. Good to go. More flight time doesn't make you more likely to get picked up for OCS, it's debatable whether it helps you in the TRACOM, and there's other, better things you could be spending that coin on in the meantime. If you want to keep flying and can afford it, great. Just don't get the idea that you should, or that it's expected, or that it's even that big a point on your application. I'd say 90% of my students never flew in an airplane that didn't have a stewardess before they joined the Navy.

Much more useful is to study and retake the ASTB until you knock it out of the park, become a PT animal (no such thing as "good enough shape" for OCS), and stay in the books. No senior year basket-weaving electives.

 

[yakboyslim]

Talk to an OR immediately! It takes quite some time for everything to get done.

The way I understand it you have to go BDCP unless you have a degree already. You can only go to OCS if you have a degree, so you can't apply to go there unless you meet the criteria. Worst that could happen applying for BDCP is you run out of time and graduate before you get in. Then you would just resubmit your application for a direct to OCS route after you graduate.

Plus, even if direct to OCS was an option right now for you, why would you pick not getting paid while in school over getting paid while in school? The only negative to BDCP is you would have to serve enlisted if you DOR at OCS, but I don't think you should be planning for failure. Not in this.

Anyone feel free to correct anything I said, I am not entirely in the know. Just got through my own process (BDCP, swore in yesterday), that is the extent of my experience.

 

[Boomhower]

The way I understand it you have to go BDCP unless you have a degree already.

I did not know that. Lurn sumthin' ever day.

 

[HeyJoe]

The way I understand it you have to go BDCP unless you have a degree already. You can only go to OCS if you have a degree, so you can't apply to go there unless you meet the criteria. Worst that could happen applying for BDCP is you run out of time and graduate before you get in. Then you would just resubmit your application for a direct to OCS route after you graduate.

Plus, even if direct to OCS was an option right now for you, why would you pick not getting paid while in school over getting paid while in school? The only negative to BDCP is you would have to serve enlisted if you DOR at OCS, but I don't think you should be planning for failure. Not in this.

Anyone feel free to correct anything I said, I am not entirely in the know. Just got through my own process (BDCP, swore in yesterday), that is the extent of my experience.

First statement isn't understanding what he said (you don't have to go BDCP if he's in school, he just has to wait longer for OCS), but your comment to at least try for BDCP is great advice. Go to Officer Recruiter and ask about both options and let them advise you. You really ought to seek earliest opportunity for Navy to commit to you least you get stuck a year from now and find out they are restricting OCS accessions (it is the valve they use to make up for what they don't get out of Academy, ROTC and BDCP pipelines).

 

[mbraesicke]

Don't know if its been mentioned yet but you should definitely shoot for BDCP. I graduate in may '11 and was going for BDCP with my package being seen this Jan, but since Im getting seen in March instead I had to drop it. And for the ASTB, study study study and dont underestimate it. I spent probably around 80 hours all in all studying for it and pulled a 6/6/7 54. Its not scored on how well you do percentage wise on the test, but how well you do against all other test takers. 9's go to the top 2%, 8's to the top 8% and so on, something like that. Granted I slept a grand total of about 2 hrs the night before the test so the numbers might be a bit jaded. According to my recruiter you need to get at least 5's and high 40's to be competitive. After that it becomes more of a "whole person concept" of your package.

 

[beaverslayer]

The way I understand it you have to go BDCP unless you have a degree already. You can only go to OCS if you have a degree, so you can't apply to go there unless you meet the criteria.

This actually isn't accurate. I was accepted for a Direct Ascension to OCS almost a full year before my planned graduation (accepted June '09, graduating May '10), so it definitely can be done. That being said, I would second what yakboy and heyjoe are saying--BDCP is a better deal if you can get in. So if you want to do it that way, get started NOW. But if that doesn't work out, you can apply for a DA any time between now and your graduation.

 

[yakboyslim]

This actually isn't accurate. I was accepted for a Direct Ascension to OCS almost a full year before my planned graduation (accepted June '09, graduating May '10), so it definitely can be done. That being said, I would second what yakboy and heyjoe are saying--BDCP is a better deal if you can get in. So if you want to do it that way, get started NOW. But if that doesn't work out, you can apply for a DA any time between now and your graduation.

I stand corrected. I knew I didn't know the whole picture. I also should have been more careful in my wording because I wasn't trying to say you could only go BDCP, but I was saying - and did believe - that direct ascension was out of the question without a degree in hand. Again, that was my incorrect understanding of things.

How does that work for those who went DA while still in school? Is it like a DEP program for enlisted guys? Are you in the system somehow, and obligated to attend OCS when school is done, or is it like DEP where you are not really in the system until just before training begins and as such can kind of walk away from things if you change your mind? The DEP guys can just walk away with no big consequences (i.e. Great Lakes) because the military paid them nothing so they owe the military nothing. (At least that is my understanding of DEP, if I have this wrong too I am going to take a break from posting)

I'm already BDCP, I'm just curious for others (and just to learn).

Also to the OP - From personal experience you should stay in regular contact with your recruiter. My recruiter told me up front that he would put as much work into my application as I showed interest. I emailed him all the time to check on things, make sure I was doing what I needed to, etc. and I responded as quickly as possible when he needed something from me. He kept up his end of the deal by keeping my paperwork moving and fixing all of my snags quickly. My OR never seemed uninterested in my app, and was always willing to answer questions. I was a Nuke applicant at first, so maybe that explains some of that, but also my OR was really good. Comparing stories with other people I had it good in that regard. Your mileage may vary, but I would suggest staying in contact with your recruiter very often.

 

[beaverslayer]

Honestly I'm still a little bit confused about the whole system myself. Like I said, I got accepted this past summer, and I am graduating in May. I have not sworn in yet or anything, so at this point I could still walk away (but there's not a chance of that happening!). Once I graduate, I'll go get sworn in. I'm not sure if I'll get a final select letter at that point or what exactly will happen. My processor has already told me what my OCS date is though, so I'm definitely in the system, just in some kind of purgatory I guess. My OR tells me that you can apply for a DA within a year of your intended OCS date, so pretty much any time during the summer the year before you graduate.

You are absolutely right about keeping in constant contact with your OR while in the process--I called and emailed mine several times a week during the whole year long process, and he never let me down. He honestly went way beyond what I expected, and really did everything he could to help me out. So definitely stay on top of it!

 

[Boomhower]

I stand corrected.

Now I have to unlearn. Damn you!

Honestly I'm still a little bit confused about the whole system myself.

Welcome to working for the Government.

 

[mbraesicke]

Yeah i'll second what beaverslayer said. You need to show interest in your application by calling and emailing them anytime you have a question. They really will put as much effort into your application as you are. However, its also important that you keep in contact with them to make sure everything is getting taken care of and taken care of correctly. While you may be talking with your recruiter on a weekly basis, he/she probably has 25 other sna applicants to work with. I say that because my recruiter and processor messed up on my application, twice. First time they sent off my package they had me as NFO instead of SNA, big mistake. Second, they sent my package in for only BDCP instead of BDCP and direct accession, which you can do by the way. My recruiter told me that its best to go BDCP and DA if you are within one year, because if the Navy has the BDCP slots and you are competitive for one they will select you for it even though you are in for DA as well.

 

[OnTopTime]

How does that work for those who went DA while still in school? Is it like a DEP program for enlisted guys? Are you in the system somehow, and obligated to attend OCS when school is done, or is it like DEP where you are not really in the system until just before training begins and as such can kind of walk away from things if you change your mind? The DEP guys can just walk away with no big consequences (i.e. Great Lakes) because the military paid them nothing so they owe the military nothing. (At least that is my understanding of DEP, if I have this wrong too I am going to take a break from posting)

For those doing OCS direct accession, you're not obligated to anything until you raise your right hand and take the oath of enlistment. At that point, your status is as an enlisted Navy person in the Individual Ready Rerserve (IRR), and your obligation becomes to report to OCS for active duty as an officer candidate when competent orders have been issued instructing you to do so. You will be considered on active duty from the moment you begin your trip to Newport for your reporting date.

 

[Solomon]

My navy recruiter has never distinguished the differences in the available officer programs - what are they exactly? When I attempted to take the ASTB yesterday (I say "attempted" because the test was rescheduled due to the lone working computer at the test site somehow lost the APEX program (APEX is the third party vendor that created the ASTB exam)), the site recruit processor told me that I only needed to take the first three sections of the ASTB and not all six. I told him that I potentially was interested in a non-pilot aircraft position and he replied that the selection board determines what position a candidate receives upon his/her selection. Is this all correct and there is no need to take the spatial, aviation, and aviation supplement portions of the ASTB? My degree is in business. Thanks.