Jason FOurnier's Page

I might be a little prejudiced, but MM is the way to go.

Correction to EM/ET A-School and weld school time. Both EM and ET A-Schools are 24 weeks now. Weld school for selected MM's is 13 weeks.

As far as C-Schools go, MM's are the only ones who really get a C-School right away. They can apply for Engineering Laboratory Technician (ELT) School during prototype. If they get selected, they will spend an additional 13 weeks at Prototype qualifying as an ELT. (I actually got "volun-told" to go to ELT school, meaning I got selected without applying.) Submarine designated MM's can also apply for nuclear welder training which they will attend en-route to their first boat. Don't remember how long it is off the top of my head, but I want to say 8 weeks and it is in Groton, CT.

ET's will have their opportunity to get a C-School once they are in the Fleet and qualified through Reactor Operator.

There are various other schools (ranging from one wee to a month or 2) that are not "C-Schools" that are available for all rates once they are on a boat. These schools are specific to types of equipment and classes of ships.

If he has his PIR Friday, he should know his rate already as he will be starting A-School indoctrination bright and early Monday morning. The length of his A-School will depend on his rate. MM is 13 weeks, ET is 26 weeks and EM is somewhere between that (16, if I remember correctly). The wire rates (EM/ET) start out together because they have some common classes. When he graduates from A-School he will, most likely have a week or more in a holding pattern while they wait for another Power School class to form. A new class starts every 6 weeks. He'll probably get his first opportunity for leave at that point as well.

If you have any questions about your son's path after boot camp, feel free to contact me. I am a retired Nuke and served as an instructor at Nuclear Power School from 2011-2014. I can give you a good idea of what he will be going through as he makes his way through the pipeline and on into the fleet.

Welcome to NavyDads.com Jason! When my daughter enlisted in 2005 and left for RTC, I had virtually no knowledge of Navy life or how the Navy did things. By the time her PIR rolled around, I was starting to get the hang of things and understand some of the language and abbreviations, but still felt like a fish out of water when dealing with most topics concerning the US Navy. When my son enlisted and left for Great Lakes in 2007, I got serious about trying to learn as much as possible about the Navy. Now, several years into my journey, I’m blessed to say I have two sailors in the family - my son Eric (AM2) was on the USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71), was attached to Helicopter Maritime Strike Squadron 37 (HSM-37) in Hawaii, and is now attached to VAW-125 ("The Tigertails"). My daughter Kat is now a Navy veteran and was stationed on the carrier Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72) as a Mass Communications Specialist(MC3). If NavyDads.com were around in those early days, it would have made my first days as a Navy parent much easier!

I'm sure you'll find NavyDads.com as useful, educational and informative as I have over the past few years. Click How To Get Started for a guide on getting going in your NavyDads.com experience! I hope you take the time to explore the site and make some new friends. Read the discussions and add your comments. Browse through the postings in the various groups or start a new one. If you have any comments, questions or concerns about your sailor and what he is going through...be sure to post them! In my experience someone here can answer your questions or concerns or can point you in the direction to find out. And Jason this is a great place to brag as well! So join in, get active, and be sure to let us know how your son is doing! Please remember that we talk about the Navy here and we must keep the security and safety of our sailors and the fleet in mind. On the right or starboard side of every NavyDads page is an area we call Key Information. Please take a minute and read through the Operations Security (OPSEC) link for some guidelines as to what we should not talk about in a public forum like NavyDads.com.

As a parent of a sailor currently or soon to be at Great Lakes you'll have many questions about what Jacob is going through. In the Navy Bootcamp group is a discussion called A MUST READ for all New Navy Parents. Read through this post as it will do a lot to give you some understanding about what your sailor is learning and why. And be sure to check out the videos available in the Bootcamp Group as well and as PIR nears be sure to spend time in the PIR group for hints and helps!

Best Regards- Paul

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