Anyone here in the Navy? (looking for some advice)

[Allanah]

I officially graduated college a few weeks ago -- got my bachelor's in Criminal Justice. Woohoo! Except that initial high has now been replaced with that god-awful, "I need a job now. Shit." feeling. Anyway, I've been looking around a bit, and one of my career options would be with the armed forces. More specifically, the Navy is looking for intelligence specialists.

I should say this now -- I don't want to be a police officer (I had some firsthand experience with that during my internship, and it really isn't for me), and I have no desire to go to law school and become an attorney. But working in intelligence, or criminal investigation, or crime scene tech (like latent fingerprint analysis) really interests me and I think I'd be good at it.

I spoke to a recruiter and will be getting some more career information from them tomorrow, but I'd love to hear about life in the military from someone who is NOT a recruiter -- it's their job to enlist me, so I know they're not going to give me a warts-and-all picture of the Navy. I have to admit, the whole "we'll pay off your student loans and pay for you to go back to school if you want" thing is attractive, not to mention having a degree AND military experience on my resume would look pretty damned good to any federal agency that's hiring.

I don't personally know anyone who's recently been in any branch of the armed forces, so if anyone here could shed some light or has words of encouragment and/or warning, I'd be eternally grateful.

 

[Screwtape2]

I don't have any experience in the armed forces but I want to wish you luck in your job hunt.

 

[achtunganton]

well my dads been in the navy for 29 years(he's actually retiring this october) as an intelligence officer so if you have any specific questions i could run them by him for you and i know a fair amount myself(i might have them do the same thing for my school debts) so let me know if you have any specific questions or if u just want a general scheme of things
*a*

 

[Allanah]

Thanks, Screwtape.

achtunganton: That would be great! I'm just looking for a general scheme of things at the moment, but I might bug you with more specific questions later.

 

[Angela Harlem]

What about the federal police, instead? I've got little understanding of the way it goes in the US - beyond one of the easiest recruitment processes I have ever seen. Did you know a polygraph test is part of the CIA recruitment?
Anyway, the AFP (Aus fed. police) have a similar outlook to the armed services, with security and all the other benefits. Best thing is you can still specialise in intelligence and are less likely to be posted somewhere during war as part of a war you might vehemently and morally oppose.

 

[Allanah]

Well, with federal law enforcement agencies here (FBI, DEA, etc.), most of them require either experience as a police officer or in the military. And while I'd love to be an FBI agent or something similar, my vision isn't good enough to qualify. I'm legally blind in one eye (with a problem that can't be fixed with laser surgery), and all those agencies require binocular vision. I mean, I can see out of my bad eye and everything, but not well enough to read or drive, even with corrective lenses.

 

[Cin]

I only know a little bit about the navy but I'll share.

You can sail the seven seas,
you can put your mind at ease,
can't you see they need a haaand,
they want you, they want you, they want you as a new recruit.


Someone had to do it, might as well be me

 

[achtunganton]

the basic story...you get a job stationed sumwhere for a few years, work decent hours and then you can get a new job or choose to advance and take a different job which usually requires moving...my dad was fortunate because he climbed the ladder quickly and then stayed in San Diego for the rest of his career as a captain(about 13 years)...also since he was so high ranked and just focusing on keepin the family in one place and not trying to win the medal of honor, he worked very good hours (6am-12pm)...idk if that helps(i doubt it) but ask some questions and i could answer them much better than i just explained that haha
*a*

 

[Canadiens1131]

I can see out of my bad eye and everything, but not well enough to read or drive, even with corrective lenses.

That may bar you from military service in any branch, as well. You should consult with a recruiter about that, I think.

 

[Allanah]

Hey, I still have one good eye! Heh. I already told the recruiter about it, and they said it shouldn't be a problem (and if it is, I can get a waiver for it.) It just means that I couldn't make a career out of being a Secret Service agent or anything.

 

[anitram]

I can't comment on the Navy but I can on the crime scene type of work. Basically most people in that field are scientists, and I know that around here they will not recruit you without at least a science bachelors, sometimes requiring lab work. There is one very competitive forensics program to get into, and most people are recruited straight out of it, with the bulk of the rest being chemistry, physics and related majors. I'm not sure you'd really necessarily need that for something like latent fingerprints, but from the people I know who were in the program, it's pretty much all science geeks in there. So that's something to keep in mind, possibly.

 

[Liesje]

My cousin is in the Navy and so is an acquaintance from high school. My cus programs computers and I believe the acquaintance does something with meteorology and atmospheric sciences. I don't think people realize the good careers you can get in the military that have nothing to do with combat. The US military has some pretty damn sophisticated computer technology! I REALLY wanted to join the Air Force so they could pay for meteorology school and sometimes I do regret not doing that...

 

[UberBeaver]

I know you don't want to be a cop, but an old friend of mine only had to do about one year as a cop before he went on to a federal job - I don't know if it was FBI or Homeland Security.

 

[Canadiens1131]

Ah man that'd be pimp to get a job with the bureaucratically-swelling ranks of Homeland Security They're just throwing money at that department.+