<p>I am a male high school senior who feels very fortunate to have received appointments from three service academies - USCGA, USMA, and the USMMA for the class of 2011. The problem now is trying to decide on which academy to attend. I have visited all three over the past year and probably have eliminated West Point. I really preferred the careers and the smaller school atmosphere at the USCGA and the USMMA and have not decided whether I would become a CG officer or sail in the merchant marine etc. There seem to be so many opportunities for follow on jobs at either school. Is there other midshipmen/cadets or academy parents who have faced similar decisions in the past and talk about why they made their choices and how they feel about their decisions. Thanks for your comments.</p>
<p>I had a similar decision to make and here is how I finally made mine: I looked at the schools and decided I liked all of them, but didn't really know what I wanted to do after graduation. If I chose CGA I could really only become a coast guard officer, if I chose USNA I could be a naval or marine corps officer; however, if I went to USMMA I could be a Coast Guard officer, I could be a naval officer, I could be a marine corps officer, or I could be none of the above. </p>
<p>My ultimate decision basically came down to delaying any career choice for even longer and having the option of any service upon graduation.</p>
<p>First congratulations on your appointments! That's quite an accomplishment.</p>
<p>Have you visited the schools? Stayed overnight? You could get a good feel for which school to attend. Only YOU can make that determination.</p>
<p>Both are excellent schools academically and offer you lots of career choices. The Coast Guard will pay for your masters degree if you agree to a couple more years of service. The retention rate after the mandatory 5-year service is the highest of all the academies.</p>
<p>I am biased of course but I think CGA is best. But you have to decide yourself!</p>
<p>Thanks for your input kp2001. That seems to be a very good reason for attending Kings Point over the other academies, although I would prefer some of the majors at CGA and other academies more. Were you happy with your selected major at the USMMA and have any recommendations for a new guy thinking about future careers? Do many Kings Point graduates head to grad school after graduation or do they pursue a career first? Also how does the pay for a new graduate as a merchant marine officer compare to a new CG or Navy officer? Sorry for so many questions.</p>
<p>Thanks for your input Bossf51. I did not post any questions yet on the USCGA site, so I also appreciate your comments. Yes, I have visited both campuses overnight and if I can arrange it, I may visit again before I decide. How does the Masters program work after USCGA, do they apply and go right after graduation or do they have to do their cutter tour etc. first? I know they have some great career options within the CG, but what types of follow on civilian careers have you seen from these officers who have finished their CG careers or commitments?</p>
<p>dj:</p>
<p>The low selection of majors at USMMA is one of its disadvantages; however, it also works out well because it leads to only teaching what the school knows best. I selected the straight deck option (real name: Marine Transportation). I was very/continue to be very happy with the decision. At the time the school did not offer the logistics major which they currently have . If this had been offered I think I would have taken that path as it is even more business related. (I answer this with one caveat: if I knew I was going to sail for a career I think I would have enjoyed the engineering pathway more. I consider the lifestyle aboard ship of an engineer to be much better than a deck officer. Just a personal preference here.) </p>
<p>Grad school: I would say more graduates than not eventually go on to get advanced degrees. Several will do so immediately after graduation and even more will go within a few years. You would have to fund it yourself barring any scholarships, but there will be no added time to your commitment. As an example, two of my classmates went immediately to MIT for nuclear engineering degress and they both got full scholarships with help from one of the USMMA professors. Another example is myself, after sailing for two years I went to medical school and will graduate in May.</p>
<p>Pay: pay for a merchant marine officer is in another stratosphere from a starting military officer. I will take myself as an example... my pay two weeks after graduation as a third mate on an oil tanker was just at ten thousand a month. When I came on active duty as an ensign I made (including housing allowance and the such) around four thousand a month.</p>
<p>You have to do your cutter tour(two years) first before the masters. A very small number of kids go straight to grad school but it's not common.
As far as follow on careers it goes the gamut from astronaut to congressman to CEO to doctor, lawyer, oceanographer, CIA officer, FBI agent, you name it. There is a professor at Cal-Berkeley Law, one of the best, who is a CGA grad. There are authors, pro athletes, etc.</p>
<p>My son received an appointment to the class of 2011 and is thinking about the M. Transportation major, but has not entirely ruled out engineering either. You stated that you thought the quality of life on board ship was better for engineers. Can you elaborate a bit for me? Also any pointers that I can give my son? Thanks again.</p>
<p>As a cadet life is better as a marine transportation (deck) major, usually you are given more time off and really have less work to do. This can vary from ship to ship though.</p>
<p>The reason I say that engineers have a better lifestyle is simply workschedule. Most ships these days are diesel and have automated engine rooms. This leads to the engineers being day workers (working 8-12hr days) and then having evenings off. They will have engine room watch every three days though so may get woken at night for engineering alarms. A Mate on the other hand is most likely going to be a shift worker. My usual days as a third mate were 8-12 bridge watch, 12-4 overtime (basically mandatory), and then 8pm-midnight bridge watch. Every other day I did dinner relief for the chief mate on the bridge from 5-5:30. </p>
<p>So I was left to sleep from around 12:30 in the morning until around 6:45 in the morning. I love my sleep way too much and this just doesn't cut it for me. One must also remember that if coming into/out of port or transiting one of the canals I would be up for that as well. There were times when I was up for 24hrs straight. This wouldn't be bad if there was some time to catch up on sleep, but guess what, there's no one to pick up your shifts, so at 8 you're back on again. 7 days a week, until it's time to leave the ship.</p>
<p>Now with that being said the engineers definately work harder when they work, they always work in the hot engine spaces and do dangerous work on a daily basis. As a deckie I sat in a chair (if the Captain was nice) or stood (if the captain was old school) and stared out a window or looked at a radar for 8 hrs a day. The only dangerous stuff I ever did was climb up stuff or deal with volitale materials during cargo operations. </p>
<p>Basically it comes down to what one likes. I was more business oriented so I went marine transportation. I also liked that it was a bit easier :) Don't think it's still not tough, just not as tough as the engineering majors at KP. If your son likes to tinker with things, design things, or build things engineering is probably better for them. If they are more into money, finance, and business, then one of the marine transportation majors might be better.</p>
<p>Oh an anecdote to illustrate: On my first ship they actually sold beer. Every night after dinner there would be two movies and beers followed sometimes by a dip in the ship's pool. Not once on my 120 some odd days on that ship did a single mate join us. It was always the engineers. The engineers simply had the time in the evening to do this. The mates were either sleeping or getting ready to go on watch. Plus the whole no drinking for 8 hrs before reporting for work kinda gets you if you only have 8 hrs off between shifts.</p>
<p>actually it's no drinking within 4 hours of assigned duty to be exact..</p>
<p>Thanks for the reply. I think my son will have to do a lot of thinking as he enjoys both tinkering and business things. He too is like you though and loves his sleep.....It looks like there is another major at KP (may be new since you went) that is Marine Trans and Technology. Do you know anything about that option? It apparently is Transportation with more engineering included.</p>
<p>I'm in the Marine Trans. and Operations Tech. (aka Shopper) right now. Its a good course, you take all of the normal deckie classes with a few additional engineering courses. It comes out to be like 4-6 extra credits a trimester, which leaves you with a very busy schedule, but if your willing to work for it, it will pay off in the end. You graduate with your 3/m deck license as well as your QMED (qualified member of the engine department). If you choose to, you can sail on your QMED for a set amount of time and raise it up to a 3rd asst engineer license. </p>
<p>I took the class because I like working with my hands, but at the same time I like to see where the ship is going. I also see it to my advantage because when I'm on the bridge and the engine room calls up and says XYZ just broke, I know the basics of what is going on down below and how serious this problem really is.</p>
<p>Thanks for the info. My son will be there Tuesday (1/16) for a day visit and get information on the majors offered. Thanks for the info, and if you see a young man accompanied by a Midshipman at Lunch his name is Alex....say hello. The admissions office told me they would try to pair him up with someone in the Marine Transportation major so he can get a better idea.</p>
<p>Way to go dj! Nice to have the options. Keep in mind that at USMMA, you can decide later which branch of service you want while learning more about them for a few years. Can't go wrong at either school really. Its a win-win situation for you. Want to travel the world? Go KP. Want to study humanities? Go CG. You've much thinking to do. Keep asking questions & good luck! </p>
<p>Suzannegra, let us know how the visit goes. Tell him not to eat the brown meat. :D</p>
<p>Thanks Jamz, I'll tell him. Also, does anyone know if Jamica, NY is a safe place to stay? I found a Holiday Inn Express there that's more reasonably priced but since I don't know the area wanted to make sure it was a good area. Thanks!</p>
<p>gotta love Jamaica Queens :) to be honest I couldn't tell you, but if money isn't too much an issue I would recommend staying in Great Neck. A second option other than going to Jamaica is heading further east and looking in Garden City, it's a better area and I know there's a nice marriott there, but I'm not sure on the price. There are better people on here for places to stay since I haven't been up there in quite some time. </p>
<p>Oh, another option, that most people don't know exist (and I must admit I'm sketchy on the details too) is that there are rooms above the officer's club and museum. I'm not sure who to call or how much they are, but if only going for a day or so it may be worth it to just stay on campus.</p>
<p>I dunno. We've stayed both near & far. Not over the moon about anywhere except Great Neck just because its handy & we've come to know it well (& its close to Lazarre's Chocolates). Wanted to mention too that you should truly try to bypass booking through orbitz & trip advisor, ect. If you call the hotels directly & tell them to give you the KP rate, most will give you a discounted rate.</p>
<p>Dear suzannegra, The Andrew or The Inn at Great Neck are the most convenient hotels. The Anchor Inn is a bit downscale and less expensive, but still relatively close and safe. The Uniondale Marriott is nice, less expensive, safe but further away. These are probably better and more convenient choices than Jamaica.</p>
<p>Other choices are at <a href="http://www.usmma.edu/parents/hotels%202004.htm%5B/url%5D">http://www.usmma.edu/parents/hotels%202004.htm</a></p>
<p>By the way, if your schedule permits, an overnight visit is a bit better than a day visit. Gives better exposure to individual midshipmen and the way the Regiment works.</p>
<p>Suzannegra and other new MMA parents, we just had our overnight visit this week and discovered a real gem of a place to stay at an incredible (for NY) price and about 20 minutes away. The Glen Cove Mansion and Conference Center is now charging $99 per night (offseason). If you like style and ammenities during your visit, this is hard to beat. The rates here during their prime season can be $250-$400 per night, so it is a great deal now. Oh, and you won't have to worry about how safe the neighborhood is either...it is the "neighborhood" on it's own 55 "tranquil" acres! While they sleep on a cot in the barracks, you'll get to sleep like a queen.</p>
<p>Nice MMA! Suzanne, I'd jump all over that one.</p>