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Choose Your Rating, Choose Your Fate

05 May 2017

From Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Joshua David DuFrane, USS George Washington Public Affairs

Learn how one Sailor chose her job in the Navy.
Learn how one Sailor chose her job in the Navy.

There are a lot of ratings to choose from when enlisting in the Navy ranging from damage controlman to aviation ordnanceman, and just about any specialty imaginable. For new recruits having a hard time settling on one job without ever seeing it, the Navy offers the Professional Apprenticeship Career (PAC) program, giving new Sailors the opportunity to join the fleet without a rating and pick a rating later in their career.

One such Sailor, Logistics Specialist Seaman Jacqueline Felixcarrasquillo served a year and two months as an undesignated Sailor through the PAC program before choosing her rating as a logistics specialist (LS) aboard the aircraft carrier USS George Washington (CVN 73).

"I joined the Navy when I was 17, back in February of 2015," said Felixcarrasquillo. "I had recently moved to Wisconsin from Puerto Rico and it was a strain on me; I spoke English but learning how to do everything in English was a great challenge for me, it was really hard."

Felixcarrasquillo's father served in the U.S. Army and she wanted to make him proud, so she decided to join the armed forces to follow in his footsteps.

"I almost joined the National Guard or the Army," said Felixcarrasquillo. "That didn't work out though, so I joined the Navy. I wanted to show my father I could make something of myself."

While going through the enlistment process, Felixcarrasquillo didn't know exactly which rating she wanted to pick as her career.

"I was told going into the program that I'd be able to shadow different ratings while serving as an undesignated Sailor," said Felixcarrasquillo. "While I was in deck department, I looked at several different ratings and mulled over which one I wanted to go with. I wanted to be a mass communication specialist, but that rating wasn't available for my time period."

While in the deck department, Felixcarrasquillo kept the ship in a mission-ready status by painting bulkheads, polishing brass, sanding and chipping different areas of the ship.

"My favorite thing about Deck department was being able to drive the ship," said Felixcarrasquillo. "Being able to be in the bridge with the commanding officer and seeing how everything works while we were doing flight operations was really special. It was really great working with boatswain's mates (BM). BMs are one of the oldest ratings in the Navy and everyone I worked with had a lot of pride in the work that they did."

While looking at a list of ratings available to pick up, Felixcarrasquillo made the decision to be a logistics specialist.

"I knew a lot of LSs," said Felixcarrasquillo. "I could see working in that field would be something I would be comfortable with doing for the next few years, and I could see the work I do as an LS would translate nicely into the civilian world."

Felixcarrasquillo picked up her rating in March of 2017, and over the past few weeks has already made an outstanding impression with her new chain of command.

"Felixcarrasquillo is a very squared-away Sailor," said Logistics Specialist 1st Class Reagan Edwards, divisional leading petty officer for hazardous materials (S-8 division in the ship's supply department). "She came to the division hungry for knowledge on how to do the job. I only tell her once what she needs to do and she knocks those tasks out of the park. She already has study material for her advancement exam and she is always asking questions about her new rating; I know she will go far in our rating."

For anyone joining the Navy or part of the PAC program, choosing a rating can seem like a daunting task when the time comes to pick.

Felixcarrasquillo's advice is to look at what your options are, inside and outside of the Navy. She added, if the military isn't going to be a career, pick a rating that can benefit you after your term. Moreover, pick a rating that you want to do; don't pick a rating just to pick one. If you enjoy your job, your career will be much more rewarding.

Sailors who are part of the PAC program or who are interested in cross-rating need to speak with the command careers counselors to see what opportunities are currently available and how to apply.

Join the conversation with GW online at www.facebook.com/USSGW and www.twitter.com/GW_CVN73.

For more information, visit
www.navy.mil,
www.facebook.com/usnavy, or
www.twitter.com/usnavy.

For more news from USS George Washington (CVN 73), visit www.navy.mil/.
 

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