Congratulations, Mr. Chad Snyder, and thank you Sir, for being considerate, thoughtful, and selfless enough to invest the time required to make these videos, after a long, exhausting days and weeks. They are so helpful to me. I am scheduled to leave for ODS this coming weekend, so I greatly appreciated it. God bless you. Respectfully, Chaplain Robert P. White, Lieutenant, U.S., Navy,
I'm so excited for you! ODS truly is a great experience...though you will be tired and frustrated during parts of it. Make connections, make friends, MAKE MISTAKES, ask questions, and have a positive attitude! Congratulations! (Bonus points if you find my name on my class' mural)
Thank you for posting these videos! I appreciate your takeaways and the point of view. I will be going to ODS soon and I like to know what I'm going to face the best I can. It will be the most interesting nursing job, that's for sure!
Everyone only gets one ODS experience, so make the most of it...even the parts that suck. You will certainly have experiences in the Navy that you won't get anywhere else. Even if you don't make it a 20-year career, you will still make life-long memories.
These are good videos, thanks for the information. I’m heading to ODS next month. Not looking forward to some of it, but I figure most anyone who I may be in charge of leading as an officer will have gone through something longer and tougher. Looking forward to hopefully learn a lot and make some new friends.
It's one of those experiences that you will remember more fondly when you're done. Going through it is plenty stressful enough, but it's nothing awful, and part of the journey is learning to support each other. It's nearly impossible to fail ODS short of actively trying...or perhaps punching the CO (which I don't advise). Be sure to never sell your ODS experience short. It may not be as long and grueling as other boot camps, but comparing boot camps is like comparing apples and oranges. ODS has a different purpose and different target audience. Best of luck! =)
Thank you! Keep at it and be patient. I started my process in August 2019 and didn't finally get selected until May 2022...and didn't officially commission until December 2022, so it can be a long process.
@@khaleelhill Hmm...backwards math. I started the process in 2019, so I was 34 when I started, 37 when I was finally selected, and 38 when I commissioned. Each specialty has its own age requirements, though it's usually not hard to get a waiver. I was in ODS with someone who was 51 years old.
its funny watching people who never have been in the military before discuss getting PTed and inspections lol. Great videos friend, I leave for ODS in January. Prior Marine and Army.
Be persistent! I started the process is 2019 and didn't get selected until 2023. I went to several boards and didn't get selected due to very few available billets. Keep at it! Keep doing what you can to strengthen your application, and keep your fingers crossed. Patience pays off. =)
Thank you. Just saw your graduation video ODS posted online. Class 23070??Hope my recruiter gets motivated to assist me as it has not been a great experience so far and I feel that I am highly competitive being prior service Army and my credentials/experience. @@chadsnyder5023
Hi Chad, I will be leaving for ODS this coming July and my parents were wondering if they needed to register ahead of time to attend commencement. We're from St. Louis MO and they plan on driving a rental car to Newport.
Don't worry about it yet. You'll be asked to submit a list of people attending graduation during your first couple weeks at ODS. I believe you'll submit their names and copies of their driver's license.
Congrats sir. Hate that y’all got chewed out very last minute. I was just sitting here reflecting on how I would personally process that lol. I’m hoping to be participating in ODS this coming summer as to enroll in the Navy Fellowship Social Work program. Thanks for these videos. They’ve made me feel more knowledgeable and motivated to get it done.
@@benjaminward6017 For sure, I absolutely will. I want to do a video soon of my own experience so far with the process and my day at MEPS lol. Hopefully soon. Right now, I’m working on my Motivation statement. Why I want to do SW within the Navy versus as a civilian.
Your recruiter can probably help you more here. Each corps. will be a little different. For CEC, I had to interview with a few ranking officers to get recommendations, but the board itself was a closed process. I just submitted my application. I didn't actually appear in front of them. It's a bit of a secretive process. They meet, review the applications, make their decisions, and release the list of who was selected. They don't release notes or anything like that. You are either selected or you're not. The best advice I could give would be to do your best to make you application stand out. Really put thought and effort into your narratives (but don't make them cheesy). Do your best to impress your interviewers, and be persistent. DCO can be very competitive. Don't take a rejection hard. Use it as motivation to keep improving and apply again. =)
Congratulations!! Thanks again for all your helpful tips and insight! I know you said the PRTs weren’t official, but do they do heigh weight/taping there?
Yes, they will do height and weight/tape measurements on the first or second day of ODS. I'm not sure what happens if you don't pass. For the PRT, they just let you know that you wouldn't pass an official PRT and advise you to work on it, so it may be the same for height and weight, but I'm not 100% sure there. I do know we definitely had people that were well above their weight limit during all of ODS, so they definitely won't send you home or anything.
Do you recall anyone slightly over their weight requirement given a pass? Im currently 5'8 at 183 lbs, but the maximum weight is 181 for me. I'm muscular, cardio is average. I'm assuming it's fine?
You're fine. They go by the height/weight chart first. If you're over, then they'll tape you and measure abdominal circumference. They have some sort of simple formula they use, but as long as the number comes in around 39 or less, you're good. You can read more on it here: www.navyreserve.navy.mil/Portals/35/SSO%20Documents/Guide%2004-Body%20Composition%20Assessment-BCA-APR%202021.pdf
Gladly! Her name is Linda Kleineberg (website below). We did something like an hour of photography off base in 3 different uniforms, with my family, and she charged me the same rate as the on-base photography studio for access to all my digital images. On-base you only take photos in a single uniform from the waist-up. I'd highly recommend considering her if you have time after graduation...though contact her early as Saturdays are popular picture days. website: www.lindakphotography.com/
Yes, there were a few chaplains in my class. 2-3 Christian ones, and a Jewish one as well. Most were in their 20's, but one chaplain was in his 50's -- he was great...he loved SCREAMING during chow when he was the table leader.
Hey I have another question regarding phones. Are you able to have your phone on you during the day? I know the smart watches are encouraged or so I’ve heard. Trying to decide if it’s worth it to get a plan for my watch or not for ODS or if they don’t care about my phone being in my pocket.
You can always have your phone in your room ("hatch"), but having your phone on you during the day is supposed to be a privilege your class earns. We were given the privilege during week 2...with the stipulation that we only use it during appropriate times/breaks and not stare at it during class, in formation, etc... Lots of people had Apple watches. I let everyone know that I was going to be very busy during those 5 weeks and to not expect to hear from me often or receive quick replies. Plenty of people called home every evening to speak with their families. A big part of ODS--and the Navy in general--is that you're now a naval officer, and you should be able to make good decisions without being told. I don't know of anyone that gave up their phone or computer for the entire 5 weeks. Everyone just exercised good judgment. If you don't, a chief will probably yell at you and maybe give you a demerit (extra PT).
@m_a_xamillion: A foundation of military service is respect. For yourself and for others...and holding each other accountable for that. We never ridicule. I can't tell you the number of times I've had to ask questions or made silly mistakes -- I even walked up to a Marine gunny and asked what a certain button was for on the M4...turns out it was the magazine release. Wow, did I feel silly...but he answered my question with respect. It's how we learn and operate.
I'm doing a quick edit to the videos to add a disclaimer and blur out the word "Navy" on the shirt. It's technically bad practice to give personal opinions in uniform, and I received an anonymous complaint about it, so I'm going to make the adjustment and repost the other videos. This one should be okay since I recorded it wearing civilian clothing.
No. They generally authorize the use of a single earbud when you exercise on your own in the evenings or weekends, but not during morning PT or during the PRT. Also, the PRT is unofficial. It doesn't actually count. They will let you know if you fail, but it doesn't go on your record.
Hey Chad congratulations on graduating! I’m aspiring to be just like you as an officer in the navy. I joined the navy with a bachelors degree in sports management and I would love to be a coach / pe instructor in the navy
Just wanted to know if you can give me some advice as I am currently enlisted as a E4. Just wanted know if I need to apply to ODS or OCS to be an officer in the navy. Thank you in advance Sir Synder
I'm no expert here, but my first suggestion would be to talk to your division officer or chief about your career goals. They will likely be your best immediate resource. There are several commissioning options you could investigate: if you earn your bachelor's degree, you could apply to OCS. The Navy also has the Seaman to Admiral Program you could investigate. There is the LDO/CWO program (I don't think those require degrees). Each program has different requirements, so you'll want to investigate those. There are a lot of priors that attend both OCS and ODS, so it's definitely possible. You could also speak with a command career counselor about your options. It's a long, competitive journey, but completely worth it!
At one point (probably during COVID), they limited it to 2 people per person. They mentioned this during our class but said they weren't going to apply limits as long as people didn't go crazy, so we didn't have a limit.
If feasible, it's nice having your vehicle at ODS. You should be able to leave base on weekends 3 and 4. In those cases, everyone was trying to match up with people that had vehicles. Else, you can always use a taxi service to get around.
Active duty typically pays on the 1st and the 15th of every month. During ODS, you are given active duty pay according to your rank and time in service. You can view the pay chart here: www.military.com/sites/default/files/2022-12/2023%20Active%20Duty%20Pay%20Chart.pdf This is a monthly pay chart, so you'll receive half the listed amount every paycheck. You should also receive BAH (which is your housing allowance and is based off your zip code) as well as BAS (which is currently $311.88/month for officers).
For the Navy it's called the PRT. It's graded in that they'll let you know if you receive a passing score on all the tests, but it is not recorded as an official PRT, so it won't appear on your record.
The black boots are rough. They told all of us to take a shower wearing the boots, but they still take a long time to break in. I took to wearing double socks. In the Seabees, we wear the coyote brown boots that are much more comfortable.
Everyone that attends ODS is already a commissioned officer and already has their rank. Your rank will be based on your role. Most people are ensigns as that is the first officer rank; however, certain jobs come in at higher ranks. For instance, I think most doctors come in as O3 (Lt.), and surgeons come in as O4 (Lt. Cmdr.). Your recruiter should be able to tell you what your rank will be when you commission.
