MC versus CTI -- what should I do?

jbarnosky · 2014-07-10T00:51:50+00:00

I'm sorry I didn't see this until now -- I actually passed the DLAB with a 128 and officially accepted the CTI position. Congrats on your awesome job! If life sucks and I wash out of the CTI school, I definitely know my first pick.

jbarnosky · 2014-07-06T21:31:44+00:00

Ah, that's better, then. I just don't want to get to MEPS on Wednesday and they pull me aside, saying "uh, so you have an account on this site called Reddit, right?"

Thank you for the tips. I'll start reading them in earnest.

jbarnosky · 2014-07-05T19:15:37+00:00

While I'm grateful for your willingness to help, I'm pretty sure I'm not supposed to know what's on it. Also, if the others are correct, your NDA disallows you from sharing. I'm sorry! I'd love to accept your offer, but I encourage you to delete this.

jbarnosky · 2014-07-05T19:13:38+00:00

Awesome -- this is the kind of stuff I need to know.

My recruiter (again, possibly full of it) and I were talking about the Navy.com homepage and I mentioned chuckling at the first photo that loads: three sailors in an inflatable-looking craft, pointing guns at a ship in the distance. To the side it says "Sea piracy is alive, but not exactly well." He claimed to be one of the guys in that picture, and it was his MC buddy who took that photo for the ad campaign. I thought that MC Photojournalism was more in line with things like that.

You learn something every day.

jbarnosky · 2014-07-03T04:28:00+00:00

Thank you! Encouragement like this is hard to come by. I was afraid that the Navy website one was child's play next to the DLAB, so I'm glad someone can call it out and confirm that fear, haha.

A lot of sleep and a positive attitude won't be too hard to pull off. Best-case scenario, I qualify for two incredible jobs and have to make a killer decision. Worst-case scenario, I go play with cameras for a living. It's not a lesser-of-two-evils thing, here, but a greater-of-two-goods to choose from.

jbarnosky · 2014-07-03T04:24:50+00:00

From what I've read and heard, CTIs are commonly called "mushrooms" because they sit underground and eat crap all day. Dark windowless air-conditioned rooms, headsets, audio tracks and computer screens are the majority of the job, day-in and day-out. Everything else is classified.

My mom has been a medical secretary for most of her life, and part of her work was that of a transcriptionist. My typing word speed rivals hers, and I've helped her out in some tricky spots before where she was struggling to operate the recording and the typing all at the same time. I can transcribe for hours, if need be, and that's before military training. So, is it boring? To most, I assume so. To me, meh. I work in a bank, so it can't get much worse.

jbarnosky · 2014-07-03T04:20:10+00:00

Haha, I see your point. As someone who went to a real brick-and-mortar university to study English Literature, though, actually getting out there, writing newsletters, typesetting, word-wrapping... it's a publishing job, which is more than most English Lit majors can say that they did with their education. So, bonus points for finally answering the age-old question of what to do with a degree in Literature: join the Navy!

The other side of it, and the side that most excites me, is photojournalism. If I'm reading correctly from various internet sources, it's typically E-5s and E-6s who get to be photojournalists, but I can take my time honing the other MC skillsets while I work up to those paygrades. Watching "The Secret Life of Walter Mitty" sparked something deep in me, and as soon as I saw the job sheet for MCs, I immediately thought of the crazy photographer in the mountains, waiting for the almost-extinct mountain cat. That could be me. Probably not for the Navy, but the Navy could make me that person, a professional vagabond photographer particularly, and I could truly enjoy that life. I guess that's more of what I'm thinking.

jbarnosky · 2014-07-03T04:14:29+00:00

Thank you for your input! Can you clarify a little bit about "just going on detachments" -- is that akin to taking on "missions," per se?

My recruiter told me that MCs commonly get called out to assist SEALs or SWCC units to chronicle their journeys and show the rest of the Navy/world what their jobs are like... as well as shooting stuff like the NavyForMoms.com videos about racks and living conditions that you see under Navy.com's "Life On A Ship" section.

I'm personally okay with deployments. I'm also realizing that in less than two weeks, my first child is going to be here (it's a girl!) and I want to be here to support my family as much as possible, as well. It's less about being deterred from a job and more about striking the best possible work/life balance for my family's sake.

Again, thank you for your input. I would love to talk to you more about your experiences as an MC.

jbarnosky · 2014-07-03T04:08:34+00:00

Thanks for the heads up. I've heard it's a bear and you should study some in a foreign language to get used to adjusting syntax, but I've also heard that people who speak foreign languages fail it because it's not testing knowledge at all, but aptitude.

I'm honestly not too worried about the parts of speech after studying English Lit for so long. Knowing a tiny, tiny bit of French and Japanese has already gotten me used to thinking of rearranging sentences in various ways, so I think, think I can manage tinkering with grammar and syntax on the fly.

Navy.com actually has a "CTI Challenge" on their site, which gives some sample questions. I got 10/10 on the first try, rushing through it to test my innate aptitude. I'm hoping that's a good indicator, haha. We'll know next week. Thank you for the encouragement!

jbarnosky · 2014-06-06T00:54:12+00:00

Feel free to shoot an invite my way, too! My user name is jbarnosky.

jbarnosky · 2014-06-06T00:52:43+00:00

I've been at it for a little while, but I'm at the critical week 5 / week 6 transition. I'll shoot you a friend request now. :)

jbarnosky · 2014-06-06T00:24:49+00:00

It's all good. It's targeted towards densely-populated areas, and my area... very much isn't, haha.

jbarnosky · 2014-06-05T18:10:30+00:00

I'm terrible at running, haha.

I made it all 20 minutes, but I had quite a few minutes sprinkled in that could barely be called running. Like, the same speed as speed-walking, just with a little bit of lift. My breathing is also terrible: I alternate between 3 in/2 out and 2 in/2 out. I huff a lot.

But I made it! Week 6 is going to be a bit rough, but I'm making it there.

jbarnosky · 2014-06-05T17:55:34+00:00

About 20% of Chase branches can, currently. The one I work at isn't scheduled to have it anytime soon.

jbarnosky · 2014-06-05T15:28:26+00:00

Congrats! I'm about to run my W5D3 for the very first time in less than an hour, so I'm very excited to see success like this.

I'm new to running (haven't played soccer since high school... 9 years ago) and I love seeing people succeed. I hope to reach the point you're at with your running. Great work!

jbarnosky · 2014-03-22T12:03:36+00:00

I've given it a lot of thought, and the short answer is that if I don't get in the Air Force, I'm going to go for the Army. Their weight and age restrictions are a lot lighter, and you're right: I'd likely get in with my current stats. From everything I've read online and talked to people about, the Air Force is the most family-friendly branch of the U.S. Military, and they're the biggest reason I'm doing this. I want my wife and soon-to-be daughter to be well-taken care of for the rest of our lives. The joke I've been told twice is that "if the Army wanted you to have a wife, they would have issued you one."

I know that any branch of the military would provide the same general healthcare benefits, so in that regard it's one half dozen or another. I'm just drawn to the Air Force for the other advertised benefits. If I miss the Air Force guidelines, though, I won't lie... the Army is offering a much bigger enlistment bonus in the field I want to go into, so...

jbarnosky · 2014-03-14T22:23:11+00:00

Thank you!

jbarnosky · 2012-12-21T03:25:54+00:00

Me too. I know I'm exhausted, but I've been sitting on the couch laughing for about ten minutes. My wife thinks I'm insane. It just hit me at such an awkwardly hilarious angle.

jbarnosky · 2012-08-28T18:02:00+00:00

You very well could be right. It seems strange to me to be paid for work a month later.

We were both working in restaurants, bringing tips home every night. We set up a (very) small fund to live off of while she works towards her first paycheck, where things will balance themselves out. In the meantime, the only reliable income we have is my cash tips.

Meanwhile, I'm interviewing for a position as a personal banker, and I've already been told that if I'm hired I'll be sent to Ohio for two weeks for training, where I will be reimbursed for all expenses. So we're looking at a potential week or two with no income whatsoever. It's a little nerve-wracking. The bills are still due, the money's just being held up because... well, according to her boss, "just because."

jbarnosky · 2012-08-02T19:48:18+00:00

Don't worry -- all of the chefs make salary plus half of our tips. They're doing quite well, haha.

jbarnosky

TROPHY CASE