"Desk job" in the Navy or Coast Guard

Question

I'll try and make this short. Don't get me wrong, I love my country and I love the water, so I'm thinking more Coast Guard or Navy, leaning more towards CG, but I'm still in H.S., plenty of time to decide. I plan on being an officer, but my main question/concern is the alternating sea/shore assignments in the Navy. My dad had 20 years active duty in the CG and he only had to serve 1 tour deployed on an icebreaker. Was he lucky or was it just the field he was in, passenger safety? What jobs in the Navy and CG don't require more than 1 or 2 tours on a ship. My main concern is how do you start a relationship and then a family with being at sea for half or your years.

Thanks

Answer 1

Officers in the Coast Guard do not have many sea duty stations. There are only 12 High Endurance Cutters and last I looked only a couple of Ice Breakers still in commission. Most of the rest of the duty stations do not have extended sea duty times. As an officer unless your specialty is engineering on one of the big cutters then you can forget multiple tours on one.

Note: Enlisted is a different kettle of fish. The Coast Guard no longer even has my rate ant it was the only rate that was absolutely guaranteed Sea Duty. I was a Sonar Tech and for my first tour there was School for one year then three years aboard the USCGC Rush. First year was 297 days underway. Second year was 268 days under way with some yard time to replace the sonar dome and torpedo school. Third year we were underway for 310 days due to several SAR's as well as refresher training in SD CA and three ALPATs.  No one in the CG gets that kind of duty assignments any more. I think 2 years is max aboard the WHEC class.

Answer 2

Being a Yeoman in the Coast Guard is a very good job.  It is a 9 to 5 job.  meaning you come in at a certain time and go home at a certain time.  Most military job jobs do not allow for this.  Most Coast Guard Yeoman are stationed at a land station.  Some do get cutter duty, but that few and far between.  Yeoman school is only six weeks, so you are in and out, not messing around for months.  The best thing is the Coast Guard only goes out for up to three months, unlike the Navy who goes out for six months at at time.

Just so you know, the Coast Guard does get deployed from time to time.  After all this is the military.

Answer 3

And just so you hear it now before it's too late....

If the Navy/Coast Guard wanted you to have a family, they would have issued you one in boot camp.

Answer 4

Yeoman. That's navy talk for a secretary of sorts.

Answer 5

"My main concern is how do you start a relationship and then a family with being at sea for half or your years."

You don't.  Or you realize that it might not last.  If you can avoid being a parent while you serve it will be better for your child.

Answer 6

I think your dad was lucky. My dad is in the Army, he's FIELD ARTILLERY, 13B, He is only on his second deployment in 22 years now. Both of them Iraq. 2004 and now. He got lucky cuz usually Field Artillery goes everywhere.

Desk jobs get deployed, too. They need Legal down range, they need Finance down range.

To be an Officer you gotta finish college anyway.

Answer 7

Coast guard dude... they never have to go anywhere.  they're just stationed where they are at or they have to move within the United States, but don't have to be deployed.  Stay with the coast guard, i have a brother in the coast guard and one in the navy.  coast guard is

ur best bet.