Greetings everyone, I'm currently at school training to be a CTI but I have always been interested in being an EOD technician. I plan on finishing my current school and doing my first tour with my next command before putting in a package to cross rate. So my question is, what are the possibilities of my request being granted? I know that the CTI rate is in high demand, but so are the EOD and SO rates. I want to put my package in before the end of my first enlistment as well because by then I will have reached the age limit for EOD. If anyone out there is familiar with cross rating or has done what I am looking at doing I would appreciate your input. Thank you.
Based on the Sep. 08 CREO list, you would have a better shot at changing to SO rather than EOD. I think your biggest problem is going to be the fact that you are in a loooooong school in a rating that is quite often undermanned. The Navy is not really going to want to spend all that money to train you and then spend money again in just three or four years to do another job. It does happen but it's going to be tough. I would think the best time to try would be at re-enlistment.
My question back to you is why did you take such a training intensive rating knowing that you wanted to do another job? It would have been a much easier path to be a BM or SK and change to EOD once you got in.
CTI is a 6 year contract. You will have a completely different outlook of the Navy and your place in it at the end of your 6 years. The most important thing you can do now is study your butt off and pass the DLPT.
Cross-rate OUT of CTI? Not very likely, Mate. I knew two people who converted from CTI to CTN some years back, but that was it, and those were special circumstances. I tried to convert to CTR in the reserves, but was quite literally told by the CTI billet manager that "Once a CTI, always a CTI."
As far as a lot of people in the Navy are concerned, being a CTI is a big privilege - two years of training, and generally pretty cushy working environments. If you want my advice, a surefire way to get your chain of command - and a lot of your more senior peers - seriously annoyed with you is to push this cross-rating thing, which as I said isn't likely to happen.
If I were your chief out at your first duty station, I'd be rolling my eyes and going "Great, ANOTHER spoiled CTI who thinks the Navy owes them something."
Former CTI as in "failed out of DLI and/or failed to get a clearance" or former CTI who actually earned her NEC, completed a tour, and then went back and cross-rated?
If that is what you want to do, go for it. I am not an EOD, but I can tell you that at the time of your PTS (Perform to Serve, everyone has to fill this out whether they want to stay navy or get out) and you don't like your rate for whatever reason, you have the option to PTS to something different, CTI. You get three rating options and one of these options can be your rating now, EOD. What you get picked up for totally depends on whether that rating is open, if the rating CTI is not open, then the chances of getting picked up for a conversion are minimal. But you will only know whether or not that rating is open, at the time of PTS... as soon as you get to your command... ask questions from a Navy Career Counselor. I am an MM but I PTS to get OS, and I got picked up but my conversion is not complete until I pass OS 'A' school. I have a 6 yr contract also, I had 'A' school as well. I wanted out of my rating simply because i just wanted to try something different and making rank as an MM is very hard after you make third. I think the Navy would much rather pay to train a hard working sailor to do something different and have that sailor stay navy rather than lose an exceptional sailor. Because you can be better at something you want to do rather than something your just doing
