I have searched around and read every EOD post I could find, or close to every post on here. I am trying to gather as much information about the job, the training, and the requirements before planning on trying for it. The problem I came across is the Physical Screening Test.

I do poorly on Push-Ups and am trying to work on that, and my Sit-ups are not "as bad", but again I am working on those. The last time I did a practice PT I managed 40 Sit-ups in 1:30 but only 24 Push-Ups before I flopped on the ground. It's quite embarrassing to say the least and nowhere close to what the PST requires.

From what I have read the PST is taken prior to boot camp(maybe even your contract signing?) so it'd have to be done before that. I feel like I could pass it after boot camp, but so do most people and I would say that's why it's "prior" testing. If I do not pass it by the time I sign up would there be a good Rate to sign for that is similar to EOD.

I apologize if this is confusing to anyone. I am basically wanting to know if I can't get EOD in the contract because of PST, would there be a good "feeder" rate so to speak or one that will help me get experience needed to later on join EOD? I know the Navy site says you can volunteer in Basic, "A" school, and anytime during enlistment prior to 30 but I would say that once you are in it's hard to switch over especially if your job is needed.

Thanks for anyone that reads this and makes sense of it. I have read similar questions but it was never the same info I had been looking for.

Ok one thing I have found looking around more through google, this website says the following:

"Source Ratings: Men and women interested in EOD should choose a rating from this list: AB, AO, EM, EN, GM, HT, IC, IT, MM, MN, OS, PH, PR, QM, SK, or SM. Applicants for EOD cannot be approved if they are part of a Naval Reserve program such as TAR, SAM or two year programs."

http://www.brownorigin.com/NavyEODInfo.htm

So I am not sure if doing one of these will help me or just get me put into a rate that I can't get out of.

This is very, very old information as EOD no longer has source ratings. You might want to look at ordnance rates but stay away from any programs that require a six year enlistment. These rates require long training and are less likely to be released for EOD.

William969,
Thank you for taking the time to answer my post. Yeah, I kind of thought the info was outdated, I just wanted to get a look at jobs it said might "help" go to EOD. If I can get into shape by then I will definitely try out, this is just my side plan. I read somewhere that even if you are planning on doing a job like this, always have a side job planned, and that is what I am doing.

I am looking into Gunners Mate(GM) and so far it looks ok. I can't find too many things on it here in these forums, but I have looked through google for a few hours now and have found odd info here and there. So far, it looks like a job I wouldn't mind doing. Unless I am wrong this is what it sums up to in a small portion:

Stocking Ammo/Weapons, repairing them, test firing(trouble shooting) On-boards guns i.e. Heavy weapon firing systems. Basically an Armory job is what comes to mind, where you fix the weapons, clean them, make sure ammunition is in order. I understand what I just described is probably 1000x better than the actual job(not discrediting it, just saying that I pointed out all the good points I read) and the actual job might land me somewhere that I don't enjoy, but I am prepared for that.

If anyone is a GM or knows someone that is and wants to enlighten me on the job please feel free to. Same goes for any prior/current/future EODs. I know I've seen one person on here in particular that is an EOD I believe, I just can't grasp the name at the time. If you see this, I bet you would be of great help too if I could steal some time from you

Thanks again to anyone that gives their time to answer, no matter what the response is. I am pretty excited about this especially since my run-in with trying to join the Army was just a big flop

Gator and the rest of the EODs will be along shortly to give you more info. YOu are really going to need to work on the physical stuff to get through the training, not to mention the mental aspects.

Keep in mind that there is more to qualifying for EOD than just the fitness. You also have to have the physical quals (vision, color perception, etc), ASVAB scores, and moral factors also come into consideration when applying.

William969,
Once again, thank you for taking time out of your day to help me. Sorry also for posting in the wrong section, but thank you to whoever moved it.

Yes, Gator is the one I was thinking of, just couldn't roll the letters out of my mouth. Yeah, my Physical aspect is poor, I'll be the first person to admit that without even a blink. To me, I can't say I am mentally prepared yet as I have no idea what I am fully getting myself into, but my mentality as of now is:

If you aren't dead yet, then keep going.

Hopefully I can just get my body to agree with that Again, this is just a hopeful Rating, as nothing is official or even close to being yet. I am taking my ASVAB on the 18th this month. My practice test at the recruiter's office was a 90, but it was so short I honestly don't consider that counting for much. At the end of the day I think what's more important to me is that I am serving my country(our country) more than anything. Even if I land a job that isn't what I had hoped for, I'll still be serving in some way.

As always, thank you to present and future posters that take their time to help people like me. It means a lot

19387595,
You can check out www.eod.navy.mil. That has some info. Also, to improve your numbers you can look at my post on the SEAL/SWCC/EOD part of this forum titled EOD Warning Order. That will physically get you where you need to be. There are no source ratings anymore since EOD is now it's own rate. Let me know if you have anymore questions. Good luck.

V/R,
Gator

Gator28,
Yes, I have read that site like it's a bible. It has been helpful in many ways. Yeah I read one of your posts regarding the Warning Order so I am going to try and get myself into shape. I always want to be prepared though for an alternative so I do have one question.

The navy website states you can volunteer any time during Basic, During A school, or during enlistment prior to your 30th birthday. Do you personally know, since there are no more source rates, if enlisting for a job that has to do with ordinance is my best bet? I have looked at Gunners Mate and Aviational Ordinance(believe that's the Rating) and they both sound like jobs I wouldn't mind taking if that was the route to go. I know it's always the needs of the military, but I'm also looking at taking a job like that as opposed to Intelligence Field then trying to go to EOD.

Thanks again. This forum has helped me more than most people realize.

Well, I was a Machinist Mate on a ship and I did ok in EOD school. Will the GM or AO rate help?? Maybe, but you'd be better off doing something that you're interested in rather than looking for something that will possible help you prepare for EOD school. In my opinion, you should wait until you're physically ready to really do well with the screen test, study for the ASVAB and do well on that. It's going to get harder and harder to bring people in from the fleet to go EOD. Don't rush into this. Research and prepare yourself. I'm the EOD recruiting petty officer here in bahrain and a lot of guys come up to me and want to screen. They think they'll smoke the screen test and they don't. Follow that Warning Order and take a few months to see where you get. If you have any other questions, lemme know. Good luck.

V/R,
EOD2

Gator28,
Sounds good and thank you for all your help along with William969. Don't get me wrong though, I think that GM/AO rate would be interesting jobs or something that I could enjoy as well. I just have my heart set on EOD for some reason. I don't even think it has to do with the explosives part. It's not the, "Blow up stuff and watch the show" type thrill I am looking at it for, it's something more than that. Something that I can't quite put into words at this time.

As said by William, I still need to see if I even qualify(ASVAB,Physical, etc) because that is my first of many road blocks. I am going to continue getting into shape as I will be the first person not afraid to admit I'm out of it. I'm doing ok on the Heigh/Weight ratio, but as you can already guess by out of shape I am referring to my PT scoring. On the 18th of this month I am going to take my ASVAB and have been doing all the practice tests(both full and short) on this website. If I don't qualify for the EOD job honestly it won't as heartbreaking to me as if I didn't join the service in general.

Enough of my sob story As always thanks to all the members that help out others in need. I will keep updating on here when new things come about to give an idea of where my path is going. I'm not sure how long the ASVAB takes to score, though I'm guessing it's based also on if you take the written vs the computer version.

I got the results of my ASVAB later that day. I remember having dinner with my wife in Brooklyn and the Army recruiter calling me and telling me. I was really happy and nervous because that was when it all started feeling real. Joining the military and all of that. From what recruiters have told me, you generally do a little better on the complete ASVAB than the practice on. I scored a 91 on the practice test, if i remember correctly...and ended up with a 99. So, you should have no problem with qualifying for EOD. Those workouts will get you where you need to be. Good luck.

Gator