Can anyone enlighten me on what exactly the MA PRP program is? My son is currently in his "A" school in San Antonio and was not excited to learn that his assignment for the next 4 years (?) would be at Kings Bay, GA "in the PRP program".
Thanks!
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Hi Steve,
Actually, my daughter got assigned to a Marine unit initially, but they disbanded it and she was transferred to Harbor Patrol, which is a Navy unit. She is a boat coxswain (driver) most of the time, and she loves being on the boats. The hours are long (16-18 hour days), but the generally work a kind of 3 on-2 off type schedule, unless she needs to augment.
There wasn't any extra training, other than coxswain school. Those were like 2-week courses. There's also qualifying on her various weapons, like the M240 machine gun.
PRP is a 3-year obligation. Once my daughter finishes this post, she's hoping to get out to the fleet to see what the REAL Navy is like.
I don't think PRP will necessarily help you advance quicker. As stated before, advancement is based on evals and test scores. But it MAY help down the line. I would think that it looks good on your record. Given what they are guarding and the length of the assignment, it cant hurt. It may open up some doors for future assignments. But that's just MY opinion.
I hope this helps.
I don't believe that it will help him rank up any faster. Advancement is based upon service time in rank and successfully passing the Advancement Test. The quotient for MA's (available rank-up slots) is not the greatest. Candidates must score in the top percentages to gain rank. Often sailors "pass without advancement".....but get points added for the next Advancement Cycle. Orders are usually picked by Class Rank at the end of A School....so tell him to do his best in order to have the most options. It all depends on what he wants to do with his career...Best of luck to him and prepare for the O.C. spray!
Hi, Mark. Sorry, but I don't know whether advancement opportunities are better with PRP. But I can comment a little about the process from the experience of my son, Colin, who went through Lackland several months ago.
The orders for each class are different from every other class, depending on the needs of the Navy. While Colin was there, one entire class got orders for Bahrain. The next class got some orders for California, Japan, Spain and Bahrain. His class also had an option for "Riverines," which he opted for. He's now based in Virginia, having now completed three more advanced security courses.
Assuming your son's class will have some options, he may get to choose. But the assignments are first come, first served. The higher his standing in the class (written tests, PT, pepper spray course), the more options he'll have to choose from. So urge him to study hard and do good on those tests. Then he'll have his pick.
Hope that helps.
My son tells me he is getting "classed up" tomorrow in A school. He has been leaning toward the PRP program because he has been told by someone at Lackland that he can rank up much quicker by going this route. Any thoughts or info on that? He told me that there might be several different overseas duty stations available as well. Again, any info on either one of these would be helpful to pass along to him. he was told that that will probably know their orders sometime in the next three weeks.
From what Kasea told me, there are three or four units, and several sections in each unit. So, I guess it depends on which one he is in. Kasea likes Harbor Patrol, it's just the hours that kill her. Leaves her no time for training on her bicycle, as she rides for the US Military Endurance Sports Team.
I agree with continuing education. I think they have to wait a certain amount of time (1 year?). Kasea has been looking into Master's programs. Hopefully, she'll start that up soon. She's hoping to finish it off by the time she ends this assignment. I would really like to see her finish off her Doctorate. If they allow her enough time...
My son is in Silverdale doing it. He does not like it at all. It is a very lonely detail. The best advice is to try to get some college courses done while he is there. He won't go any where for the duration of his deployment, so he might as well take advantage of it.
When my daughter got to WA, she was training in a combined Navy/Marine unit. They moved the Navy people out of that unit and she was able to go to a strictly Navy unit (Harbor Patrol). She started out as a gunner (considering that while she was training with the Marines, she qualified on the M240, outshooting the Marines). She got her coxswain qualification and now she is a boat captain. The hours are long (8 hours on the water, 4 PFT, and 4 embarking/debarking boats, approx). She also gets called on her days off to augment, which makes for a LONG week.
Her training with the Marine unit was not formal, it was just where she initially got assigned. She prefers working with the Navy unit.
That would be cool. Hopefully he gets Kasea's section. Some of the others have morale issues. With Kasea, he'll get a "straight shooter." :-)
Thanks much. Cool about the M240. You must be proud. Maybe Colin will up there with Kasea soon.
She's not too happy with the hours. Being a Marine command, the hours are weird. But she likes what she does.
When she was with the Marines she qualified on the M240, getting top shot and out-shooting the Marines. That was cool.
I don't know how GA is. Is it worth it? Considering the classified nature of PRP, and the trust required to guard high-value assets (I don't think the Navy likes us talking about WHAT they are guarding, and it could make them bigger targets, given the nature of the current threats), as I tell Kasea, it may not get you anything in the near future, but that qualification looks good in your record and may open some doors down the line. I hope this helps.
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