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Congratulations on your selection to the NSI STA-21 Program, and Welcome Aboard! Your outstanding performance and enlisted service has led to your selection for this highly competitive program, and brought you to the rank of Officer Candidate in this highly competitive officer accession program. Although you officially become an Officer Candidate upon reporting, you will continue to receive your enlisted pay while attending NSI. Begin preparing yourself mentally for the challenges that lie ahead. NSI STA-21 is a unique, one-of-a kind, officer-accession education and training program. It is time-compressed and provides significant academic challenges. Due to the compressed class schedule, you should make every effort to get your personal affairs in order prior to reporting to prevent unnecessary distractions during this essential education and training evolution. Your accomplishments thus far are noteworthy. Goals of strengthening your present academic foundation and embarking on a journey, towards a college degree and a commission as a Naval Officer are firmly within your reach. You will be challenged daily, academically, militarily, professionally, and physically! You should be prepared to devote the majority of your time and energy towards a serious and regimented lifestyle. Your success is proportional to your level of commitment. Accountability....Responsibility....Authority....all come with gold bars!
Austin W. Duff Captain, United States Navy Commanding Officer
When sailors today hear the term Seaman to Admiral no doubt former Chief of Naval Operations Admiral Boorda comes to mind. As a product of an enlisted-to-officer commissioning program in the early 1960's, Admiral Boorda was the first CNO to have risen from the enlisted ranks. The Integration Program, as it was then known, was designed to provide an opportunity for enlisted personnel who possessed outstanding qualifications and motivation for a naval career to obtain a commission. Upon assuming the duties of CNO, Admiral Boorda immediately reestablished the historic program, Seaman to Admiral, for young Sailors to earn their commission and become naval officers. The admiral believed people should have the opportunity to excel, and be all they can be, even if they don't get a perfect or traditional start.
Seaman to Admiral
people should have the opportunity to excel, and be all they can be, even if they don't get a perfect or traditional start.
Since its rebirth in 1994, the Seaman to Admiral (STA-21) program has undergone several changes to meet the needs of the Navy and Sailors, but the spirit embodied by Admiral Boorda remains intact. STA-21 has always been a commissioning program in which participants maintain the pay, benefits, and privileges they received as active duty enlisted sailors and receive a scholarship to attend a superb university upon graduation.
Physical fitness is an integral part of the STA-21 program. You will be required to be within Body Composition Standards in accordance with OPNAVINST 1420.1 (series) and OPNAVINST 6110.1 (series).
For additional information on STA-21 and NROTC please consult: NSTC M-1533.2D – Regulations for Officer Development for NROTC
For any question, please contact the OTCN Student Control at (401) 841-3354 or Command Duty Officer at (401) 862-4321.
You will purchase all necessary Uniforms during your first week of training at NSI. Until uniform fitting and issue, Officer Candidates will wear official Navy PT gear as the Uniform of the Day. Do not purchase uniform items prior to arrival. Uniform items are very specific, and purchasing them from any source other than an authorized Navy Uniform Store may result in unnecessary expenditures.
Any uniform items you may already own that are the same for both officer and enlisted (i.e. all weather coat, Navy issue PT gear, black leather gloves, ribbons/medals/warfare devices, etc.) should be brought with you. Prior Chiefs should bring all khaki uniform components as well. If the Class Officer or Senior Enlisted Class team member determines items are unserviceable, new items will be required to be purchased.
The typical Uniform of the Day at NSI will be Service Khakis.
All Officer Candidates with the exception of prior Chief Petty Officers will receive a one-time uniform allowance to cover the cost for the initial uniform issue. For further questions concerning uniform allowances, please check the below link.
Click here DoD 7000.14-R ‘Clothing Monetary Allowances’ (Click on Volume 7A, Chapter 29 - Clothing Monetary Allowances)
NSI is designed to provide the baseline level of knowledge required of all commissioned officers in the United States Navy. Over the 6-week course, candidates will be instructed in the following areas:
(1) Division Officer Fundamentals: Covers numerous requirements and programs to execute duties as a division officer.
(2) Naval History: Provides an overview of U.S. Naval history and how various aspects of Naval weaponry, engineering, ship and tactics have advanced since 1775.
(3) Engineering & Weapons: Introduces candidates to the fundamentals of shipboard naval engineering and various weapons in the United States Navy arsenal.
(4) Damage Control: Introduces candidates to shipboard fire-fighting and flooding controls through hands-on training.
(5) Leadership and Ethics: Case studies of recent naval events are used to develop and apply leadership principles.
(6) Navigation: Introduces candidates to naval terminology, equipment, shipboard operations, marine navigation, and maneuvering utilizing ship handling simulators.
(7) Cyber: Introduces candidates to naval network infrastructure in order to prepare them for future warfare.
Memorization Items. Officer Candidates may be required to recite the items below. (Go to the Memorization "tabbed" section on this page.)
The Navy considers a physically fit body as important as a sound mind. The objectives of the physical training sessions classes at OTCN are to develop stamina, endurance and to improve your overall physical conditioning.
Physical training instruction begins immediately upon arrival. You are required to be within Navy Body Composition Standards upon arrival. They are:
Officer Candidates must maintain Physical Fitness Standards IAW OPNAVINST 6110.1(series).
For information concerning the Navy Physical Fitness Assessment, please click on the following links
Navy Physical Readiness Home Page
OPNAVINST 6110.1 (series) Navy Physical Fitness Assessment Instruction
All NSI candidates are encouraged to review the student regulations and program information included in OTCNINST 1530.7C.
I am a United States Sailor. I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States of America and I will obey the orders of those appointed over me. I represent the fighting spirit of the Navy and those who have gone before me to defend freedom and democracy around the world. I proudly serve my country's Navy combat team with honor, courage, and commitment. I am committed to excellence and the fair treatment of all.
Sir/Ma’am, the _____ person in this officer’s chain of command is:
Sir/Ma’am, the ______ general order of a sentry is to:
“I, (state your name), having been appointed an Ensign in the United States Navy, do hereby accept such appointment and do solemnly swear, that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic, that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion, and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter. So help me God.”
Pronunciation
A
Alpha
AL fah
B
Bravo
BRAH voh
C
Charlie
CHAR lee
D
Delta
DELL tah
E
Echo
ECK oh
F
Foxtrot
FOKS trot
G
Golf
GOLF
H
Hotel
hoh TELL
I
India
IN dee ah
J
Juliet
JEW lee et
K
Kilo
KEE loh
L
Lima
LEE mah
M
Mike
MIKE
N
November
no VEM ber
O
Oscar
OSS cah
P
Papa
pah PAH
Q
Quebec
kay BECK
R
Romeo
ROW me oh
S
Sierra
see AIR rah
T
Tango
TANG oh
U
Uniform
YOU nee form
V
Victor
VIK tah
W
Whiskey
WISS key
X
X-Ray
ECKS ray
Y
Yankee
YANG key
Z
Zulu
ZOO loo
Below is the required paperwork for each student reporting to NSI.
ADVANCEMENT EXAM ELIGIBLE
Required Items To Bring: You will be issued all necessary uniform items upon arrival at NSI (See the Uniform Requirements "tabbed" section on this page.) You will also receive a clothing allowance based on your rank (Prior Chief Petty Officers will not receive this, as they have already received an allowance). Below are the items needed to begin training. Note: Opportunities to go to the NEX will be limited during the first few weeks of training.
* The schedule is a sample only. It is meant to give an idea of the daily routine.