o lEVEL & i lEVEL

Marines, O strand or I strand? Avionics?

Well im at NAS pensacola i just finished top 3 in my class of ATT. so i get to pick AE, O, or I. i think i want to do o strand. i know the school is easier, and the fleet is a bit harder. but i think i want that. but will o strand marines still be able to get a good job in the civilian side? using the skills learned? please state if you active, retired, civilian... thanks

Organizational Level is less specialized that Intermediate. At the Intermediate level you work on one piece of gear or operate one test bench ALL DAY. O level you are out on the plane turning wrenches, trouble shooting, arguing with the Bone Head mechs (who can't T/S their way out of a wet paper bag and just sit around waiting for you to tell them what part to change).... O level AE's have to learn just about every system that has a wire going to it. AND O level Trons are more Box Changers than Wire Chasers. Trons have a tendency to just throw parts at a gripe and/or swap boxes until the problem goes away, I have had to help them chase wires on NUMEROUS occasions when they ran out of boxes and ideas (and many times our systems overlap.... ie. Our Altimeter's Encoder feeding Their IFF). 

None of them are a guarantee for outside employment without some effort on your part to get the Civilian Certs (A and P or R and E) required to do what you do unless you want to work for a Civilian Contractor doing "Mods" on aircraft. 

I was an AE and spent the majority of the time O level. (I did end up with a Instrument Repair NEC while on Instructor Duty but I generally tried to hide that so I didn't end up with I level orders) one of the benefits of I level is the hours you work (or don't) and you will be inside working at a bench. (and THAT wasn't my bag, I enjoyed being outside working and rolling around in the grease and crap, even in Iceland...)

Source:

USN(ret) Former Instructor and Full Systems QAR on the P-3...