uscga badge
Search
Close this search box.
uscga badge
Search
Close this search box.
Home / Careers / Subspecialties
subspecialties

Coast Guard Officer Subspecialties

With a broad array of Coast Guard duties, no single individual can master all the knowledge required to be effective in every career field. Instead, officers develop expertise in professional fields called Specialties and Subspecialties. Specialties fall into one of two categories:

  • Mission Execution: Perform Coast Guard missions
  • Mission Support: Develop and manage resources and systems used to perform missions

Advancing within Your Specialty

Your first assignment will give you an operational foundation and test your interest in a Specialty. During the next several assignments you will pursue your Specialty designation. You will earn qualifications, attend formal training and may go to graduate school or earn licenses or certifications. Eager to command? Command of a ship is possible after only two years of service – far sooner than other branches of the military.

Out-of-Specialty Assignments

As you progress, broadening experiences outside your Specialty are normal. Known as “out-of-specialty” assignments, you might attend law school, head up a new interagency team or be chosen for a high-visibility assignment at the White House or with Congress.

With few exceptions, Coast Guard specialty expertise is in high demand and leads directly to employment in the private and public sectors.

Mission Execution Community
Mission Support Community
Specialty Sub-Specialties Specialty Sub-Specialties
Response – Afloat Ship based Law Enforcement and Homeland Security Command, Control, Communication & Information Technology (C4IT) Information Systems Management
Response – Ashore Search & Rescue Coordination Electrical and Electronics Engineering
Defense Operations Communications Management
Maritime Law Enforcement Engineering Aeronautical Engineering
Boat Forces Operations Civil Engineering
Marine Environmental Response Industrial Engineering
Incident Management and Preparedness Naval Engineering
Response – Aviation Fixed Wing Aviation Ocean Engineering
Rotary Wing Aviation Cyberspace Operations Cyber IT
Prevention-Afloat Aids to Navigation Cybersecurity
Ice Operations  Cyber Effects
Cyber Intelligence
Intelligence None
Legal None
Prevention-Ashore Vessel Inspections Management Command and Staff
Marine Investigations External Affairs
Waterways Operation and Management International Affairs
Port and Facility Safety and Security Enterprise Policy, Planning, Budgeting & Management
Auxiliary Operations Acquisition Project Management
Marine Safety Engineering Planning
Finance None
Human Resources HR Management
Recruiting
Training
Apply Now
Apply Now

Sponsor Family Application

Thank you for submitting your application to be part of the Sponsor Family Program. Your application will be processed in the upcoming week. Coast Guard Academy’s policy on background screening now requires all adults (everyone 18 and older living in the home) who volunteer to mentor, teach, coach or sponsor cadets, whether on or off Coast Guard Academy grounds, to be screened every 5 years. They are required to provide personal information (name, birth date and social security number) for the purpose of conducting a criminal background check.

The Security Officer at the Coast Guard Academy, CWO2 Gina Polkowski, is overseeing this process. Her email is: Gina.M.Polkowski@uscg.mil.

Sponsor Family designations fall into several different categories. Below are the guidelines to help you determine how best to meet the background screening requirement:

  1. If you are Coast Guard active duty you do not need to apply for an additional Background Check. You will be vetted through the Coast Guard system by CWO2 Polkowski.
  2. If you are a Civilian working for the Coast Guard you do not need to apply for an additional Background Check. You will be vetted through the Coast Guard system by CWO2 Polkowski.
  3. If you are non-Coast Guard Active Duty, you are required to provide proof of your current security clearance or National Agency Check that is to be emailed by your Command Security Officer (CSO)/ Security Office to CWO2 Polkowski at  Gina.M.Polkowski@uscg.mil.
  4. If you are non-Coast Guard civilian who has a current security clearance or National Agency check, you are required to provide proof of your current security clearance or National Agency Check that is to be emailed by your Command Security Officer (CSO)/ Security Office to CWO2 Polkowski at  Gina.M.Polkowski@uscg.mil.
  5. All civilians in the families who are 18 years or older and do not have a security clearance or a National Agency Check are required to be vetted through Mind Your Business, the third party vendor hired by the Coast Guard Academy for the vetting process.

After you complete your application, please e-mail the Sponsor Family Program Coordinator at CadetFamilySponsorProgram@uscga.edu. In your e-mail, you must include the e-mail address and phone number of every adult living in the home. The Sponsor Family Coordinator will then initiate the background check process and you will receive an email with further instructions.

Important things to note:

There is a Sponsor Family Training that is a one-hour training which we ask sponsors to attend once every four years. This training is designed to give you an overview of the program, what is expected of you as a sponsor, and what you can expect from your cadets. This training will also help familiarize you with the cadet regulations onboard CGA. You will be notified via e-mail once the training is scheduled.

The matching process of swabs to families will occur during July and August. Please bear with us and remain flexible through this process. There will be a meet and greet scheduled on Campus, typically in late August. This will give families an opportunity to formally meet their cadet if they have not already done so. Details on this will also be via email.

CGA Badge
Links from these pages to non-Coast Guard sites are provided as a customer service and do not represent any implicit or explicit endorsement by the United States Coast Guard of any commercial or private issues or products presented there.
learn more