Matthew Fuini and Travis Boles, two mechanical engineering juniors, recently received the prestigious appointment from the US Navy Nuclear Propulsion Officer Candidate (NUPOC) program. They are the first two NUPOC candidates from A&T.

Matthew and Travis went through a rigorous selection process, including oral exams on technical areas and Admiral Donald’s interview in Washington DC. Matthew became a NUPOC candidate in January and Travis in May. NUPOC provides candidates active duty benefits of Petty Officer 1st Class – over $3,000 per month plus health and dental benefits while completing their undergraduate degree as full-time students. Both students have to work long hours to support their family while attending college prior to this appointment, and now the NUPOC program allows them to focus wholly on academics.

Upon completing their undergraduate degree, they will enter the Officer Candidate School (OCS) and then the US Navy Nuclear Power School. After the training, they will serve as Nuclear Warfare Officer on board a nuclear submarine or nuclear aircraft carrier, Naval Reactors Engineer in Washington DC, or Nuclear Instructor at the Navy Power School in Charleston, SC.

NUPOC is a highly selective program for those students who would like to work for the Navy after college. It pays student candidates up to 30 months to finish school. The program is open to engineering and science majors with 2 semesters of Calculus and 2 semesters of Calculus based Physics.