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Ned Jobson: Standing Guard

Though Edward “Ned” Jobson’s career path is unique among his graduating class, he represents the intelligence and commitment that the entire student body at Daniel Hand High School (DHHS) exemplifies. Ned has signed up for the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) and says his choice is in keeping with his love for the sea.

Ned just graduated from DHHS on June 16 and will attend the Academy at the USCG base in New London through the summer. Ned says his love of sailing and a passion for architecture made a career in the Guard a natural decision.

According to Ned, his mother urged him to consider the USCG, as it offered all of the features that he wanted in his education.

“My mom was kind of the first person who brought the idea up to me of going to the Coast Guard a couple of years ago. She said, ‘You should really look into this; it sounds exactly like what you want to do,’ and this was actually when I was quite young, and I kind of blew it off at first, but last year is when I first started looking at it,” says Ned. “I visited the Academy because it is so close, and I attend their AIM program [Academy Introduction Mission], and I got an idea of what it’s like. It’s certainly going to be hard, but I’ll be able to handle it.”

The AIM program is a week-long summer session for high school students interested in the USCG.

Ned says his two main passions sailing and architecture will be his main areas of concentration at the Academy, and he is eager to begin his studies.

“I was first looking at schools that had good naval architecture programs, and the Coast Guard is one of the top schools for that. I also wanted to go somewhere that had a sailing racing program, and the Coast Guard has an amazing sailing program,” says Ned. “I really wanted to go somewhere I could sail. And at the Coast Guard, sailing is huge, so those two things really made the decision easy.”

According to Ned, he is still contemplating his eventual focus and where his career will take him, but he is excited by the prospect of the many doors that will be opened to him through his training and experience.

“I’m super interested in the options I’ll have there. I’ll be getting a naval architecture degree while I’m there and then five years of a cool job there afterward, and then after that, I’ll be able to figure out what I want to do,” says Ned.

Ned says he has other interests that he hopes to explore during his service, including piloting both vessels and aircraft. The U.S. Coast Guard isn’t just about ships and boats but also numerous opportunities for flight training in rotary and fixed-wing aircraft that are essential to the Guard’s mission.

“I might do four years of engineering at the Academy and then decide I want to go to flight school or something; I could see myself doing that,” says Ned. “I am interested in driving a ship for a couple of years, like a cutter or something, and I think during my five years with the Coast Guard that I am required to do, would be a good time to do that because I can get great experience and then fall back on my engineering degree to start a career after that. But I am trying to keep my options open because I think anything I do there might be cool and something I want to do. Right now, it’s naval architecture, but I’m not sure what it’ll be four or five years from now. But that’s why it’s exciting.”

Ned says he and his family are a water clan that has always been drawn to the sea. According to Ned, he has been sailing almost his entire life, and all his time is spent sailing, racing, working, or instructing on the water.

To call Ned a “water guy” is an understatement.

“I’ve been sailing since I was super little; both my parents sail, both my sisters sail. We all do it. I was the captain of Daniel Hand’s sailing team this year, and over the summer, I work as a sailing instructor in Clinton. And every Wednesday, I race out at Duck Island Yacht Club. Every weekend I do distance racing; like last weekend, I did a race to Martha’s Vineyard and back, and this weekend is a race from Block Island to Stamford. I also work at Atlantic Outboard in Westbrook too, mostly power boats and stuff there,” says Ned.

According to Ned, the AIM program the Academy offered helped seal the deal on his decision to join the Guard. The course, which had dual physical and educational components wasn’t an easy sail, but Ned says the experience was valuable.

“They say they try to make it pretty much as similar to ‘swab summer’ as they can. I was told about 50%of the people who do that course apply for the Academy the next year,” Ned says. “It’s open to everyone. I did it, and it was really hard just being dumped into that. For a week, you get used to all this military stuff, but there are also academics along with the physical stuff. I still talk to people from that week; six days together doesn’t sound like a lot of time, but it shows you get really close to people, and I learned a lot.”

Next, Ned will be off the Academy for the seven-week stint of swab summer in New London, and he is excited for what the future holds.

“I’ve got seven weeks of that coming up. They say everyone makes it through, so I think I will make it through, too. This is Plebe Summer and the introduction to the Coast Guard; day one is June 26. It’s their boot camp and then a week on [USCG training ship] the Eagle after that,” says Ned. “I get a couple of weeks off, and then the academic year starts. I am really looking forward to that.”

Ned also finds time to volunteer for Habitat for Humanity and is the president of the high school and says he is thankful and humble for the opportunity to serve his country.

“I really need to thank my parents and family and friends and everyone who has helped me along the way,” Ned says. “I definitely want to thank my mom for motivating me to look into this opportunity and, of course, my dad, who has been a huge help throughout this process, one for helping me grow into who I am right now, and two, now that I’m actually going off the Academy, for all their support.”