The Hellenic Naval Academy graduates are officers of the Hellenic Navy bearing the rank of Ensign. This is only the beginning of an interesting and productive career in the Hellenic Navy.
During their career in the Hellenic Navy, combatant deck officers serve on ships of the Fleet where they can reach the top position of Captain while engineer officers can reach that of First Engineer. Later or during their career in the Hellenic Fleet, naval officers are placed in staff, managerial or administrative posts in the Hellenic Navy, in the General Staff of Defence or in the Ministry of National Defence.
Moreover, if they wish to, they can be placed in positions abroad such as in Greek embassies, inter-allied headquarters and echelons of the Navy. The supreme rank to which a combatant deck officer can be promoted is that of Admiral and the supreme post he can be placed in is that of Chief of Staff of National Defence. Respectively, for an engineer officer the supreme rank is that of Vice Admiral and the supreme post he can be placed in is that of Navy Inspector General or Commander of Navy Logistics.
After serving three years as Ensigns, the officers are promoted to the rank of Lieutenant Junior Grade and attend the School for Vessel Superintendent Officers, which lasts ten months for deck officers and six months for engineers. This training is considered to be a continuation of the academic education they received at the Hellenic Naval Academy. Additionally, they can be taught specialized subjects they have already been or will be acquainted with during their service aboard warships.
Besides the training they get at the School for Vessel Superintendent Officers , they can study at the Administration and Navy Staff School as well as in schools of the Greek Armed Forces, such as the Supreme Joint War College (SJWC) and the School of National Defence, which is equivalent to a postgraduate degree. Moreover, they can study at the corresponding War Schools/Colleges and Schools of National Defence of NATO state members.
Upon their graduation from the Hellenic Naval Academy, the naval cadets become officers of the Hellenic Navy bearing the rank of Ensign. Their career begins with their appointment to the Navy where they serve as deck officers or engineers for the first three years. During those first years they can— provided they wish to—be selected to be appointed to submarines, helicopters, aircraft of naval cooperation or in Underwater Demolition Teams (UTD). This type of training enables them to acquire knowledge and skills which will be useful in their career.
The officers’ training lasts as long as their career in the Hellenic Navy. On reaching the ranks of Lieutenant Junior Grade, Lieutenant and Lieutenant Commander, they can pursue further studies at Universities overseas, such as Naval Postgraduate School (NPS) in California, USA, Cranfield University in Great Britain, Harvard University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Boston, USA, as well as at Greek Universities and Institutions such as the University of Piraeus, the National Technical University of Athens (NTUA) and Athens University of Economics and Business (AUEB) and obtain postgraduate degrees in fields such as Electronics, Arms Engineering, PCs, Marine Architecture/Ship Building, Operations Research, Management, etc.