Jasmin was considering the Naval Academy when she un-expertly found out she was accepted to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and couldn’t pass up the opportunity to attend. She considered doing ROTC, but her parents encouraged her to keep her options open and helped pay for college since the ROTC scholarship was a desirable reason to sign up.
From MIT to the Marine Corps
But her desire to serve in the military never waned. She went to Officer Candidate School between her Junior and Senior year of college. She commissioned into the Marine Corps when she graduated. In the first few years of active duty, she was working to get her pilot wings. And in 2008 she began operational flying. She deployed three times from 2009 to 2012.
Deployment Loneliness
She talked about how hard it was to be the only female in her fighter pilot group. While the male 1st Lt and Captains had their own tent, she was in a tent with all the other females of all ranks and jobs. She didn’t feel the comradery her male counterparts felt. But she loved the work she did while she was over there supporting the troops on the ground and running flying operations.
After her last deployment in 2012, she reported to Naval Test Pilot School. She worked as both a developmental and operational test pilot. It was while she was an operational test pilot she applied to be an astronaut with NASA.
Becoming an astronaut at NASA
The selection process was long and required references and multiple interviews. She felt honored to be considered to be an astronaut and met amazing people through the process. She found out in May of 2017 that she was selected to begin training in August. Next, she discussed the various training that is required to be an astronaut. She continues to train for a future space flight today. In late 2020, it was announced that Jasmin would be part of the Artemis and could be one of the first women on the moon. It will be exciting to continue to watch her story.
Mentioned in this Episode
Nicole Malachowski – First Female Thunderbird Pilot
Related Episodes:
Before Women Could Be Fighter Pilots – Episode 29
Do You Know the Stories of the WASP – Episode 49
Advice for Women Considering Military Service – Episode 100
Check out the full transcript here.
Thank you to my Patreon Sponsor Col Level and above:
Kevin Barba, Adriana Keefe
Thank you Patreon members for your support. Want early access to episodes, ad-free content, and one on one mentorship advice? Become a Patreon member today! Click here.
Resources:
Women of the Military Mentorship Program
Girl's Guide to Military Service available where books are sold.
Senaste avsnitt
En liten tjänst av I'm With Friends. Finns även på engelska.