MOS in the NAVY?

[The DIY Blonde]

Okay, help me out here... "MOS" (military occupational specialty) wasn't a term used with the Navy. We used the term 'rate'. However, M.O.S. was used back in WWII quite regularly-- I'm working on a huge pile of muster lists from the USS Pyro AE-1 (from the mid-1940s). Next to each name is "MOS" with a number beside it. The numbers start at 6 and go up as far as 30-- so far any way. What are these numbers representing? The months they've been in? The months they had left til they separate?

Hopefully you can see this picture okay.

[bellasilva]

Months overseas perhaps? That's a long shot, and nothing I've ever encountered on any muster rolls, but just a guess. I'd be interested to find out as well as I frequently run USN muster rolls.

[patches]

Months overseas perhaps? That's a long shot, and nothing I've ever encountered on any muster rolls, but just a guess. I'd be interested to find out as well as I frequently run USN muster rolls.

That's a good guess, never thought of that, perhaps that's it.

[The DIY Blonde]

Brilliant thought indeed! I know a few of these crew members were received on board the Pyro straight from Recruiting Station San Francisco and those dates are listed on some of these logs. I'll cross-ref those dates with their listed MOS numbers and see if they calculate right. I'll let ya know either way!

[Salvage Sailor]

I believe M.O.S. is "Months Overseas Service"

[The DIY Blonde]

I believe you're right. After going back and trying to calculate some of those entries, some however, don't match up quite right but, if it's documenting their 'months overseas service' for that particular duty station (the Pyro), that would add up pretty close. Thanks for your help.