[sweetmtn]

OK,,, First let me ask you if you REALLY love mathematical thinking...nukes are chosen as they have a high aptitude for that. The training time is VERY stressful if you don't do well in the calculations..many get dropped from nuke in training as it is very intense. My son was a nuke....he loved his job as an MM nuke, just not the atmosphere, in fact that he is now a civilian he basically does the same job, just not as a nuke. He now works for a large power company and at age 27 has bought his first house...he lives in Texas.
As for port calls, YES, nukes do get to go on port calls just like everyone else on the ship, however the entire department cant leave all together. They rotate out so some are still there to make sure the reactors are working properly.
I suggest you read all the posts in the nuke section, I have posted many there about my son and what he went through..it wasn't pleasant by any stretch of the imagination. Yes my son got out with a full honorable discharge, but he did have issues do to his job. Thankfully since he has been out he is back to his normal self and very happy, but it took well over a year for him to come back normal. My son like many nukes (5 others on his ship in his department had the same issues within 3 months) attempted suicide twice while active duty.
Remember this is YOUR life not your recruiters...if you cant see doing this sort of job for 6 years and in your case as a career...change now while you still can.