UCLA Anderson School of Management Blog

Military Precision Led to a Dynamic Career in Business

By Jill Hisey (’95)

Both of Jarred Herman’s (’14) grandfathers served in the military, which influenced him to set his sights on joining the U.S. Navy. But one of his grandfathers convinced him to get his college degree first, and then, if he was still interested, he could enter the Navy as an officer.

Heeding this advice, Herman, who grew up in Nevada City, California, attended University of Nevada, Reno, majoring in math. After graduating he knew he wanted to join the submarine corps and determined that becoming a nuclear engineer would offer a perfect mix of science and military service. But first he would attend Officer Candidate School in Pensacola, Florida, followed by six months at the Nuclear Power School in Charleston, South Carolina — which he says entailed an intense academic program — and six months at the Ballston Spa NPTU Prototype in Saratoga Springs, New York. Finally, Herman spent six months in submarine school in Connecticut. All told, he spent 1½ years in training before reporting for duty.

UCLA Anderson Veterans Discuss Culture, Transitions and Supporting the Troops

Jared Kerntke (’18) and Hagai (Guy) Nir (’18) currently serve as co-presidents of the Anderson Veterans Association. The organization’s membership cuts across the board to include students from UCLA Anderson’s full-time, fully employed and executive programs. The group’s membership is not limited to veterans of the United States armed forces, vets from around the world are welcome.

The relationship between the veteran community and the civilian population is part of the current news cycle, the country carrying on a very public discussion on what it means to “support the troops.” Nir and Kerntke were gracious enough to sit down with the UCLA Anderson Blog team to share their views on recent events and life at Anderson for those who’ve served.

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Q: To begin, why don’t you both tell our readers about your military careers?

Kerntke: I was in the Marine Corps for six years as a supply officer. I spent two years in Japan, three years in San Diego and one year all over. I joined straight out of college. I did not do ROTC, so I guess it was a little unusual in that regard. It was great. I love the Marines. I got out (of the Marines) in June and I started (at Anderson) in August. (I did) undergrad at Penn State.

Nir: I was in the Israeli Defense Forces. I was born and raised in Israel so there's mandatory service for us, but when you apply to a Special Forces unit you go through a qualification course. I got accepted to the Special Forces so I had to sign up for more years. The Israeli system is a bit different. You don’t go in as officers; rather, we join the ranks and then you get promoted. Then I was selected to go to the NCO course, and after that was selected to go to the IDF’s Officers Academy, coming out as a platoon commander. After three years I was promoted to company commander. Overall, I served almost five years active and seven years reserve, coming out as a major.