After I wrote this, I did think that I did not verify that officers had a rate but was too lazy to look it up and post something. Thanks for the info.

It's interesting how each branch of the military uses the terms so differently. I know you are or have been in the navy because you are talking about rates, which is the whole point of asking the question about the rates. The average person would not understand the question. There is specialist knowledge that most people don't know when they pretend to be in the military.

Since we are being technical, E/W/O are pay grades, "Pay grades are used by the uniformed services of the United States to determine wages and benefits based on the corresponding military rank of a member of the services."

"Military ranks are a system of hierarchical relationships in armed forces", but unlike the navy and coast guard. The Army, Air Force and Marines all use the term "rank" for the member's military rank in the hierarchy. So for example an Airmen in the Air Force who has the pay grade E-4,who has the rank Senior Airman and has the job of Avionics.

In the navy with my understanding, enlisted navy personnel do not have "rank" they have a rate. For example pay grade of E-4, who has a rate of Petty Officer Third Class which is just another name for rank(in my eyes), and has a rating(job)of a Cryptologic Technician. But the navy also uses the word rate for the combination of Petty Officer Third Class and Cryptologic Technician which makes CTM3.

Honestly this whole navy enlisted rate/rating thing is just confusing. If I am wrong on this let me know. I only know this because I talked with an old coast guard warrant officer who explained this to me after I asked about rank.