Jay M. Cohen, a New York native who was nominated for the position of Under Secretary for the Directorate of Science and Technology by President Bush in June 2006, received his commission as an Ensign upon graduation from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1968. He reported to the USS DIODON in San Diego, where he qualified in submarines. After that, he studied at MIT, and Woods Hold Oceanographic Institution, under the Navy’s Burke Scholarship Program, receiving a joint Ocean Engineering degree and Master of Science in Marine Engineering and Naval Architecture. His early Navy assignments, following Nuclear Power Training, included service on conventional and nuclear submarines. From 1985 to 1988 Cohen commanded the USS Hyman G. Rickover. Following this command, he served on the staff of Commander in Chief, U.S. Atlantic Fleet, as senior member of the Nuclear Propulsion Examining Board, and on the staff of the Director of Naval Intelligence at the Pentagon as Director of Operational Support. From 1991 to 1993 he commanded the USS L.Y. Spear, a stint which included a deployment to the Persian Gulf during Operation Desert Storm. Next he was Deputy Chief of Navy Legislative Affairs, and in 1997 he was promoted to the rank of Rear Admiral. In June 1999 Cohen assumed duties as Director of the Navy Y2K Project Office, responsible for transitioning all Navy computer systems into the new century. In June 2000 he became the Chief of Naval Research, serving as the Department of the Navy Chief Technology Officer, responsible for the Navy and Marine Corps S&T Program, coordinating investments with U.S. and international S&T providers to meet war fighter combat needs. He resigned five and a half years later, and retired in February, 2006. Six months later he chose to take on the S&T Under Secretary job.