Expert: MARK A. HOWELL - 6/17/2010

Question
Good afternoon,

I am very interested in becoming a corpsman however I have a strong desire to be involved in special operations. I have heard of SARC(special amphibious reconnaissance corpsman) however when I talked to a recruiter he had never heard of it. Is there any information you can provide about this MOS or any other one that I do not know of that involves special operations corpsman? Thanks!

Answer
Stefan,
I'm surprised YOU know about them, because not many people are aware of the SARCs.
They're not a secret, they're just not highly publicized and there aren't many of them.
 
The Navy Amphibious Reconnaissance Corpsmen are hospital corpsmen that provide the USMC reconnaissance teams advanced trauma management associated with combatant diving and parachute entry. The Marines also have Navy SARCs attached to the Marine Corps Force Reconnaissance companies to help support special reconnaissance missions.

SARCs are trained and specialized the same as their recon Marine counterparts, in amphibious, deep recon and direct action.  SARCs use their paramedic skills to provide basic life support and other routine emergency medical health care procedures related to the hazards of swimming, open and closed circuit SCUBA diving, and military freefall during amphibious reconnaissance operations. They also instruct and advise the recon Marines in prevention and treatment of illnesses, whether in combat or training.  SARCs are also capable of conducting underwater ship-bottom searches, and often do additional duties as a radio operator, point man, and team leaders when necessary.

You cannot just "walk in off the street" and be a SARC.  You must already be a Navy hospitalman, a graduate of the Navy Field Medical Service School, who is currently serving with a Marine Corps unit.  You must have a current ASVAB general technical score of 100 or higher, outstanding physical fitness assessments, good annual performance reports, a first class swim qualification, and a recommendation from your Commanding Officer.  

NEC 8404 Fleet Marine School graduate
Basic Reconnaissance School MOS (0321) (13 weeks at Camp Pendleton, CA.)
Marine Combatant Dive School (7 weeks)
Amphibious Reconnaissance Course (3 weeks)
US Army Special Operations Combatant Medic 18D short course (24 weeks)
US Army Basic Airborne School (3 weeks
US Army Special Operations Combat Medic 18D ADSOCM (24 weeks).

Once they successfully complete all this training they will be awarded NEC 840 (the Navy's MOS)
and must serve as a recon hospital corpsman for at least three years.

Special Ops teams from all the Services have a corpsman or medic as an essential part of every team.  In the Army it is MOS 68W1 Army Special Operations Combat Medic, in the Air Force is is Speciality Code 1T2X1, Pararescue.

I hope this helps.
Colonel Howell