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Question
how does a Marine officer become a Force Recon Marine?
what are the requirements or qualifications?
what's the training pipeline?
Hi Charlie,
Currently, Recon units gain their officers from two sources:
First is the Infantry (0302) officer who has typically has 2+ years experience in a Battalion with at least one deployment. At this point he's ready to be a Weapons Plt Leader or a Company XO. Some opt to take the recon indoc and, with approval from their chain of command, receive orders to a recon unit.
Second is the ground intelligence officer (0203) who attends intel school and infantry officers course before coming to the Basic Recon Course. Some even go on to receive their insert schools (jump & Dive). Upon completion of this school pipeline, the LT is assigned to a recon unit.
However, keep in mind that the actual duties of a Marine Recon Officer may not be what you think.
Normally, the Recon Platoon Commander works in the Landing Force Operations Center (LFOC) or Combat Operations Center (COC). Here he receives reports from his teams, transmits direction to them & coordinates any support they need in the field. They don't go "into the field" very often.
Recon Team Leaders are normally Sergeants or Staff Sergeants. The Team Leader is the senior man to go to the field on missions. Some missions require the full platoon to act as a unit, and in that case the Platoon Commander may also go to the field.
For more information about the United States Military, feel free to visit my U.S. Military information site at: http://usmilitary.about.com
Hope this helps!
Rod Powers
http://usmilitary.about.com
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Answers by Expert:
Rod Powers
Expertise
Rod Powers is considered one of the premire experts about U.S. Military career information on the planet. He has more than 30,000 articles about U.S. Military career information on the About.com U.S. Military Careers Information website at: http://usmilitary.about.com. Additionally, he is the author of "ASVAB for Dummies," "ASVAB AFQT for Dummies," (available in Dec 2009), and "Veteran Benefits for Dummies," all published by Wiley Publishing. He is also the author of "Barrons' Guide to Officer Candidate School Tests," published by Barron's Educational Series.
Experience
Rod Powers is a retired Air Force first sergeant, with 23 years of active duty service, 11 of those years as an Air Force First Sergeant. He has helped thousands of military members, recruits, and military applicants since he took over the About.com U.S Military Careers Information site in 1999. He has a reputation for "telling it like it is," so questions may not be answered based on "what you want to hear," but will be answered based of the bast available information, concerning the service/situation.
Education/Credentials
Rod is a distinguished graduate of the Air Force Noncommissioned Officers Academy, the Air Force Senior Noncommissioned Officer Academy, and the Air Force First Sergeant Academy. He also holds an Associates Degree in Personnel Administration from the Community College of the Air Force (CCAF).
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