Graduating Marine Corps boot camp is one of the proudest moments you’ll have in your career as a Marine. The ceremony of receiving your Eagle, Globe, and Anchor from your drill instructor signifies all the honor, courage, and commitment you showed during your 13 weeks transforming into the few and the proud.
While celebrating this accomplishment and heading home to see your friends and family is quite exciting, graduating boot camp and starting your 10 days leave after boot camp is a vital part of your young career.
Here’s how you can accelerate your career after Marine boot camp.
Read biographies about great military leaders.
Reading about the great history of the U.S. military will help you understand the inner workings of how the military runs but if you want to be a great leader, pick up some books on the great generals
Each biography dives into their personal lives and also gives great insight into the challenges they faced during their time in the service and how they overcame them. You’ll learn a great deal about leadership in the military from reading biographies.
Put in a Permissive Recruiter Assistance Support Program (PRASP) Request
One of the best things you can do to help accelerate your career in the Marines especially after Marine boot camp is to apply for Permissive Recruiter Assistance Support Program (PRASP).
Marines that get selected for this by the USMC will work with their local recruiters to talk to young women and men about the Marine Corps. As a part of PRASP, new Marines will help
Make sure you connect with your recruiter about PRASP as this will help you hone your leadership skills, understand the recruitment process of the Marine Corps, and also give you insight into other opportunities the Marines can provide for you.
NOTE: Heads up to you Infantry and Reserve Marines; unless Headquarters of The United States Marine Corps approves, you are not eligible for this duty.
Stay Active while on Leave
Yes, you worked out every single day during boot camp and you physically look like a lean, mean fighting machine. But going back home on leave before heading to Marine Combat Training or Infantry Training Battalion is a dangerous time as you will be tempted to sit on the couch to rest, or over indulge in th home cooking you’ve so dearly missed.
Studies show that going beyond a week without activity, you begin to experience deconditioning in which you lose the beneficial effects of all those pullups, situps, and platoon runs.
The good news is that you can reverse deconditioning fast once you get active again. But why let yourself get to that point?
You don’t have to worry about a drill instructor running up and down the ranks screaming his lungs out but doing some longer slower runs, weight training in the gym, and staying active on leave will keep you in shape and help you get ahead of the curve as you head to the School of Infantry.
Make a Career Goal List
One of the most important things you can do is make a career goal list of what you want to accomplish while in the Marines. Mapping out short term and long term goals will help you identify what is important during your time in the service. Most contracts are 4 years of active service which is a great way to plan out what you want to achieve.
If you’re not sure of where you would like to start, here are some questions to ask when making your goal list.
- What kind of education would I like?
- What rank do I wish to achieve?
- Is there another MOS that looks like something I want to lateral move into? If so, how can I get into that field while I am in my time of service?
- What are the 3 most important things to me during my time in the Marines?
If you take these steps seriously while you are on your 10 days leave after boot camp, you will give yourself an excellent opportunity to be ahead of your counterparts and achieve great things during your time in service.
Remember, that proper planning prevents poor performance.
Being away from home is not easy. With the demands of the military, staying connected with your loved ones wherever you are is vital. Download
