The 11th Marine Division Officer Candidacy School (OCS) is a training regimen designed to screen and evaluate potential Officers to serve within the Fighting Eleventh. Those who successfully complete the period of instruction are commissioned as Second Lieutenants in the United States Marines or Ensigns in the United States Navy.
The Officer Candidate School is a one to three week-long program for both prior service and non-prior service candidates. Candidates with no prior military service will first attend Basic Training.
The course is designed primarily to screen and evaluate candidates' fitness to lead personnel by placing them in leadership positions in a stressful environment. Students are evaluated during 2–3 day garrison command billets at the company and platoon level, and squad and fire-team level tactical billets during field exercises.
Admittance
Entrance to OCS is obtained through the DD-4/1 recruit application process, by request to Command Staff, or by Platoon Leaders Class and Officer Candidates Course programs. Candidates who enter the Platoon Leaders Class attend either three-day sessions per week for three weeks. Those who enter the Officer Candidates Course attend a full one to three week session after being granted admittance. Regardless of commissioning source, all officers attend The Basic School (TBS) prior to beginning training for their Military Occupational Specialty (MOS) or Rating.
Officer Candidates must pass a series of tests before being admitted into the Officer Candidate School. An Officer Selection Officer (OSO), usually a Captain, meets with a prospective Officer Candidate. Upon completing a satisfactory interview, the OSO then makes the decision to move the prospective candidate onto the next step. The prospective candidate then must complete a short essay about why they want to be a Officer, provide identification, pass a background check, provide at least five letters of recommendation, and complete a mental health exam.
After successful completion of these steps, the OSO may then conduct the Officer Candidate through a Officer Fitness Test. Upon reaching a score on the test that the OSO deems to be acceptable, the Officer Candidate then signs the contract (including the contract to attend the course, the fraternization policy acknowledgement, and the policy acknowledgement). Candidates choose to enter the program as either a ground, air, naval, or law contract.
All of this information is sent to a review board, which will vote to decide if the Candidate should be accepted to Officer Candidate School. These review boards generally convene only once a month. After receiving a majority vote of acceptance from the review board, the Officer Candidate is officially accepted into the Officer Candidate Program and scheduled for a class.
The OCS training course is designed to streamline and create the best leaders through extremely stressful, rigorous, tedious and difficult means. It is the only commissioning source that is responsive to changing personnel requirements due to its short length, compared to other programs and their requirements. Additionally, members from other organizations may take the Officer Candidacy School and learn basic and advanced leadership skills and do not require to be reviewed or complete any testing.
Officer Candidacy School Tasks
The Officer Candidate School is programmed to teach basic leadership and tasks, using Infantry battle drills as a framework for instruction and evaluation of leadership potential. A total of 71 tasks are taught and tested while at OCS. A candidate should expect to be under constant observation and evaluation by their cadre. Mental and emotional stress is induced through a variety of methods, to test problem solving and moral resolve. Additionally, the course is meant to be physically demanding, with numerous tactical road marches, timed runs of varying distance from 2 miles to 5 miles, and Combatives training.
Officer Candidate School is conducted in three phases: Basic phase, Intermediate Phase, and Senior phase. Students are referred to as either Basic Officer Candidates (BOCs), Intermediate Officer Candidates (IOCs), or Senior Officer Candidates (SOCs) as their classes progress. Initially, upon arrival, the candidates will in-process with Command Staff and compete via Mental Fitness and Physical Fitness test to enter an OCS company. Once assigned to a class, the candidates have virtually no privileges and enter into a highly controlled environment similar to Basic Training, although they are expected to act like leaders and take charge and responsibility immediately. As they progress through the course, they may earn some limited privileges. Their bearing, deportment, and behavior, both individually and collectively, will affect the return of their privileges.
Basic Officer Candidates (BOCs) are identified by wearing a tan cap or helmet. Basic phase will test candidates academically as well as physically; all events are scored comprising the Order of Merit (OML) list used for branch selection. Basic Officer phase culminates with branch selection and phase over to Intermediate phase. The Intermediate Officer Candidates (IOCs) are identified with a sage cap or helmet. The intermediate phase continues with more difficult academic training as well as field and tactical instruction. Senior Officer Candidates (SOCs) are identified by wearing a black cap or helmet. Senior phase consists of a field environment where students are graded on land navigation, tactics, and leadership guidance; the last phase consists of final exams in academics, mental fitness, peer evaluations, final TAC (Training, Advising, and Counseling) Officer assessments, interviews, and preparation for graduation and follow-on basic officer branch courses.
OCS implements a policy of total immersion and restriction. This system removes the possibility of candidates earning on- or off-post passes and using vehicles, restricts the consumption of alcohol, prohibits students from addressing issues or complaints, and restricting off-duty capacities.
All candidates are commissioned as Second Lieutenants or Ensigns upon graduation.
Selection
To apply to become an Officer, one must be between the ages of 16 and 45. The applicant must also hold U.S. or Canadian citizenship, be of high moral character, possess visual acuity no worse than 20/60 uncorrected, correctable to 20/20 in each eye, have a clean record, candidates must have also demonstrated leadership potential, management abilities and good communication skills and hold at least one year of professional work experience prior to application is also required. All candidates must acquire a Top Secret (TS) security clearance, and in many instances, candidates may need a TS/SCI (Top Secret/Sensitive Compartmented Information) clearance. To obtain a security clearance, all potential candidates must pass a series of extensive background investigations, to include in-depth interviews, mental health screening, medical diagnosis, and full-scope moral examination, all of which are conducted by Command Staff personnel. Candidates also have to pass their first Physical Fitness Test (PFT), which includes a 300-meter run, one-minute sit-ups, maximum push-ups, and a 1.5-mile (2.4 km) run. Personnel must pass a moral test with questions including real life instances. Selection is extremely competitive and candidates who fail the tests may not be selected into Officer Candidacy School.
Minimum Requirements:
• Criteria: 10 days prior to a class convening, the Candidate will receive a message from HQ11MD stating the number of quotas given to each candidate, the gear list, report date, and criteria for attending.
• The following prerequisites must be met by the reporting Candidate or he will be returned to his unit:
• Must be at least a Private First Class (E-2 - E-9)
• Real full name and age must be provided and openly applicable to duty
• Active Duty Occupation or Rating
• Vision correctable to 20/20 in both eyes. Color blindness is discouraged.
• Serving in or designated for assignment to a Officer Candidate.
• Minimum of 12 months remaining on current contract on completion of course (does not apply to reservists).
• Must score a First Class Mental Health Evaluation on course convene date.
• Must have be recommended by five members via individual letter.
• No courts martial or NJP, infractions, removals or discourse within the last six months.
• Minimum completion of School of Infantry.
• No history of mental illness.
• Must be a volunteer.
• It is highly recommended, but not required, for the student to have completed the following the courses: Non-Commissioned Officer Academy, Calling and Adjusting Supporting Arms, and Basic Team Leader Course. It is also recommended, but not required, that the candidate have leadership experience. However, it is required for candidates to have demonstrated leadership potential, management abilities and good communication skills and must also possess a high degree of maturity, obedience, responsibility equanimity, and common sense.
• Marine Corps PFT: For a perfect score: 3 mile run in 18 minutes, 100 push ups in under two minutes.
• Swim Qual: 500 meter swim, 50 meter swim with swimming suit under fire, swim water under fire, no signs of panic.
Course of Training
Officer Candidate uniforms are similar to those worn at Basic Training, with several notable differences. In the final phase, Candidate Officers wear the Black Garrison Cap and Helmet.
Presently those in training at OCS are mustered at the pay grade of E-5 unless they are prior enlisted already holding a higher pay grade. While attending OCS the students hold a special title known as Officer Candidate.
Training classes advance through three distinct phases, gradually taking on greater responsibility and preparing to commission:
• Phase 1 - Basic Indoctrination Phase
• Phase 2 - Intermediate Candidate Phase
• Phase 3 - Senior Officer Phase
Every action is scrutinized and shortcomings are swiftly corrected. Candidates who do not meet milestones can be held back in training or removed from the program. Adherence to a Code of Honor is mandatory; violators are removed.
Regardless of course, the instructors usually include officers to handle most academic instruction, enlisted sergeant instructors (Senior non-commissioned officers taken from the drill instructor community) to conduct most of the day-to-day management, and other instructors (most often junior non-commissioned officers) to teach most field skills.
Training includes academic and field topics. Academic subjects covered include Marine Corps and Navy history, leadership, close order drill, weapons handling, and general military subjects such as land navigation, the Uniform Code of Military Justice, interior guard, moral and ethical leadership, and basic combat. Candidates need to be mentally fit. In addition to constant physical, mental training and rifle drill, instruction inside and outside the classroom includes but is not limited to:
• Military History
• Engineering & Weapons
• Damage Control
• Off-Duty & Noncombat Orientation
• Warfare
• Leadership
• Core Values
• Navigation
• Military Law
During training, candidates are to be evaluated and motivated. Physical training, small unit leadership, and basic infantry tactics are addressed, as well as significant academic instruction. In the Senior Phase is an advanced course of indoctrination and contains similar physical and mental training, small unit leadership, infantry tactics, and academics; but at a faster rate and with more instructor-induced stress. Members who pass all three phases of Officer Candidacy Training will attend their ultimate culmination test, nicknamed the "Bulldog".
The Quigley The Quigley is a legendary water obstacle used in training at OCS. It consists of a long canal with 4-foot (1.2 m) cement culverts submerged in swampy water; candidates must immerse themselves and navigate through the Quigley without standing as a part of the OCS training program.
Further training Officer candidates who complete OCS are then commissioned as Second Lieutenants or Ensigns and are sent to The Basic School (TBS) for further training with other newly commissioned officers. At TBS, they receive the skills and knowledge necessary to lead warfighters in combat; much like "every Marine is a rifleman", every officer is introduced to the skills necessary to lead a unit.