Officer Candidate School (U.S. Navy)
Encyclopedia
The United States Navy
's Officer Candidate School, currently located at Naval Station Newport
, Rhode Island
, provides training to become a commissioned officer. Attendance is one possible way for civilian college graduates (bachelor's degree or higher) with no military experience to earn a commission as a U.S. Navy officer. Additionally, the Navy also enrolls a significant number of candidates with current or prior enlisted experience in the military. In this way, OCS serves as a path to commissioned status for high-performing enlisted personnel. Alternatives include the Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps
, Officer Development School (ODS), and graduation from the United States Naval Academy
.
Officer candidates are mustered in at the paygrade of E5 but hold a special title known as Officer Candidate
. This title is held from the beginning of week 2 through the middle of week 9 when an Officer Candidate completes the "Victory Run" and earns the title Candidate Officer; Officer Candidates are regarded as basic recruits. As training progresses, Officer Candidates obtain more responsibility and are eventually given command authority over other Officer Candidates through use of a series of "positional ranks" denoted with small gold bars worn on the collar (typically referred to as "railroad tracks"). These positional ranks include "Regimental Commander", "Regimental Sub-Commander", "Regimental Adjutant" and other responsibilities. All positional rank assignments are competitively awarded from among the entire regiment. It is considered a significant honor to be selected to serve in any of the top leadership positions while enrolled at OCS. As training progresses over 12 weeks, individuals gradually move from Indoctrination Candidates, or "Indocs," to Officer Candidates, to Candidate Officers, or "Candios." The latter being a position of authority over less senior candidates.
Officer Candidates are assigned to battalions within a single regiment and are either quartered at Nimitz Hall or at King Hall at Naval Station Newport. Over the 12 weeks they are immersed in Leadership, Physical and Military training as well as Academics ranging from Navigation to Shipboard Engineering and Damage Control. Their every action is scrutinized and any shortcoming rigorously corrected. There is a strict Code of Honor that is expected; violators are removed.
s, Naval Flight Officer
s, Aviation Maintenance Duty Officers, and Air Intelligence Officers, while OCS trained all other Officer communities. The original US Navy OCS in Newport, Rhode Island began operation in 1951 and was closed down in April 1994 when the programs were merged as a single OCS at NAS Pensacola. Subsequently, in 2007 the consolidated Navy OCS curriculum was relocated back to Newport by direction of the Base Realignment and Closure
(BRAC) Commission of 2005
. A difference in class numbering between OCs and AOCS was that AOCS classes were numbered by graduation date in the calendar year vice fiscal (for example, the first glass to graduate in January would be Class 01-YY as opposed to the first calss in the fiscal year (October)).
In AOCS, all basic military training was administered by enlisted drill instructors from the United States Marine Corps
. This facet of the training (origin of the slogan "Navy owned, Marine Corps trained") at AOCS in Pensacola was considered a point of pride and mark of distinction by graduates of AOCS that separated themselves from the graduates of OCS in Newport. When the single OCS was established in Pensacola, the program retained both the Marine DIs of AOCS and the US Navy CPOs of Newport. Newport OCS now has both.
(1982) focuses around a main character who is appointed an Aviation Officer Candidate at AOCS, albeit at a fictional naval air station in Washington state
, and must deal with personal and social issues to be commissioned as an Ensign.
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
's Officer Candidate School, currently located at Naval Station Newport
Naval Station Newport
The Naval Station Newport is a United States Navy base located in the towns of Newport and Middletown, Rhode Island. Naval Station Newport is home to the Naval War College and the Naval Justice School...
, Rhode Island
Rhode Island
The state of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, more commonly referred to as Rhode Island , is a state in the New England region of the United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area...
, provides training to become a commissioned officer. Attendance is one possible way for civilian college graduates (bachelor's degree or higher) with no military experience to earn a commission as a U.S. Navy officer. Additionally, the Navy also enrolls a significant number of candidates with current or prior enlisted experience in the military. In this way, OCS serves as a path to commissioned status for high-performing enlisted personnel. Alternatives include the Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps
Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps
The Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps program is a college-based, commissioned officer training program of the United States Navy and the United States Marine Corps.-Origins:...
, Officer Development School (ODS), and graduation from the United States Naval Academy
United States Naval Academy
The United States Naval Academy is a four-year coeducational federal service academy located in Annapolis, Maryland, United States...
.
Training
OCS classes are designated by the fiscal year of their graduation (e.g., 28-09 was the twenty-eighth class to graduate in fiscal year 2009; 01-10 was the first class to graduate in fiscal year 2010). Upon completion of the 12-week course the candidate is commissioned an Ensign (O-1) in the United States Navy (formerly in the Naval Reserve, or USNR). In previous years, Naval OCS was a 16-week curriculum.Officer candidates are mustered in at the paygrade of E5 but hold a special title known as Officer Candidate
Officer Candidate
Officer Candidate is a rank in some militaries of the world that is an appointed position while a person is in training to become an officer. More often than not, an Officer Candidate was a civilian who applied to join the military directly as an officer...
. This title is held from the beginning of week 2 through the middle of week 9 when an Officer Candidate completes the "Victory Run" and earns the title Candidate Officer; Officer Candidates are regarded as basic recruits. As training progresses, Officer Candidates obtain more responsibility and are eventually given command authority over other Officer Candidates through use of a series of "positional ranks" denoted with small gold bars worn on the collar (typically referred to as "railroad tracks"). These positional ranks include "Regimental Commander", "Regimental Sub-Commander", "Regimental Adjutant" and other responsibilities. All positional rank assignments are competitively awarded from among the entire regiment. It is considered a significant honor to be selected to serve in any of the top leadership positions while enrolled at OCS. As training progresses over 12 weeks, individuals gradually move from Indoctrination Candidates, or "Indocs," to Officer Candidates, to Candidate Officers, or "Candios." The latter being a position of authority over less senior candidates.
Officer Candidates are assigned to battalions within a single regiment and are either quartered at Nimitz Hall or at King Hall at Naval Station Newport. Over the 12 weeks they are immersed in Leadership, Physical and Military training as well as Academics ranging from Navigation to Shipboard Engineering and Damage Control. Their every action is scrutinized and any shortcoming rigorously corrected. There is a strict Code of Honor that is expected; violators are removed.
AOCS
The Navy previously operated two officer candidate programs, OCS at Newport, Rhode Island and Aviation Officer Candidate School (AOCS) at NAS Pensacola, Florida. AOCS trained prospective Naval AviatorNaval Aviator
A United States Naval Aviator is a qualified pilot in the United States Navy, Marine Corps or Coast Guard.-Naming Conventions:Most Naval Aviators are Unrestricted Line Officers; however, a small number of Limited Duty Officers and Chief Warrant Officers are also trained as Naval Aviators.Until 1981...
s, Naval Flight Officer
Naval Flight Officer
A Naval Flight Officer is an aeronautically designated commissioned officer in the United States Navy or United States Marine Corps that specializes in airborne weapons and sensor systems. NFOs are not pilots per se, but they may perform many "co-pilot" functions, depending on the type of aircraft...
s, Aviation Maintenance Duty Officers, and Air Intelligence Officers, while OCS trained all other Officer communities. The original US Navy OCS in Newport, Rhode Island began operation in 1951 and was closed down in April 1994 when the programs were merged as a single OCS at NAS Pensacola. Subsequently, in 2007 the consolidated Navy OCS curriculum was relocated back to Newport by direction of the Base Realignment and Closure
Base Realignment and Closure
Base Realignment and Closure is a process of the United States federal government directed at the administration and operation of the Armed Forces, used by the United States Department of Defense and Congress to close excess military installations and realign the total asset inventory to reduce...
(BRAC) Commission of 2005
Base Realignment and Closure, 2005
The preliminary 2005 Base Realignment and Closure list was released by the United States Department of Defense on May 13, 2005. It is the fifth Base Realignment and Closure proposal generated since the process was created in 1988. It recommends closing 33 major United States military bases and...
. A difference in class numbering between OCs and AOCS was that AOCS classes were numbered by graduation date in the calendar year vice fiscal (for example, the first glass to graduate in January would be Class 01-YY as opposed to the first calss in the fiscal year (October)).
In AOCS, all basic military training was administered by enlisted drill instructors from the United States Marine Corps
United States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...
. This facet of the training (origin of the slogan "Navy owned, Marine Corps trained") at AOCS in Pensacola was considered a point of pride and mark of distinction by graduates of AOCS that separated themselves from the graduates of OCS in Newport. When the single OCS was established in Pensacola, the program retained both the Marine DIs of AOCS and the US Navy CPOs of Newport. Newport OCS now has both.
OCS
- Jeremy Michael BoordaJeremy Michael BoordaJeremy Michael Boorda was an admiral of the United States Navy and the 25th Chief of Naval Operations . Boorda is the only CNO to have risen to the position from the enlisted ranks.-Early life and education :...
, ADM USN Dec (1962), Surface Warfare Officer; Chief of Naval OperationsChief of Naval OperationsThe Chief of Naval Operations is a statutory office held by a four-star admiral in the United States Navy, and is the most senior uniformed officer assigned to serve in the Department of the Navy. The office is a military adviser and deputy to the Secretary of the Navy...
, 1994-1996 - Vern ClarkVern ClarkAdmiral Vernon E. Clark USN was the Chief of Naval Operations in the United States Navy. He retired 22 July 2005, making his tenure of five years the second-longest serving CNO behind Arleigh Burke. He currently sits on the board of directors of Raytheon and SRI International...
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, 2000-2005 - Michael P. MurphyMichael P. MurphyMichael Patrick Murphy was a United States Navy SEAL posthumously awarded the United States military's highest decoration, the Medal of Honor, for his actions in 2005 during the War in Afghanistan. He was the first person to be awarded the medal for actions in Afghanistan; and the first member of...
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; awarded the Medal of HonorMedal of HonorThe Medal of Honor is the highest military decoration awarded by the United States government. It is bestowed by the President, in the name of Congress, upon members of the United States Armed Forces who distinguish themselves through "conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his or her...
AOCS
- William E. GortneyWilliam E. GortneyWilliam Evans "Bill" Gortney is a vice admiral in the United States Navy. He is the current Director of the Joint Staff. He previously served as Commander of U.S. Naval Forces Central Command/5th Fleet...
, VADM USN (1977), Naval AviatorNaval AviatorA United States Naval Aviator is a qualified pilot in the United States Navy, Marine Corps or Coast Guard.-Naming Conventions:Most Naval Aviators are Unrestricted Line Officers; however, a small number of Limited Duty Officers and Chief Warrant Officers are also trained as Naval Aviators.Until 1981...
; Director of the Joint StaffDirector of the Joint StaffThe Director of the Joint Staff is a three-star officer who assists the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff with the management of the Joint Staff, an organization composed of approximately equal numbers of officers contributed by the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, and Air Force, who have been...
, 2010-Present - Gregory C. JohnsonGregory C. JohnsonGregory Carl "Ray J" Johnson , is a NASA astronaut and a retired captain in the United States Navy who spent his military career in both the Regular United States Navy and the Navy Reserve...
, CAPT USN Ret (1977), Naval AviatorNaval AviatorA United States Naval Aviator is a qualified pilot in the United States Navy, Marine Corps or Coast Guard.-Naming Conventions:Most Naval Aviators are Unrestricted Line Officers; however, a small number of Limited Duty Officers and Chief Warrant Officers are also trained as Naval Aviators.Until 1981...
; AstronautAstronautAn astronaut or cosmonaut is a person trained by a human spaceflight program to command, pilot, or serve as a crew member of a spacecraft.... - Robert L. RasmussenRobert L. Rasmussen-External links:* http://www.rlrasmussen.com...
, CAPT USN Ret (1952), Naval AviatorNaval AviatorA United States Naval Aviator is a qualified pilot in the United States Navy, Marine Corps or Coast Guard.-Naming Conventions:Most Naval Aviators are Unrestricted Line Officers; however, a small number of Limited Duty Officers and Chief Warrant Officers are also trained as Naval Aviators.Until 1981...
; Director, National Museum of Naval AviationNational Museum of Naval AviationThe National Museum of Naval Aviation is a military and aerospace museum located at Naval Air Station Pensacola, Florida. The museum opened in 1962....
; Artist
In fiction
An Officer and a GentlemanAn Officer and a Gentleman
A Officer and a Gentleman is a 1982 American drama film that tells the story of a U.S. Navy aviation officer candidate who comes into conflict with the Marine Corps Gunnery Sergeant who trains him. It was written by Douglas Day Stewart and directed by Taylor Hackford...
(1982) focuses around a main character who is appointed an Aviation Officer Candidate at AOCS, albeit at a fictional naval air station in Washington state
Washington State
Washington State may refer to:* Washington , often referred to as "Washington state" to differentiate it from Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States* Washington State University, a land-grant college in that state- See also :...
, and must deal with personal and social issues to be commissioned as an Ensign.
External links
- Official Site
- NavyOCS.com (OCS Foundation)
- Heath Alvarez's comprehensive OCS website