Military Schools » Boot camps » Boot Camp Overview

Boot Camp Overview

Training is a benefit of service that starts the day you enlist. In fact, you may spend most of your first year in training - and that's just the beginning. In the military you will be given continuous training and opportunities to learn new skills throughout your career.

In the Military Schools: Basic Training

Recruit Basic Training, also referred to as "Boot Camp," is 6 to 13 weeks of extremely intense military training which, depending on the Service Branch, is conducted at one of the several Military Training Centers throughout the U.S., from California to New Jersey.

If you have the courage to succeed, "Boot Camp" will help you develop into a mature, highly disciplined, and fully capable servicemember. During this time, Drill Instructors (DI) will teach you how to care for yourself and others, function as a member of a team and to achieve success together.

The Drill Instructor is responsible for ensuring recruits are fully prepared to meet the everyday challenges, from the dangers of the battlefield to the rigors of life at sea.

Recruit Training includes first aid, water survival skills, marksmanship, tactics and other related topics.

Above all, remember these tips about Basic Training:

Keep a good attitude. Remember, EVERYONE gets chewed out in boot camp, even when they have done well. It won't be this way after you graduate Basic.
Never, ever, make excuses. Unless you are asked to explain yourself, explanations are seen as excuses, so just say "Yes, sir" and take the chewing out.
Do exactly what you're told to do, when you're told to do it, and how you're told to do it. Don't be inventive.