What U.S. Navy Recruits Really Go Through at Recruit Training Command | Great Lakes

Each year, more than 35,000 civilians arrive at Recruit Training Command in Great Lakes, Illinois, the only boot camp in the United States Navy. Over the next nine weeks, they'll begin a transformation that pushes their limits, reshapes their habits, and prepares them to serve at sea. The moment they step off the bus, recruits are sorted into divisions and handed over to their Recruit Division Commanders, seasoned sailors who drive them through the grueling 18-hour days that define Navy boot camp. Welcome to the United States Navy. For the next eight weeks, you will not do a single thing on your own. I tell you what to do, how to do it, when to do it. Nothing that I ever tell you is a request, an option, or a suggestion. Good order and discipline will be maintained 24-7. Proper military posture will be maintained 24-7. Your default position is the position of attention. Follow along. I will only explain this once. My name is Chief Hospital Corpsman Jamie Kalaw. I'm a Recruit Division Commander here at Recruit Training Command, Great Lakes. Newsflash. You are in boot camp, the United States Navy, the one and only boot camp that exists. We are not Navy recruiters. We are Navy drill instructors. You better come correct. Because we do not put up with laziness, incompetence, and simple tasking. So I pushed seven divisions. And then for my RTP, my Recruit Training period, I worked here at night of arrival. I gladly took on the job. I definitely was stoked to have this job. Because I remember this night when I went through as a recruit. I can actually show you. I believe I was standing like right there when I was a recruit. I knew exactly where I was. Nobody forgets this passageway, this building. And to just have that first impression of the Navy to these recruits, to these young men and women that are coming through here. Making them realize that it's game on. It's no longer back at my recruiter's office. It's time to train and be a United States Navy Sailor. And all that starts right here. Respond! Say something! Yes, Chief. No, Chief. Maybe, Chief. What is it? Yes, Chief. Before training fully begins, recruits endure a demanding series of processing day events. An initial phone call home. Administrative and pay setup. Medical and dental screenings. Strict haircuts. Uniform issue. And their very first fitness test. They're briefed on the Uniform Code of Military Justice, the Montgomery GI Bill. And the expectations that define life in the Navy. For many, the moment of truth on arrival night becomes their first real test of honesty and commitment. A Recruit Division Commander's Day begins long before their recruits even open their eyes. Many RDCs are up by 2.30 in the morning. Driving to Recruit Training Command in the dark. Hours ahead of the action. My name is Pedro Sabati. I'm a Recruit Division Commander here at Recruit Training Command. I went through boot camp February 23, 2011. I couldn't march. I was good at PT, but my RDCs, they would always yell at me a lot for not being able to march. Waking up early in the morning, it's the first thing that's on my mind. Did my stopwatch make those correct deck log entries before I walked in the compartment? You, get over here. I'm talking to you, stopwatch. Yes, Petty Officer. Go behind her. Read this. Read it. Excuse me. And try it again. Aye, Petty Officer. Good afternoon, Petty Officer. Senior Recruit Thomas, Division 231. Security watch. Awaiting further instructions. Petty Officer! Look, does it say here, say, awaiting further instructions? No, Petty Officer. Because you're not looking, man. Look! Aye, Petty Officer. Try it. Read it and look. Aye, Petty Officer. Good afternoon, Petty Officer. Senior Recruit Thomas, Division 231. Security watch. Standing by for further instructions. Petty Officer! Who is the Chief of Naval Operations? Their days are long and demanding, often stretching from early mornings through late nights as they oversee physical training, inspections, classroom instruction, and the daily rhythm of recruit life. Each division is led by a team of three Recruit Division Commanders. At the top is the lead, usually a Chief Petty Officer or a seasoned First Class. Supporting them are two additional RDCs, often Second Class or another First Class. Come on, you have to march! Recruit, march! Pick your feet up! You're not special! Together, they form the core leadership that shapes civilian recruits into United States Sailors, enforcing Navy standards while mentoring, correcting, and preparing each recruit for the fleet. Kind of surreal, being in charge of 88 recruits. You don't know the feeling until you're in front of 88 recruits and you're leading them to a goal. Staying energetic throughout the whole day takes mind power. You have to keep telling yourself that you're doing it to motivate recruits and you're motivating other people. Sometimes you pull that motivation from the recruits. Sometimes you have to find it within the partners that you're pushing with and sometimes you just gotta find that inner drive. The hard days. The hard days are really hard. The days where you work an 18-hour day, you come in at 04 and you leave at 2200 and then you're back in the next day at 0400. And you do that for a week, a week at a time and it starts to suck because this job is very demanding. I've been at work for 16 hours. That's an easy day. 16 hours. Go home, probably get a bite to eat and get a couple hours of sleep. Be back here at 05. Hey, did you even make this rack? Recruits sleep in open bay birthing compartments inside their training ship buildings. Three minutes to strip your racks where each division lives side by side in tightly organized rows of metal racks and lockers. Every morning, they make their beds to exact Navy standards. Sheets pulled tight, corners sharply folded and gear laid out with precision for inspection. This birthing area becomes their home for the next nine weeks and keeping it spotless is a daily requirement enforced by their recruit division commanders. Harpox, do you hydrate? Something else, right? Yes, chief. But you guys don't want to do that. You want to be on your own program. You don't want to listen. What we just did ITE for was because they can't pay attention to detail, everything has a place and a way of folding it. So now we're going to go through step by step, fold everything in the lock department again and get the lock department set up. Recruits are held to strict standards of cleanliness inside their birthing compartments where maintaining hygiene becomes a daily part of Navy discipline. These routines aren't just about appearance. They reinforce attention to detail, accountability and the habits expected of sailors living and working in tight quarters at sea. Personal hygiene is just as important with recruits required to shower, shave and keep their uniforms and gear in regulation condition. During the first week of training, recruits undergo their third class swim qualification, a mandatory water survival test for every future sailor. Here they learn the fundamentals of staying alive at sea, from lifeboat organization and survival kit basics to executing an abandoned ship scenario under pressure. 80 people in a division will come in for a one-one day and usually we'll get about probably like 15 of those that will say that they can't swim. So then they'll get like kind of swim lessons there. So roughly about each division, you'll have from like five to 10 that won't be able to do the swim. One of the big factors is like where you grew up. So a lot of like the inner cities don't have swimming pools. So kids that are coming from like the inner cities never really get that experience on swimming. The qualification itself requires recruits to swim 50 yards, maintain a five minute prone float and demonstrate clothing inflation all without a personal flotation device. The course is led by certified water survival instructors trained in rescue techniques, lifeguarding and CPR. So what I need you guys to do, you step from that tower. At Recruit Training Command, no one graduates without earning this qualification. You guys need to get pumped up about this. One, you know, one-one day. I failed a swim test today. Okay. And I don't know what they must say. Okay, so you were swimming on your face instead of trying to float on your back. Yeah, I was trying to swim because I know I can swim. Okay. You got off the bridge. That's the hardest part, getting that jump. Most people don't even want to. Most people don't want to do that. So if you can get into, oh, that happens every day. We'll have, especially now that we've turned up the heat, we started being a little bit more intense out there on the deck. And so we're probably going to see that at least once a day for the next couple of days or a couple of weeks. During week two, recruits dive into the foundation of Navy knowledge, learning the service's ships, aircraft, history and the uniform code of military justice. It'll be up to you to learn to transport that cash. Try to secure it, but not too tight. I said the upper half of the body is heavier, right? So you and you grab this black strap right here in the back. All right. Throughout their careers, sailors will operate across a wide range of naval platforms, each shaped by decades of shifting warfare and evolving doctrine. Since the Navy's establishment on October 13th, 1775, technology, personnel and operations have transformed dramatically. Yet its customs, traditions and heritage remain central to its identity. This week also includes dental availability, where recruits receive their initial dental exam. Here, staff assess and address any urgent dental needs to ensure every recruit enters training with the health and readiness required of a future sailor. In week three, recruits shift their focus to two core elements of Navy life, sexual assault prevention and response training and the fundamentals of seamanship. Basic seamanship skills, from line handling to shipboard watch standing and sea and anchor detail, form the backbone of operating safely aboard a vessel. Recruits learn and practice these techniques on the USS Marline Spike, a full-scale simulator designed to mimic the environment of a Navy ship. They also receive instruction on the Navy's sexual assault prevention and response program, which emphasizes prevention, advocacy and accountability while fostering a fleet culture that rejects sexual assault in any form. At Recruit Training Command, meals are served in large, organized galley facilities where thousands of recruits cycle through each day. The food is designed for performance. Balanced portions of protein, vegetables and carbohydrates that support the intense physical demands of boot camp. Recruits eat quickly, with strict time limits and little conversation. Following a structured flow through the chow line and designated seating. In week four, recruits begin damage control training. One of the most critical skill sets for any sailor at sea. They're introduced to the equipment and procedures used to maintain ship stability, preserve watertight integrity, fight fires and respond to chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear threats. Recruits study the chemistry behind different classes of fires, learn to operate breathing devices and face the confidence chamber where they put those skills to the test under controlled conditions. Inside, instructors expose recruits to CS gas, a potent irritant used to simulate a chemical threat. Recruits must correctly don their masks, maintain their seal under stress, and follow every step of the procedure with precision. Then, in the final phase, they're ordered to break the seal or remove the mask entirely. Experiencing the full effects of the gas as their eyes burn and breathing becomes difficult. It's an unforgettable lesson that reinforces two things. Their equipment works when used properly and panic has no place aboard a Navy ship. This week also includes the Recruit Division Commander Assessment, a physical readiness check that measures planks, push-ups and a timed 1.5 mile run. The results give both recruits and their RDCs a clear snapshot of their fitness level and what it will take to improve as training intensifies. You don't quit on us, we won't quit on you. You got to come in and give us 100% every day. Whatever it is we're training, whatever it is we're doing, just know we're doing it for a reason, not just to tell you to do it. So I found a recruit here. She has a headband around her arm. This is in accordance with regulations, especially after this recruit just took test one. So I'm about to give her some IT motivational tool so she knows not to do this again. You know what, you know why I'm about to give you some motivation? Why? After you just took test one twice, you are a failure, we went over this, you do not wear it unless it is a what? Religious what? So you knew this was wrong. So I'm strict on my recruits because I don't want them to lose military band. One, two, three. One. Move fast. One, two, three. Two. One, two, three. Let's go. Down. Up. Down. Up. Get your body alignment straight. That's your last one. You touch the deck again, you will feel IT. I will document your heart rate. You understand that. Go down. Up. Get your hips straight. Last warning about body alignment. You will feel alone due to body alignment. Down. Feet shoulder width apart. Don't stop. You know, if I would not have caught in this and if you'd have got caught walking out on the street, so FQ8 would have came in here. The division would have got a demerit ---- because of you. So you're not a team player. I apologize. The team needs each other to graduate. People make mistakes. Today you made one of those mistakes. From here on out, this should be a training opportunity for you to explain to anybody, regardless of gender. This is not authorized. We're human. We make mistakes. This is a stupid mistake. And it should never happen again. I don't want it to happen again. And then they're like family towards the end because you build a bond. You got them for eight weeks, eight to nine weeks. So you can't possibly, any RDC owner is basically telling me over this amount of time that these recruits become family to you because they got your back just like you got theirs. In week five, recruits take on one of the most critical phases of their training, weapons handling and small arms instruction. This is where they learn the fundamentals of marksmanship, the characteristics of the Navy service pistol and the safety protocols that govern every moment on a range. You know, it was kind of interesting to come back to this command and drive onto this base and not be worried about getting yelled at at everything I'm going to be doing. So that was interesting that I can walk down the sidewalk, whichever way I want. And it makes it easier. It's kind of neat to see the recruits that are coming in and just remembering that you were in their spot just a few years ago and that you can kind of help them. If you remember your bootcamp experience, you can remember what you didn't like about it and maybe take that and teach them things you wish that you had learned. So I'm not a recruit division commander. I'm not here to yell and scream on any little thing that they do wrong. I don't know a lot of what the RDCs are supposed to do or the little nuances to their jobs. When they come here to live fire, though, and we train them, as soon as they step through the doors, we try and vision them as students, not recruits. So we try and teach them, we keep them to a high standard, but we also try and keep it a somewhat relaxed environment so that they can learn better and not hurt themselves or somebody else. Who's a Game of Thrones fan? All right, don't mess this up. I'll give you spoilers. Well, when they go out to the fleet, a lot of the recruits are going to be expected to stand a watch and a lot of those watches are going to be armed. Or they could possibly go to a temporary duty with a security force and they're going to be armed there as well. So they're joining the armed forces. They need to learn the basics of at least a nine millimeter and how to use it, how to employ it. But yeah, I would say the majority of them fail the first time and then they come back through, we'll shoot them a second time. A lot of them do pretty well. Sometimes we'll have a recruit go from failing to almost getting an expert. So it just really depends. Hey, Douglas, sit in the back. You failed. From clearing barrel procedures to the standards of the Navy handgun qualification course, recruits spend hours inside the small arms trainer, a controlled environment where they build confidence and muscle memory before ever firing a live round. The week also includes drill inspections where recruits put their skills to the test under the same rules and discipline expected throughout the fleet. They're evaluated on their precision in executing drill formations and commands, all tailored specifically for the pass-in review ceremony. By week six, recruits move into one of the Navy's most critical skill sets, damage control. Here, every future sailor is expected to protect the ship and their shipmates from fire, flooding, smoke, and even chemical threats. This phase is entirely hands-on, pushing recruits through realistic fire team scenarios that test how well they can respond under pressure. By week seven, recruits face two major milestones, their firefighting assessment and their final personnel inspection. It's reinforced through Warrior Toughness, a holistic program that sharpens emotional, mental, and spiritual performance designed to push every recruit toward peak operational readiness. So right now, I am on what we call RTP, which is Recruit Training Period. It's the year in between your two push periods. I currently work at Fleet Quality Assurance, or FQA. We go out and we assess the recruits. We do personnel inspections. We do drill inspections. We go into compartments for compartment readiness. Hey, what are you doing? Why are you running in a row? Why are you not on a sidewalk? Yeah, you who's staring at me in the middle of the parking lot. What are you doing? Why are you in the middle of the street? Get over here now. Why would you walk into a parking lot? When do you ever walk in a parking lot as a recruit? When there's a part, there's a sidewalk right in front of you. Does that make any sense? No, Petty Officer. Division 232 is going to take a little trip. In Week 8, recruits enter their most demanding phase yet, the capstone events, including the Navy's official Physical Fitness Assessment and Battle Stations. Battle Stations 21 is where recruits face the ultimate test of everything they've learned. The moment they step into the simulator, they're met with thick acrid smoke that fills the compartment, cutting visibility to inches and tightening the tension with every breath. Blinding lights pulse without warning, syncing with the chaotic soundtrack of a ship in distress. It's a sensory overload designed to rattle even the most confident recruits after a long night of physical exhaustion and mental strain. Out of the darkness comes a sharp, urgent command. His life is in your hands. Move. It's a reminder that every scenario inside this 12-hour gauntlet is built to mirror the pressure of real emergencies at sea. Recruits cycle through 17 high-stakes scenarios, some inspired by real incidents that tested the Navy in the past. Each event begins with a short briefing, offering just enough information to succeed if recruits were paying attention. But once it starts, the environment shifts instantly. Heat, noise, smoke, and controlled chaos replace the calm briefing room, challenging recruits to think clearly under intense stress. The entire simulation takes place aboard a massive, two-thirds scale replica of a destroyer, complete with thousands of components pulled from real ships. Special effects systems create flooding compartments, raging fires, and collapsing spaces as recruits demonstrate everything from damage control and firefighting to medical response and shipboard communication. Battle Stations 21 isn't just a test of skill. It's a test of character. The goal is simple. Reveal how recruits perform when nothing goes according to plan. Because in the fleet, the difference between hesitation and action can define the outcome of a mission. And only those who can adapt, lead, and stay composed under pressure earn the right to join the Navy. During Week 9, recruits finally reach the moment they've been working toward graduation. It all happens at the Pass and Review Ceremony, one of the Navy's most formal and time-honored traditions. Here, the newest sailors are recognized for their discipline, their endurance, and the months of effort that brought them to this point. Dressed in their formal uniforms, they step off base for the first time, no longer recruits, but United States sailors. Out in the community, they serve as the Navy's ambassadors, a visible reminder of the commitment they've made and the values they now represent. If you're enjoying the content, make sure to hit that subscribe button so you don't miss any future videos.