quote:

Originally posted by Marine__Bugler:
In my first post I mentioned that I have the desire to become a drill instructor. I want to make Marines. I'm not sure where this dream came from (perhaps in boot camp... I was amazed by my DIs) but it's something I seriously have my heart set on doing.

In my unit we get promoted a little bit faster than the rest of the Marine Corps - it was decided a few years back by the Commandant because we are a specialty unit. I told you that to tell you this. I will be eligible to pick up Sergeant this coming April. For those of you that don't know you can submit your drill field package if you are a Cpl with at least two years time in grade and above. Well, in my MOS I will won't ever reach the two year mark as a Cpl *knocks on wood*. Soooo I have to wait until I pick up Sergeant to put in my package. In reality I'll probably wait until September (I hit my 3 year mark). I think that's a good idea.

Now that I've rambled and completely confused anyone reading this I'll move on...

I have a first class PFT(265) but I'd like to get my score up above 285. I just have to take time off my run - everything else is maxed out.
I also this I should work on my upper body strength before I go.

Any other suggestions as far as PT goes? As far as the PFT goes, I think you are doing well. Just keep running. Your PFT may be good right now, but the PT in DI school will still kick your butt. It did mine. That being said, do more upper body workouts. During PT the females do pull-ups just like the males, no flexed-arm hang, that is reserved for the PFT only. No matter what we did for PT that morning though, we always had to hit the playground in the back of the school that consists of pull-ups, rope climb, arm walk bars and crunches. And that was AFTER PT was over.

Any suggestions on reading material? If you wanna get ahead you can read "Court Martial at Parris Island: The Ribbon Creek Incident" by John C. Stevens. It was standard reading material when I went and I think it still is. Other than that, you have to study the drill teachbacks that they give you. Don't bother studying drill on your own. It's completely different down there than what you would learn in the fleet. I studied a little of it before I went and it was a complete waste of my time. They have their own way of doing it and believe me, when you leave DI School you will know every drill movement ever created front, backwards, sideways, and inside out. Then you just have to stand in front of your instructor and yell them. I remember being in DI School in August and yelling/demonstrating/performing Open Ranks one day (you have to have mastered them all before graduation). He always made us stand far away from him to make us yell louder. The sun was beating down, sweat was pouring down my face, and at one point I got lightheaded. Then they take you back into the classroom where the AC is blasting. Not fun. A soaking wet uniform turns cold after a few minutes. Heheheeh

Is it really just like boot camp all over again just with different information? Yes and no. You are treated like you are in boot camp and it can be hard getting yelled at as a Sgt by a SSgt as if you were a recruit. You are learning completely different things. You are learning how to care for recruits. Rules, regulations, SOP, rights of recruits, drill, sword manual, PT, uniform inspections almost everyday, and yes, field day. Every Thursday night until the entire school was cleaned, no matter how long it takes. You march back and forth to the school everyday either as a platoon or in squads. Be sure to save up a lot of money before you go because you'll be hitting up cash sales quite often. If an instructor tells you you need a new cover, don't even try and get by with using it again, you gotta go buy a new one. Also, if you haven't bought Creighton shirts yet, do so. You will get laughed right out of DI School with those paper shirts we get issued in boot camp.

I also want to get to the pistol range - I know that'll make my package look better. I just recently got my gray belt for MCMAP and would like to get my green belt before I apply as well. Anything else that may help beef it up? Playing in the drum corps there's not much I can do to compare to other Marines that will send in their packages.If these are goals of yours, then that is fine, but they aren't necessary. Yes, it will make you look better. If you have your green belt by the time you go, I can almost guarantee you you will get tagged to be a Close Combat Instructor during your quota time. During DI School I got tagged to go to the school to be an instructor along with another female. Some others got tagged to go to Swim School to be instructors there. Once you complete these schools, then you start training platoons like everyone else you graduated with. You'll only be a month behind them, though. Others just go straight to training platoons. We passed the course and when it came time for us to go on quota, they sent us elsewhere b/c they already had two females. All that getting beat up for nothing.....haeheheheeh.

I'm really just looking to gather as much information as I can.

Thanks!

quote:

Originally posted by TazDevil3:
I see you never past up an opportunity to give advice on being a DI. LOL!!! Nice to see young Marines get good advice from those who actually did it.

Tazdevil

quote:

Originally posted by Phadzia:
OK. Got my thoughts together a little now. I have so many questions, but I don't know how to organize them so others can understand them. I hope this doesn't come out a big mess, but here goes:

1. How do they teach you how to yell?
I have a really loud voice that carries and (kinda weird) I was a cheerleader for 15 years into the college level so I know how to make my voice carry without going horse. Will they make me SCREAM? Because once i start scratching up my laranyx my voice stays horse for months and I'm never able to get back to where I was, especially if I have to keep yelling, which I will have to do obviously. They don't teach you to yell. Your voice gets very strong in DI School because you have to yell the teachbacks everyday. The teachbacks are drill movements that you learn and have to demonstrate like I mentioned above. Don't worry, your voice will get used to yelling all the time when you start training platoons. It will be hard to yell and talk the first couple of days after picking up a platoon, but your throat heals and gets stronger after that. As for teaching you how to yell at recruits, well, it just seems to come naturally. You will see other DI's whom you can tell have a hard time yelling at recruits and making it sound realistic. Believe it or not, they really pi$$ you off and yelling at them over every little thing just seems to come naturally.

2. How do you "get in trouble" as a DI?
This is just me being nosy I guess, but there are obvious things such as domestic violence and other legal problems. What other things are you always trying to steer clear of?In terms of training recruits or in terms of your personal life? While training recruits, it goes without saying that you want to follow the SOP (standard operating procedures) as closely as possible. At Parris Island, perception IS reality whether you like it or not. You are pretty much guilty until proven innocent, when it comes to the care of recruits. Pretty much everyone gets in trouble as a DI sooner or later. Don't let it bother you. Just keep training them. As far as your personal life, well, there really isn't much time for one until or unless you go on quota. Then it's pretty much the same rules as in the fleet: don't get a DUI, etc.....

3. Can you give a basic timeline for DI School, kind of like the recruits get for thier training?
I know it's somewhat based off of what the recuits go through and I read the welcome aboard packet that describes a typical day, but I'm wondering when is swim qual, range, drill inspection, etc., in relation to each other (if that makes any sense). Wow...I'm sure it's changed, but I'll try. PT is 3 to 4 times a week, not counting the training humps. You don't go to the range, but there is an armory in the DI School for your weapon that you will use to drill with. Basically everyday is just PT, classes, drill, more classes, inspections, and more classes. You do do swim qual, but I forget which week that was. It's only for one day, though. A couple of weeks before graduation, you will start to do a lot of field training. You will go through the gas chamber again and do the crucible again. Then the last 2 weeks of school, you get to actually go out and observe platoons with actual DI's, first for only 2 days and it's only for about 6 hours each. Then you do, I think, a 3 or 4 day observation where you show up before the recruits have reveille and you don't leave until after they hit the rack. If the platoon you are observing happens to be at the crucible, then you stay at the crucible overnight with them. That happened to me. On my first observation I was with a platoon that was on TD 30 or something. My second one, they were at the crucible, so I ended up doing the crucible with them after having done it in DI School. During your observations your Drill Instructor Instructors are walking around and observing you train recruits. During the second observation, you are allowed to yell at and teach recruits but only if the Series Gunnery Sergeant and the SDI say it's okay. It's their platoon, remember. Also, during these observations, you don't get to wear the "smokey bear" or a belt. So, the recruits know you aren't a DI. Kinda sucks, but that's the way it is.

4. Where do single Drill Instrctors live once they are done with DI School? Do they have barracks? Or do they have to live in town?Both. There are barracks for DI's just like the permanent personnel. Or you can live out in town. Most single DI's like living on base considering the amount of hours you work. I liked living out in town and getting away from the island and such. Beaufort is a beautiful city.

5. What's the wash-out rate? Are there many people who get dropped from the class? If so, what's the main reason? We dropped about 6 people from my class. I remember that one failed the Mental Health Unit screening that we do when we first get there. One was because he straight up said he didn't want to be there = idiot. The others were from getting injured. But the injured ones can come back to the next class. I remember one of them that got dropped from our class ended up in the class right behind us. Like anything, if you try your best, someone's gonna try and help you make it.

6. If you could go back and give yourself advice, what would you say? Hmmmmm........I think I would tell myself to just let it all go when it's done and over with. I remember holding grudges for things that were no longer relevant and that were out of my control while training platoons. I think TazDevil knows what I'm talking about. You can only do so much. Is it gonna be enough for those in charge of you? No. But you can't change that. Just find a way around it.

I have more, but I think that's enough for now :-)

quote:

Originally posted by OSPF_0311:
And Domini if you have any more DI stores, that would be cool too

quote:

Originally posted by Phadzia:
Thank you ladies for all the great info!

I have a couple more questions:

How long did it take for your package to get approved and for you to get a school seat? I would like to submit my package now, but I want to go to the July class if I can since I'm scheduled for Sgt's course in April and I REALLY want to go to that. Unfortunately that is also the next DI class pickup as well. I'm hoping by submitting early I can get a sure seat in the July class.... Don't know how it all works out. Well, here is how it worked for me: I actually had orders to Recruiting School. When the HRST came to Japan to interview and screen us all, I told the Major who was interviewing me that I didn't want to be a Recruiter (he asked me so I told him), and that I wanted to be a DI. I basically got lucky. They were in need of female DI's. My orders were cancelled and I had orders to DI School within 60 days. That was in April. I was in DI School by July.

Were you constantly tired? Yes, but it's something that you get used to. You'd be surprised how much you can get used to going without sleep. Plus, you are in pretty good shape. That helps. You have to try and keep yourself healthy as a DI, or the hours and work will kill you. I took vitamins all the time.

What time do DI's hit the rack? I know as a recruit I saw the light on in the hut well past lights out. You hit the rack when all of your paperwork is done (this includes weapons counts, recruit counts, recruits dropped/added that day, recruit evaluations, adding or deleting information on each recruit in their record book, etc...), when all the plans for the next day are prepared for, when all the sick call chits are filed and the new ones for the next day are written out and recorded, when all the vehicles are reserved, etc....It's also important, IMO, to check on the recruits throughout the night. I always went back out into the squadbay while taking breaks from doing my paperwork after they were in the rack. That's how I caught the recruit fixing her hair and scared the be-jezus out of her (and several others along the way, you'll have them in every platoon). Then you get up early in the morning before reveille and go out again. Then again after you get dressed. Then you wake them up.

How do rifle qual, gas chamber, pft, cft, etc. work while you're there?We do our PFT's, rifle qual, etc....on outpost or on quota. Outpost is the time between picking up platoons. You can have up to 4 weeks between picking up platoons and have as little as 1 day. Sometimes we graduated a platoon on Friday and picked up a new platoon the very next morning. Other times we would graduate them and not have our next platoon come in for 2 or 3 weeks. In those cases, you do all necessary training on your time off. For example, if we had 3 weeks off before our next platoon, we would all take "basket leave" (no work, but technically no leave either) for about a week and a half. I used to sleep about 12 hours a day on these days....ahhhh, it was Heaven. After that we would all report back for "normal" work days from about 7 to 4 or something. We would do any training that needed done, PT together as a team, fix the squadbay to get ready for the next cycle, run our PFT's, do anything that needs done.

How do you manage not having much personal time? You get used to it. One thing that DI School/DI Tour will instill in you is time management. I swear if I had a two hour break in my day I could pick-up/drop-off some dry cleaning, drive home, clean my house, wash my car, iron some uniforms, grab some food, take a short nap, work a small puzzle (ok not really, but you get the point), and then be back at work. You get so used to manipulating the time in your day to your advantage, that it just becomes second nature.

Also, after training about 4 platoons you go on what is called quota. I mentioned it earlier, but this is part of the transition from when the tour of a DI went from 2 years to three years (in 1997 or 1998 I believe). Now, after running about 4 platoons, you go on quota somewhere on the island. You can be a swim instructor (if you went to swim school after DI School), a close combat instructor (again, only if you went to the school after DI School), you might go to Receiving and be a Receiving hat, MRP, PCP, RSP, BMP, you might go to the 4th Battalion S-1 or S-3, or you may work in the Company Office. Either way, it's a job that offers sort of normal hours and a break from training platoons. This quota lasts for a year, then you go back and train platoons until your tour ends.

Your time is valuable as a DI. How valuable? Well, I once played a joke on a fellow DI that almost ended up in a fight.

I was a DI at MRP/PCP for 6 months on quota when I got moved to BMP for my last 6 months of quota (Basic Marine Platoon - recruits (male and female) who graduate while injured come back to the island to heal until they are well enough to go to MCT. They are Marines, they are just injured and PI won't let any recruit go to MCT injured. They make them come back and heal first.) Anyway, we had this Marine check in who, I swear to God, looked 14. The first thing I said was, "Do you have any really wrinkled cammies in your seabag with no name tapes?" Of course he did, so we had him put them on and had him pretend he was with some local high school's ROTC visiting the island and stuff (we always had groups of them coming to the island and DI's who are on quota often get tagged to do what is called an "escort"). So, when the DI came in I told him, "Hey, the Captain said you have to escort this cadet around the island for an escort today. His group leaves at 1500." The "cadet" was sitting in front of my desk looking scared. We gave him some made up rank like First Sergeant Corporal Cadet or something like that and told him to ask a bunch of questions while the DI was taking him around and to make sure he didn't seem like he knew too much about Recruit Training. The DI was pizzed when he found out he had to do the escort (we all pretty much hated doing escorts - I did my fair share of them too). He was planning on leaving early that day to get some well needed time off. So, this DI takes this "cadet" around the island, shows him the crucible, the confidence course, platoons drilling, even pays for him to get a haircut! OMG! Hahahaah! When he got back and we told the "cadet" that formation was at 1600 and to unpack his gear in the squadbay, that DI was FUMING!! OMG, I thought there was gonna be a fight up in that place! Hahaah! He was yelling about how he had all kinds of stuff to get done that day, how he could've spent more time with his wife, etc....It was funny the next day, just not then. If he hadn't been such a good friend, I wouldn't have done that....heheehehehe. We ended up training platoons that tracked together for 6 months after that and we were still laughing about it. He kept saying, "I can't believe I paid for a haircut for that kid." Hehehehehe


I'm so excited about all this! I know it'll be hard work, but I really don't think I can say I've had a "full" life if I don't at least try to be a D.I. That's how much it means to me.

I really care about the Corps and the quality of the young Marines in it. I try to set an example to all junior Marines I come in contact with and this is the ultimate guidance.

Okay, done being all SAPPY and shyt