'The Crucible' (Marine Boot Camp)

Factual Questions
1

Near the end of marine boot camp (at week 10 of 12), recruits have to pass The Crucible.

Two quesions please:

  1. About what percent of recruits fail it?
  2. What happens to failed recruits (do they start back at week one or maybe some other already completed week, or something else)?

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2

A former Marine officer who commanded a basic training company gives a look here

Almost nobody fails. Part of that’s because they separate or recycle (back to the start of the training phase before the crucible not the beginning) those that look like they won’t. If you get hurt early they recycle you back to the start of the phase. If you get hurt on day 2+ they generally let you finish doing as much as you can. If you don’t quit and don’t get hurt early, missing most of the event, they give you a go.

It’s more an event you have to go through rather than pass.

3

IANA Marine, but I always got the impression that stuff like the Crucible was more something for you as a recruit to pass and prove to yourself that you’re Marine material, not some sort of weedout kind of thing.

Otherwise they’d put it at the beginning, not the end of boot camp, so that they wouldn’t have to bother with the people who wouldn’t pass.

4

Paging our local Marine, @Bullitt !

5

Depends on when they went through. From what I can see it started in 1996.

6

When I did basic training the Crucible was not yet part of it, but I can tell you that my company graduated less than half of the number we started with. That included several who came from other companies, having been held back for one reason or another. I wonder if that rate holds currently. I know standards have been lowered. I wonder if the quality of recruits is lower too.

7

Standards of what? Recruitment standards fluctuate constantly to keep pace with shortfalls then go back up when quotas are met. It makes the news when they need to fill a lot of slots like during “The Surge” but in reality recruitment standards can change month by month. For instance the requirement to have a high school diploma changed multiple times while I was on active duty. It’s possible to get a waiver for certain requirements but the likelihood of being approved changes greatly depending on what they need at the moment.

8

The Crucible started a year or so after I went through boot camp. We gave a whole lot of shit to “Crucible Marines” who made a big deal of it.

It definitely is more about a culminating event for the Marine than it is a test of some sort or means to eliminate recruits.

I didn’t think the concept would stick around, but a friend’s son just graduated and they’re still doing it.

9

The Physical Fitness test, specifically, which is required to graduate from Basic. Fewer pull-ups, longer time in 3 mile run.

10

I went through boot camp in 1980 so, long before that crucible thing. I got out in 1993, just before they started it.

My platoon in boot camp dropped about 5, so not quite 10%. Nowhere near half, so that must vary based on several factors including what @Loach mentions.

11

Do you have an example? They made it harder, if anything, specifically banning “kipping” pullips on around 1998. And time limit for the run has been 28 minutes. And I’m pretty sure they changed it so women ran 3 miles instead of 1.5.

Then they added the combat fitness test (I think that’s what it’s called?) on top.

ETA my platoon dropped maybe 5-8.