Gone are the days when the skills of women lined up for combat sell short. This time, the U.S. Marines are in dire need of their skills and are doubling efforts to recruit women, even looking over high school sports teams to hire female athletes and join the Marines.
Connecticut Post reports that only about seven to eight percent are women in the U.S. Corps, the lowest female composition in all military units. Marine Commandant Gen. Robert Neller wants to increase the number of women soldiers by ten percent and already, more combat jobs are open and waiting to be filled up by skilled women.
Major General Paul Kennedy who is in charge of recruitment has been searching rigorously for women to join onboard. He's going all out by targeting e-mails to high school girls, rebranding advertisements that will now show female Marines on the battlefield, and meeting coaches and female athletes around U.S..
The head himself has gone to the Women's Basketball Coaches Association conference and plans to grace wrestling and sports events for the rest of 2016. He is also addressing the worries of most women that are holding them back from joining the Marines--including sexual harassment, sexual assault, few career options, financial instability and an unmarried life (via Connecticut Post).
The strategy for now of Kennedy is to talk to parents and coaches and convince them of their girl's safety and the fair treatment that may be expected from the U.S. Marines. Good news is that around 3,100 women are already set to join boot camp this year or about 8.7 percent of the annual recruits.
As per Military.com, a boot camp will last for ten weeks and has three phases in store for the women who signed up. Phase One is rigorous physical training, martial arts and classes on Marine Corps history and first aid. Phase Two is enhancing close combat skills and master Marksmanship Training. Phase Three is swim qualifications, defensive driving course, exams about classes taken, physical training, drill and inspections.
According to USMC.net, the opportunities for male and female in the Marine Corps are now equal. Both also receive the same salary and are given opportunities to fill up military occupational specialties (MOS). The available jobs for women include high tech jobs, aviation, medical fields, and other highly stressful and demanding career positions.
What can be done to change women's thoughts on joining a male-dominated field such as the military? In your opinion, are high school students already ready to join the Marines? Comment below your thoughts and follow Parent Herald for more news and updates.
