Marine Scout snipers are among the deadliest warfighters in the world. They serve a variety
of purposes and often far away from friendly units that could accidentally blow their cover or alert
enemies. Scout snipers often work in pairs with one actually pulling the trigger while the other
partner spots and collects vital data. They can be employed in multiple roles on the battlefield.
The most common one that people might think comes to mind would be overwatch. That is when snipers
provide top cover to advancing infantry units to identify major threats like machine gunners
or other snipers. Taking these dangerous units out enables the infantry to move forward safely.
Snipers are more commonly given reconnaissance missions where they must go deep into enemy
territory simply to observe and take notes of enemy movements and positions.
Lastly, and the most dangerous mission, is when snipers perform surgical strikes on selected
high-value targets. A high-value target could be a top officer, terrorist leader, bomb maker,
or any number of individuals who might have a lot of security around them. Heightened security
measures would make conducting a regular attack risky and if they are surrounded by civilians it
would avoid unnecessary suffering. A scout sniper must be able to get in close enough, undetected,
to make an accurate shot then slip away all while being hunted by the enemy.
Because of these incredibly dangerous mission sets, Marine Scout snipers only choose a select
handful of people to ensure the best Marines are put in these kinds of harrowing situations.
The process for a Marine Scout sniper starts all the same for thousands of eager recruits
every year: enlisting in the Marine Corps. While there are certainly many hurdles that go into just
joining the military, the basic principles of being physically and medically fit,
a clean criminal record, and the ability to pass a drug test is standard for entry.
Another initial hurdle is doing well on the ASVAB (pronounced as-vab) exam.
The ASVAB or Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery is a common exam given by all the armed
forces to see what areas you are naturally good at. To become a Marine Scout sniper,
as of right now, you must become an infantryman first. Contrary to popular belief it is rather
difficult to obtain an infantry contract since the competition is fierce meaning that those
interested need to score well above the minimum requirement to be competitive.
So after studying well for the ASVAB, staying in shape, and keeping your nose clean, you head off
to boot camp. Marine Corps boot camp is no joke and is designed to break you down mentally and
physically only to rebuild you as a member of the world’s greatest Marine Corps. While at boot camp,
it is best to learn every bit of knowledge from the Drill Instructors as possible,
especially for marksmanship, since this will form the foundation for your Marine Corps career. One
of the minimum requirements to even attend Scout Sniper school is to shoot at an expert level.
The Marine Corps marksmanship test is an annual event that recruits must first pass in boot camp.
Marines fire a total of fifty rounds at targets at 200, 300, and 500 meters away from the standing,
kneeling, sitting, and prone positions. The test is scored between 250 to 350 points
with three different levels. Those wanting to be a Scout Sniper need to get a score of at least
305 to obtain the Expert level of marksmanship. After completing boot camp, infantry Marines must
now complete one of the two School of Infantry Courses. The School of Infantry course is one
of the most punishing courses that any enlisted Marine can go through. Over the course of 59 days,
newly-minted Marines will build on the knowledge they learned in boot camp
and apply it to real-life scenarios. During the course, they will learn techniques of patrolling,
defending a position, and identifying improvised explosive devices.
Marines here will also learn to use more advanced weapons like grenade employment and machine guns.
After the first several weeks of training, Marines branch off into whichever infantry
specialty they were assigned after boot camp. Riflemen, mortar men, machine gunners, and light
armored scouts all receive job-specific training. Upon graduation from either the School of Infantry
East or West, Marines can now hit the fleet into their first operational infantry unit.
During the next several years, Marines could serve anywhere in the world. Whether
it be in the jungles of Okinawa, the deserts of southern California, the woods of North Carolina,
or the combat zone of Afghanistan, Marines everywhere should expect a not so easy lifestyle.
It is during this phase of an aspiring Scout Sniper’s timeline that Marines must wait
several years biding his or her time. That is because of the rank requirements and often unit
specific requirements. To even be eligible for the Scout Sniper course, Marines must attain at least
the rank of Lance Corporal. Obtaining this rank might take several years for some depending on
what rank they enlisted at and how many people get promoted each year. Most people take about
two years to reach this rank after enlisting. But while you are waiting to meet the minimum
rank requirements, you still have to stay in shape and refining your shooting skills
learned in boot camp. This is necessary since a First Class physical fitness test score,
the highest level, must be achieved at the date of the course convening as well as
having a current expert rifle qualification. During this time you must also stay out of
trouble and avoid getting into large amounts of debt since snipers are required to hold a minimum
of a Secret security clearance. Getting in trouble with the law as well as owing too much
money are common issues that would prevent you from obtaining a security clearance,
and a spot as a Marine Scout Sniper. There are a variety of other prequalifications
that must be met before even stepping onboard one of the three Scout Sniper courses. You must
have at least one year remaining on your contract to attend the school which means if you did not
make the rank needed fast enough you might have to reenlist just to attend the course. You must also
have correctable vision to 20/20 and color blind applicants are discouraged. You also cannot have
any history of mental illness in your medical record, and you must be a volunteer. While that
may be surprising, with such a tough school and a great need for snipers on the battlefield, more
than one command might be tempted to force people to go to fill this desperately needed quota.
If you can manage to meet all of these requirements, there is still
one last obstacle remaining before being allowed to attend the course.
While not officially required, the Scout Sniper school highly recommends attending a variety
of additional courses before reporting to the schoolhouse. Some of these courses include things
like Land Navigation, Calling for Supporting Fires, and Reconnaissance Marine. Additionally,
the school also recommends that Marines become proficient at some of the core tenants of sniping
such as marksmanship, stalking, field sketches, and range estimation prior to attending as well.
Why they highly recommend all of this additional training before attending Scout Sniper school
is because of the traditionally high attrition rate. In recent years,
it is not uncommon for more than half a class to fail the course for one reason or another.
The instructors and Marine Corps leadership realize that the current 59 day course
is not enough time to develop most people without prior preparation from infantrymen
into some of the world’s deadliest marksmen. Because of these stringent recommendations,
often screeners and training evolutions are held at the divisional and regimental level
to best prepare interested candidates for selection. Those that perform
well at these unit-level training evolutions will be recommended by their chain of command to
attend the course since they only want to send people who have the best chance of succeeding.
So after finally waiting and training for two to three years, multiple schools,
and possibly seeing combat, you are finally ready to enter the final stage of Scout Sniper training:
the Scout Sniper course. There are three Scout sniper courses with one on each coast
as well as one at Quantico, Virginia to take over the extra overflow of students.
Soon after arrival at the course, you are quickly reminded that scout snipers live
in the areas that no one wants to go to make their shots. One of the very first events after
students make their ghillie suit is to completely submerge their bodies in the pig pit, a muddy,
mosquito-infested hole in the woods. After doing this, the students are ready for training.
Throughout the course, physical fitness is a large part of the daily routine. While certainly tough,
there is no Hell Week equivalent to BUD/S here. Rather, the crux of the course focuses on a series
of four must pass events. The very first one comes a month into the school. It is the known distance
qualification course. On this course of fire, Marines must hit at least 28 shots on a range
with targets at 300, 500, and 1000 meters. Failing the official range twice means you fail.
The next hurdle is the stalking course. Stalking is a traditional sniper method of matching their
ghillie suits to a surrounding territory and then crawling within distance of the enemy
undetected to get their best shot. The course is incredibly difficult and one of the main failure
points for many students. Students are often forced to do what is called skull dragging
which keeps the body perfectly level with the ground and they drag their faces in the dirt.
The students must do this until they get to within 300 meters of the instructors undetected
and fire a blank shot at them. The instructors then hold up a series of cards to make sure
that the Marine is actually within the required distance to reading them, which
simulates being in range for an accurate shot. After firing, a Marine instructor known as a
walker walks within ten feet of the student who fired. If the instructors still cannot see him,
he fires again, and the instructors look to see if the shot disturbed anything around him.
If they still cannot see the student, the Marine passes with a perfect score.
Every Marine Scout sniper must obtain at least one perfect score to pass stalking.
After passing these two first phases, the Marines then focus on their most difficult
shooting hurdle: the unknown distance range. The unknown distance range is slightly different
than the known distance range in both how it's conducted and scoring. The students
practice for weeks on the known distance range before the final qualification event
while at the unknown distance range literally every shot matters over the next two weeks. This
is because the scores from each day are averaged and Marines need an average of 80 percent to pass.
The range is difficult as there are ten targets from several hundred up to 800 meters away
all at random intervals. Marines must quickly assess not only the range but the environmental
conditions as well to get a shot off in less than five seconds. This skill is vitally
important since Marines in combat will rarely have known distances at which to fire at enemies.
After passing this evolution, Marines must face their final test. As in real life, Scout snipers
might be operating far behind enemy lines. If one of them gets hurt, no one is left behind
meaning they are going to have to be carried, sometimes for miles, for medical help. Instructors
simulate this by making the class carry four dummy casualties weighing 200 pounds each along with all
the other Marines’ gear for a brutal 23 miles. The march takes over eight hours and usually
starts late at night with Marines finishing in the morning. Upon the completion of this last event,
they officially move from their previous title of Professionally
Instructed Gunmen to Hunters of Gunmen. The path to becoming a Marine Scout sniper
is not easy and takes years of preparation and training. Because of the strict requirements
to even enter the course, Marines must perform at their best day in and day out for years.
Even with all of this preparation that Marines have before arriving at the school, every skill
they have ever learned is put to the test. Mentally, physically, and emotionally Marines
will have to perform under stressful and difficult circumstances. But if they have what it takes,
they can join an elite group that only several thousand Marines in US history have ever joined.