How do you best prepare for OCS? I am reporting in two months and would appreciate any advice.

SGT Shields:

Humiltiy, many of your peers will be brandnew Officers, and the last thing you want to do is be remembered as the KNOW IT ALL. I have transitioned from enlisted, warrant officer, and officer and I will share with you the importance of building future relationships.

Remember this will be your peer group for the rest of your military career. This is vital to remember based on your interpersonal skills will be the future recommendations from your peers. I am very proud of you!!

Learn OPORDS and your Troop Leading Procedures

I'm speaking from Navy OCS experience instead of Army OCS, but I'll bet the main points are the same. Obviously get in shape; lots of running and PT every day. However, the best advice I've given to people heading to OCS is to remember WHY the course exists. They have 3 months to see if you are going to be an acceptable officer, and one of the primary ways that they do it is to see how you react under stress. If they can weed out people who will crumble under stress now, they won't have to deal with them folding when in the real world. Remember that OCS is not the real military; you can't WIN when you are at OCS. If they tell you to make up your rack for an inspection in the morning, and you make it perfect and sleep on the floor so your rack isn't messed up, they still might come in, look at it, say it is horrible and rip the sheets off and tell you to do it again while they are shouting at you to hurry up. It has nothing to do with being able to make your rack; it has to do with how you respond in that situation. So if you can go with the flow, and remember that what the drill instructors do is not personal, you should be fine.

SGT SHIELDS: Congratulations on your acceptance into OCS. As a graduate over 20-Years Ago, I recommend doing physical training in preparation for the APFT, as well as doing Pull-ups & Road-marches. Make certain you bring the packing-list items along with updating service records, DA-Photo and uniforms are correct.

Good-luck, LTC-G.

Create or attain a smart book for planning and briefing OPORDs. Get very familiar and comfortable with the process, you will do it a lot

Get up to speed on land nav. You do a TON of it at OCS. This whole stigma about boot LTs having no idea how to navigate and getting lost is BS. I did more Land Nav at OCS than my whole ten years in the Corps.

Ruck on your own. Don't plan to do it and then never get around to doing it. Actually do it. We had to run around everywhere with a big rock inside our rucks for most of phase 2.

(I have been in OCS since last May and graduate in a couple months / traditional Army NG OCS)

I am sure the course has changed since 1985! Be in great physical shape. One of the requirements long ago was a perfect APFT score to graduate. Heat in summer can be taxing. Best quality is a never quit one. I saw people quit the first day. They will test your mental, physical, and emotional toughness and agility in a number of ways. Believe they went to two phases instead of three.

Great Article. writing . I loved the information . Does someone know where my company can access a sample a form copy to edit ?

As long as you can memorize info quickly, run, ruck and do some basic platoon level infantry stuff it's very easy.

Do lots of running and start memorizing the OCS requires knowledge