Marine Platoon

Marine-Option Midshipmen from Tulane University and our cross-town affiliates and come together to form the Marine Platoon, a distinction within the broader Tulane NROTC team. In conjunction with battalion training, the platoon conducts specific Marine Corps Naval Science classes, hikes, physical training sessions, and Field Exercises that prepare them to succeed at Officer Candidate School (OCS) aboard MCB Quantico, which they will attend between Junior and Senior Year. Midshipmen in the Marine Platoon rotate through billets that mirror the conventional Marine Corps rifle platoon, such as Platoon Commander, Platoon Sergeant, and Squad Leaders. In turn, Marine Option Midshipmen get to lead their peers and receive feedback in roles that will best prepare them for the leadership expected at OCS. This knowledge and firsthand experience not only prepares our Midshipmen for personal success, but allows them to stand out and lead their peers in Quantico. Additionally, being in New Orleans conveniently puts the unit near the Marine Forces Reserve & Marine Forces South Headquarters. Marine Option Midshipmen gain the valuable mentorship opportunities provided by senior enlisted leaders and senior officers across many fleet communities, to include the Commanding General.

Field Exercises

Marine Platoon’s main event is the field exercise (FEX), which Tulane NROTC conducts once per semester. Over several days in the field, midshipmen practice land navigation, fire team and squad level tactics, hikes and tactical movements, Leadership Reaction Courses (LRC), operations orders, and Small Unit Leadership Evaluations (SULE), while dealing with fatigue, field conditions, weather, and the challenge of leading a team. Senior midshipmen- facilitated by the Marine Officer Instructor and Assistant Marine Officer Instructor- plan and run the exercise, and underclassmen get an early look at how they will be evaluated at OCS. For many Marine options, FEX is where the garrison training comes together, and where the platoon becomes a team.

 
 
MIDN Swinkle, a fourth-class midshipman who recently completed his first FEX writes "Attending Field Training Exercise with Tulane NROTC was an incredible time. The evolution gave us Marine Options a real look at what Officer Candidate School would test for. As a fourth class, pushing through a six mile morning ruck with a weighted pack, running a fire team, operating five paragraph orders, and day and night land navigation have all tested my leadership and bearing. The lack of sleep was rough, but going through it together made it worth it.”
 

See the link for more information about summer field training opportunities.