Updated
09/15/2009
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The essential difference in the UNMC between Commissioned Officers and Non-Commissioned Officers is that NCO's focus upon immediate tactical considerations, whereas officers focus upon the long term strategic issues. This means that officers are inevitably involved in long hours of study and paperwork between operations, in addition to other duties, such as recruitment service and on-base support work. In practise the division is again blurred, but the emphasis is indicated. However, the officer does ultimately carry more responsibility for the long term success of a campaign, and so this is where the buck will finally stop. Thus, like most special forces, when time permits, unit members will make their decisions collectively, personnel only resorting to "pulling" rank when either a consensus is unobtainable, time is critical, or the planned actions have a bearing upon the campaign at a strategic level. Usually, expertise in a given field is the critiria for decision making not rank. Therefore, it is common to see units with a mix of various officers and Sergeants, working perfectly well together with a humble Private in charge of a given task. All this is reflected in the Corps' promotion system in that the points required for example to be a Captain are exactly the same as that for a Staff Sergeant (6,000).
Promotional Points (PP) are earned through the factors of time/experience within UNMC service, and more importantly, upon the type of service rendered. In many ways rank is regarded as often nothing more than a job description, except when the situation requires its imposition. If an issue does arise that must be resolved by rank, then in the case of a tie, seniority in time served at that rank takes precedence. This arrangement also aids troops during peacekeeping operations when interacting with national forces, as it results in many more of our marines being able to out-rank their counterparts, enabling them to bring their normally greater experience to bear upon the situation.
NB: that officers who behave as though they are "still" in a regular line formation, or otherwise abuse this arrangement, will find themselves, at the very least with a reprimand, via being decommissioned/demoted, through to at the worst, being dismissed from the service.
Since the UNMC's principle tasks are more in keeping with ground forces , the descision has been made to dispense with the common system of equivalent rank structures identifying different branches, such as sea or air power. Thus ship and aircrews use precisely the same titles and insignia as their infantry counterparts. The only exception being that of the title of a vessel's or aircraft's commander, which is invaribly Captain regardless of the officers designated rank.
Ranks fall in to the following catogories:
A Major's bright metal pin-on insignia for wear on the SDU Jacket and garrison cap.
For non-combat duties and more formal ocasions, personnel wear a pair of bright metal "pin-on" insignia, in either silver or brass as appropriate to rank, on each epaulette of their Service Dress Uniform (SDU) jacket, see above. When permitted to wear "garison" caps (aka "side" or "airborne" caps) rather than the regulation UN blue beret, it is common practise for Marines to attach their rank insignia to its right hand side opposite the UNMC badge on the left (when available). In the case of Colonels and higher ranks these are of a special minature size.
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With the exception of Specialists, Privates and Privates First Class, all ranks (Corporal+) wear a pair of embroidered cloth slides or "Shoulder Marks" upon the epaulettes of Service Dress shirts. These Shoulder Marks are used instead of the metal pin-on insignia on the shirt, as the wearing of a jacket on top would drive the clutch pins in to the wearer's shoulder. For officers these marks are in white or gold (depending upon rank), on a dark blue background. General's have additional narrow stripes, one at the base and another at the top of the shoulder mark, while Major's and Colonel's have only a single narrower one at the base. Captains, Lieutenants and NCO's have no stripes at all. NCO's, that is Corporals to Command Sergeant Majors, have gold (yellow) insignia embroiderd on a Shoulder Mark in greenish-black background. The different colours and additional stripes aid in recognition at distance.
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Specialists, Privates and Privates First Class wear a large embroidered badge upon each arm of their Service Dress shirt, just below their other insignia. Specialists can opt to wear the small metal pin-on badge affixed to civilian dress, or they may wear the corresponding sew-on patch upon the breast of their choice of dress when it is other than the standard uniform, such as a blazer or lab coat etc. These sew-on badges are gold upon a dark blue background. Note that Privates attending their very first operation, serve as a "recruit" (Private - PV1), and like civilians, wear no rank insignia what so ever. Immediately prior to their second operation, they are promoted to Private - PV2, and authorised to wear a single chevron. Privates (PV2) have authority over Privates (PV1).
A Major General's BDU insignia in MultiCam™.
For wear in the field on the Battle Dress Uniform (BDU) by all ranks other than the recruit rank of Private (PV1), small subdued sew-on or Velcro™ mounted cloth patchs in either plain Olive Green, Desert Tan, Universal Camouflage Pattern (US Army digital) or in MultiCam™ (see above), are worn on the collars/patch points of the Battel Dress Uniform jacket/shirt. Others maybe affixed to helmet covers or other head gear, but not to dress berets. Alternatively subdued metal black or brown/green painted pin-on insignia, as shown below, or in the Rank Quick Ref Guide. These latter are identical in form to the bright versions shown in the illustrations on the Rank & Insignia Tables page.
Subdued metal pin-on insignia of a Sergeant.
In the subdued insignia either black stitching or black paint is substituted for the silver, and brown or green for the brass metalwork of the formal officer insignia. Chevrons are embroidered in either black on OD Green and UCP, or brown upon the Desert Tan or MultiCam™ materials, in place of the brass of the formal insignia. However the subdued metal versions are always black. Chevrons are positioned with their points upwards as per current standard US practise.
The rank of "General of the Marine Corps" (GMC) is held by a single individual who holds the post of Commander in Chief of the entire UNMC. Currently this post may only be occupied by a former member of the US armed forces. The current occupant is General Adam West. Commissions to the remaining General officer ranks are bestowed upon specially appointed personnel taking up a post as the Commanding Officer or 2nd in command of a Command or Sub-Command (Regiment). Promotion here, does to a large extent depend upon the old principle of "dead man's, or woman's, shoes".
A Command Sergeant Major's bright metal pin-on insignia for wear on the SDU Jacket and garrison cap.
The highest NCO line rank is that of Command Sergeant Major. Above this are the special posts, wherein each title is specific to a single individual already holding the rank of at least Sergeant Major, who is then appointed to a designated assignment as set out below. All wear the same rank insignia as the Command Sergeant Major, surmounted by the appropriate unit designation as specified below. Again promotion to these posts is dependent upon the availability of vacancies. The Special NCO posts are:
In addition to the above, in each Command, and at Regimental level, there are eight other specific posts held by commissioned officers, non of which have associated special insignia. It is not unusual to find officers with two such appointments. The first two of these are the posts of Commanding Officer and the Executive Officer, responsible for the overall management of the Command, Sub-Command or Regiment. Five other posts are designated by a alpha-numeric code. The letter "G" is used for Command level and higher versions of the posts, whereas "S" is used at Regimental level and below. These five posts are:
The remaining post is that of the Chief Medical Officer.
Ex-US personnel should be aware that there are no equivalents to the US forces various administrative "First Sergeant" type roles in the UNMC due to the Corps' comparatively small size. Unlike their US and British equivalents, the titles of Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps, Sergeant Major Of The "X" Command, Regimental Sergeant Major, Company Sergeant Major, Command Sergeant Major, Sergeant Major, First Sergeant and Master Sergeant are distinct ranks within the UNMC, with associated command authority, and different pay grades. Likewise the UNMC have no equivalents to the various ranks of Warrant Officers as used in US and UK forces.
Former civilians enlisted into the UNMC as "Specialists", who have been trained and authorised to carry defensive arms (pistols, or after two tours, a PDW - a Personal Defense Weapon - a small sub-machine gun), when on active duty, wear the "Specialist" insignia upon their uniforms. Its use distinguishes them from pure civilians who wear no rank insignia at all and have no right under regulations to bear arms. Specialists supply those skills not normally present in military type organisations. They have no command authority over military personnel, outside of their technical specialisation, however they always out-rank civilians . Starting pay is invariably a little higher than their military counterparts, which is intended to reflect both their special skill base, and to provide compensation for the risks of field service while lightly armed. As a Specialist' your promotion will only effect your rate of pay. The motive for putting such personnel through basic military training as a prelude to UNMC service, is to prevent them from becoming an unnecesary burden to otherwise well equipped and highly trained professional military forces. Regular civilians who may from time to time be attached to units are otherwise required to be accompanied by Close Protection Officers (CPOs) acting as body-guards, creating significant limitations to mission profiles. The CPO's are normally (where available) ex-police officers trained in VIP/Principal handling/protection drills specifically assigned as escorts for our civilian staff in potentially hostile environments.
In the case of Specialists and Civilians their titles or abbreviations can be suffixed with a number denoting their pay grade. For example "SPEC-7" or "CIVI-7". These numbers are used by these personnel to clarify seniority issues. However, remember that Specialist always outrank Civilians, regardless of pay grade number.
Serving civilian staff, may at any point apply for Specialist training, and upon successfull completion of the twelve week course be appointed as a UNMC Specialist. Specialists who wish to transfer to full time military service, may at any time attempt to pass the 2 week selection board, after which they must complete an additional 16 weeks of basic military training. Precise starting pay/rank is in part dependent upon their prior UNMC service record.
Progress, tends to be steady, and unlike the majority of military forces your promotion is not on the whole dependent upon vacancies at a given rank. As to how long it takes to rise through the ranks, it purely depends upon your service record. However as a very rough guide, under peacetime conditions it could take as much as twenty years to reach the absolute top of your career path, that is Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps or General of the Marine Corps), whereas in time of continuous conflict, it could take as little as just five years. A fulltime operative will earn between 1,500 and 2,500 points per year, depending upon if it is peacetime or wartime service. NB: currently the UNSGC is working under "wartime" conditions. It requires 2,000 Promotional Points and 12 Expert Infantry Course Units to become eligible for either the rank of Corporal or Second Lieutenant, and 16,000 PP plus 72 EICU to reach the rank of Colonel or First Sergeant. For a complete copy of your service record, including all points earned to date, click this link to your unit's Awards Granted page, and go to Table 11 and look up your entry under your family name. See also the associated Decorations, Medals & Awards pages to see the various criterias. Table 1 below shows the basic PP and EICU requirements for each rank:
| Points | NCO | Officer | |
|---|---|---|---|
| EICU | Promotional | ||
| 120+ | 51,000+ |
Sergeant Major of the
Marine Corps
Command Sergeant Major | General of the Marine Corps |
| 42,000+ |
Sergeant Major of the "x" Command
Command Sergeant Major | General | |
| 34,000+ |
Regimental Sergeant Major
Command Sergeant Major | Lieutenant General | |
| 27,000+ |
Company Sergeant Major
Command Sergeant Major | Major General | |
| 21,000+ | Sergeant Major | Brigadier General | |
| 72+ | 16,000+ | First Sergeant | Colonel |
| 36+ | 12,000+ | Master Sergeant | Lieutenant Colonel |
| 9,000+ | Sergeant First Class | Major | |
| 12+ | 6,000+ | Staff Sergeant | Captain |
| 4,000+ | Sergeant | First Lieutenant | |
| 2,000+ | Corporal | Second Lieutenant | |
| 250+ | Private First Class | Not Aplicable | |
| 0+ | 250+ | Private (PV2) | |
| 0+ | Privat (PV1) | ||
Promotion is neither automatic nor mandatory, as the Promotions Board exercises a great deal of discressionary authority. Therefore, just because you have earned the points, it doesn't mean that you have earned the promotion. Nor, on the other hand, do you have to accept it, if one is offered. Likewise as mentioned above you can apply for a commission, or to be decommissioned. As all officer ranks, and the higher NCO ranks are in part dependent upon the maintainance of a number of key qualifications, involuntary decommissioning can also occur. This happens when an officer, ceases to qualify for their position, and consequencially are returned to the enlisted ranks. For example if the elapsed period between active service events is over a year or more,,the officer is decommissioned, requiring requalification before recommissioning. True demotions occur only by order of a Courts Martial, conveened under regulations by the senior personnel of your unit, and then ratified by, or otherwise ordered by a Staff Officer (Generals), usually for disciplinary reasons. However in special circumstances, you can be voluntarily demoted within your career path, for example from Sergeant to Private First Class, this is sometimes done to reduce stress created by workload, usually by order of a Medical Officer. Often in these perculiar circumstances the pay grade is not reduced, or if it is, not to the full extent.
The other ocaision wherein a demotion is mandatory is when a transfer from one duty assignment to another is requested by a serving Marine, for example when one who is stationed at a US base requests transfer to another base or even one in a different country. Upon acceptance personnel suffer a permenant minus one to their earned rank grade, resulting in a reduction in both rank and pay. They are then assigned as an NCO to their new post's Military Police Company (MPC) to serve as a Security Guard performing such duties as perimeter patrols, while being orientated to their new station and awaiting Flight Status to be granted. Repeated transferrs incur further cumalative penalties. This is done to discourage these kinds of "transfers", as it can take many months or even a year or more for personnel to become fully familiarised with their new assignment. Please note that units rarely accept such transfers unless they are suffering a shortage of personnel, for example due to casualties (KIA, MIA). See the Commissions & Transfers Tables page to see how this works.
To serve as a Non-Commissioned-Officer (NCO) at the ranks of Corporal through to Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps, you must first satisfy the Promotional Points requirements and the Expert Infantry Course Unit minimums specified for each rank as shown in Table 1 above. To achieve the higher grades, that is Sergeant First Class and above, a candidate must also perform other duties such as in recruitment and on-base Work Details between operations.
To serve as a Commissioned Officer, that is at the ranks Second Lieutenant through to General of the Marine Corps, you must in addition to satisfying the Promotional Points requirements and the Expert Infantry Course Unit minimums specified for each rank as shown in Table 1 above, also pass the following additional qualifying requirements:
The use of the verbal acknowledgements Sir and Ma'am are however normal. The uni-sex use of "Sir", is acceptable, particularly in situations where service equipment renders easy gender identification difficult or impossible. Specialists, and those from distinctly different military backgrounds are reminded that these modes of address are strictly for use when addressing a supperior "Commissioned Officer" ONLY. It is not used when addressing a superior NCO. In these circumstances it is customary to use the NCOs rank as the address. If you make a mistake, the NCO WILL be happy to remind you of what is correct practise.
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