The U.S. Navy is adjusting its recruitment standards to allow individuals without a high school diploma or GED to enlist, provided they score at least 50 out of 99 on a qualification test.
This decision comes as the Navy faces challenges in meeting its recruitment goals, having fallen short of its target last year.
The change aims to attract more potential recruits and increase the overall pool of applicants.
“We get thousands of people into our recruiting stations every year that want to join the Navy but do not have an education credential. And we just turn them away,” Vice Adm. Rick Cheeseman said.
“I’m hoping all my recruiters have called all 2,442 of them in the last 72 hours, and we’ll see how it goes… We’ll try to get some test takers this weekend,” Cheeseman said.
“I need these sailors. So it’s a stretch goal. We’re telling our recruiters to go get 40,600 people to join the Navy,” he said. “We don’t fully expect to get that many. But we’re going for it.”
“We just finally decided, OK, let’s go,” Cheeseman said. “My, argument for accepting that risk is that we have capacity for boot camp. We’re not filling the seats. So I’m willing to take a risk.”
Despite concerns about potential risks, the Navy believes this adjustment will help address its recruitment needs and benefit individuals impacted by various circumstances, such as non-traditional schooling or early departure from high school.
The policy will benefit “the Navy by expanding the potential applicant pool of highly qualified and motivated future Sailors who may have been impacted by COVID-19 trends of non-traditional schooling, early exit from high school to support their family, or a variety of other individual circumstances,” a Navy spokesperson stated.
“Sailors who enlist under this policy change can achieve personal and professional growth by earning their GED while gaining experience in cutting-edge technologies and learning professional skills that allow them to exceed their expectations while serving in the Navy,” the statement said.
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