Ground Intelligence Officer
Encyclopedia
Ground Intelligence Officer (MOS 0203) is a primary military occupation code (or MOS) of an U.S. Marine Corps intelligence officer
. Ground intelligence officers serve as staff officers and commanders in the operating forces and are responsible for analyzing intelligence
and planning, deployment and tactical employment of ground surveillance and reconnaissance units.
Upon completion of this school pipeline, the Lt. is assigned to a recon, sniper or other ground intelligence unit. He then would serve as commander of the reconnaissance companies within the reconnaissance battalions.
Normally, the Recon Platoon Commander works in the Landing Force Operations Center (LFOC) or Combat Operations Center (COC). Here he receives reports from his teams, transmits direction to them & coordinates any support they need in the field. Recon Team Leaders are normally Sergeants or Staff Sergeants (some Force Recon Teams). The Team Leader is the senior man to go to the field on missions. Some missions require the full platoon to act as a unit, and in that case the Platoon Commander may also go to the field.
Intelligence officer
An intelligence officer is a person employed by an organization to collect, compile and/or analyze information which is of use to that organization...
. Ground intelligence officers serve as staff officers and commanders in the operating forces and are responsible for analyzing intelligence
Military intelligence
Military intelligence is a military discipline that exploits a number of information collection and analysis approaches to provide guidance and direction to commanders in support of their decisions....
and planning, deployment and tactical employment of ground surveillance and reconnaissance units.
Preliminary requirements
Before anyone can be accepted for Ground Intelligence (or Ground Intel), a candidate must fulfill the following prerequisites:- Must be a U.S. citizen.
- Must be eligible for a top-secret security clearance and access to Sensitive Compartmented InformationSensitive Compartmented InformationSensitive compartmented information is a type of United States classified information concerning or derived from sensitive intelligence sources, methods, or analytical processes. All SCI must be handled within formal access control systems established by the Director of National Intelligence...
(SCI), predicated upon a Single Scope Background InvestigationSingle Scope Background InvestigationA Single Scope Background Investigation is a type of United States security clearance investigation required for Top Secret, SCI and Q access, and involves agents contacting employers, coworkers and other individuals...
(SSBI). An application for the SSBI must be submitted prior to attendance of the Ground Intelligence Officers Course at NMITC, Dam Neck, VA. - Must be a male lieutenantLieutenantA lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...
to be assigned this MOS as a primary MOS. Officers assigned this MOS will retain it as an additional MOS following completion of the MAGTF Intelligence Officer Course and re-designation as a 0202 MAGTF Intelligence Officer
Training
After a Marine Corps Officer graduates from The Basic School, he takes three more courses before he becomes an Intel Officer. Entry-level Marine Intelligence Officers receive specific training within one of the following courses: Infantry Officer Course (LaC), Scout Sniper Platoon Commander's Course (SSPCC), or the Ground Intelligence Officer's Course (GIOC). The following courses of instruction are desirable as skills progression courses for MOS 0203:- Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Escape (SERE) course
- Intel Collection Management Course, Washington, DC
- Combat Targeting Course, Goodfellow Air Force BaseGoodfellow Air Force BaseGoodfellow Air Force Base is a non-flying United States Air Force base located in San Angelo, Texas. As part of Air Education & Training Command , Goodfellow's main mission is cryptologic and intelligence training for the Air Force, Army, Navy and Marine Corps. Military firefighters are also...
, TX - Indications and Warnings Course, Washington, DC
- Intelligence Analyst Course, Washington, DC
- Basic Reconnaissance Course (BCR)
Upon completion of this school pipeline, the Lt. is assigned to a recon, sniper or other ground intelligence unit. He then would serve as commander of the reconnaissance companies within the reconnaissance battalions.
Advanced Training
When slots become available and the [United States Foreign Military Financing|FMF]] budget permits it, the recon Marines commander may attend other advanced courses from cross-service schools. Here are the following schools that are attended, if available:- Marine Corps Combatant Diver Course* — Navy Diving Salvage and Training Center, Naval Support Activity Panama City, Florida
- Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Escape School* — Navy Remote Training Sites; NAS North Island, CA or NAS Brunswick, ME
- Army Airborne School* — Fort BenningFort BenningFort Benning is a United States Army post located southeast of the city of Columbus in Muscogee and Chattahoochee counties in Georgia and Russell County, Alabama...
, GAGeorgia (U.S. state)Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788... - United States Army Static Line Jumpmaster School (Fort Benning, Georgia)
- United States Army Ranger SchoolRanger SchoolThe United States Army Ranger School is an intense 61-day combat leadership course oriented towards small-unit tactics. It has been called the "toughest combat course in the world" and "is the most physically and mentally demanding leadership school the Army has to offer". The course is conducted...
(Fort Benning, Georgia) - Special Operations Training Group Schools (i.e. Urban Sniper, HRST, etc.)Special Operations Training GroupThe Special Operations Training Group, or SOTG, is a training section of the United States Marine Corps that provides Marine Expeditionary Force commanders with training facilities and a liaison for Marine Expeditionary Units . They also conduct special skills courses that trains Marines and...
(SOTG)* — One SOTG exists under each MEF; I MEF, II MEF, and III MEFIII Marine Expeditionary ForceThe III Marine Expeditionary Force is a Marine Air-Ground Task Force of the United States Marine Corps that is forward-deployed and able to deploy rapidly and conduct operations across the spectrum from humanitarian assistance and disaster relief to amphibious assault and high intensity combat. III...
. - Recon and Surveillance Leaders Course — Ranger SchoolRanger SchoolThe United States Army Ranger School is an intense 61-day combat leadership course oriented towards small-unit tactics. It has been called the "toughest combat course in the world" and "is the most physically and mentally demanding leadership school the Army has to offer". The course is conducted...
, Fort BenningFort BenningFort Benning is a United States Army post located southeast of the city of Columbus in Muscogee and Chattahoochee counties in Georgia and Russell County, Alabama...
, GA - Pathfinder Course — Army Infantry SchoolUnited States Army Infantry SchoolThe United States Army Infantry School is located in Fort Benning, Georgia. It is made up of the following components:*192d Infantry Brigade...
, Fort Benning, or Army Air Assault School, Fort CampbellFort CampbellFort Campbell is a United States Army installation located astraddle the Kentucky-Tennessee border between Hopkinsville, Kentucky, and Clarksville, Tennessee...
, Kentucky - Military Free Fall (John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center) / Multi Mission Parachutist Course (CPS Coolidge, AZ)
- Military Free Fall (Jumpmaster) School — John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School
- Mountain Leaders (Summer/Winter) Course — Pickle Meadows, CA
- Scout Sniper Course — School of Infantry (West), Camp Pendleton, CAMarine Corps Base Camp PendletonMarine Corps Base Camp Pendleton is the major West Coast base of the United States Marine Corps and serves as its prime amphibious training base...
; Camp Lejeune, NC; Quantico, VA; or MCB HawaiiMarine Corps Base HawaiiMarine Corps Base Hawaii , formerly Marine Corps Air Station, Kaneohe Bay and originally Naval Air Station Kaneohe Bay, is a U.S. Marine Corps base facility and air station located on the Mokapu Peninsula of windward O'ahu in the City & County of Honolulu. As of the 2000 Census, the base had a... - Mountain Sniper (Bridgeport, California)
- Reconnaissance Team Leader Course (Camp Pendleton, CA)
- Scout/Sniper Team Leader Course
- Methods of Entry / Breacher (MCB Quantico, VA)
- Joint Terminal Attack Controller (Expeditionary Warfare Training Group Atlantic/Pacific)
- High Risk Personnel (HRP) Course — MCB Quantico
Mission
Ground intelligence officers are trained as the primary platoon commanders in division reconnaissance companies, infantry battalion scout/sniper platoons, and other ground intelligence assignments: Battalion, Regiment, and Division Staffs; Force Service Support Groups; and Intelligence Battalions. Ground intelligence officers serve as commanders of the reconnaissance companies within the reconnaissance battalions. They plan, direct, and assist in the deployment and tactical employment of ground reconnaissance units. Ground intelligence officers are responsible for the discipline and welfare of their unit's Marines. To fulfill these responsibilities they analyze and evaluate intelligence; estimate the operational situation; and formulate, coordinate, and execute appropriate plans for offensive/defensive maneuver, reconnaissance, fire support nuclear biological, and chemical defense, directed energy warfare, communications and operational logistics and maintenance.Normally, the Recon Platoon Commander works in the Landing Force Operations Center (LFOC) or Combat Operations Center (COC). Here he receives reports from his teams, transmits direction to them & coordinates any support they need in the field. Recon Team Leaders are normally Sergeants or Staff Sergeants (some Force Recon Teams). The Team Leader is the senior man to go to the field on missions. Some missions require the full platoon to act as a unit, and in that case the Platoon Commander may also go to the field.
See also
- MARSOC—Marine Special Operations Command
- Semper FidelisSemper fidelisSemper Fidelis is Latin for "Always Faithful" or "Always Loyal". Well known in the United States as the motto of the United States Marine Corps , Semper Fidelis has served as a slogan for many families and entities, in many countries, dated to have been started no later than the 16th century...
- Special Activities DivisionSpecial Activities DivisionThe Special Activities Division is a division in the United States Central Intelligence Agency's National Clandestine Service responsible for covert operations known as "special activities"...
- United States Marine Corps Special Operations Capable ForcesUnited States Marine Corps Special Operations Capable ForcesThe United States Marine Corps is assigned by the National Command Authority to be primarily the Department of Defense's expeditionary force-in-readiness, and the Department of the Navy's contingent landing force—amphibious by nature...