How to become a Royal Marines officer
You can get into this job through:
- applying directly to the Royal Navy
Volunteering
You can join the Royal Marines Reserve as an entry officer to get experience of life in the service and to learn new skills at the same time.
You'll need to be aged between 16 and 42, or 16 and 56 if you're an ex-regular.
If you're between 13 and 18 years old, you can join the Royal Marines Cadets.
Direct Application
You can apply directly for marines officer training.
You'll need to be:
- aged between 18 and 25
- at least 151.5cm tall (no limit for women)
- physically fit
You'll also usually need a minimum of:
- 5 GCSEs at grades 9 to 4 (A* to C), or equivalent, including English and maths
- 2 A levels or equivalent
If your initial application is accepted, you'll be invited to talk to someone at your local armed forces careers office about what you want to do. This is followed by assessments, which include medical and fitness checks.
If you get through the first stages, you may be offered a place on a 4-day Potential Officers Course that includes basic training and further assessments. If successful, you'll go onto a full officer training programme.
You will complete a Chartered Management Institute qualification in Management and Leadership during training.
You may take other qualifications depending on which specialism you choose to follow.
More Information
Career tips
You will need to pass physical fitness assessment, including swimming, to be accepted into the Royal Navy. Get fit to Join has information on how to assess your current fitness and how to improve to the right level if you need to.
Further information
You'll find more details about how to become an officer in the Royal Marines from the Royal Navy.