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Story by Jordan Smith, Navy Recruiting Command Public Affairs Office
MILLINGTON, Tenn. – When it comes to recruiting the best and brightest to join the Navy, it all begins at Navy Recruiting Orientation Unit (NORU) in Pensacola, Florida. NORU is the sole recruiting schoolhouse responsible for producing the Navy’s recruiting force. NORU is where Sailors go through courses to learn the fundamentals of recruiting as well as additional skills that will help them in the field.
NORU’s courses are taught throughout the year and range from four to six weeks in length – with the time it takes to become a recruiter being five weeks. In order to attend, Sailors must meet certain standards.
“In order to attend NORU and be selected for recruiting duty, a Sailor must be the cream of the crop from within their rate,” said Chief Navy Counselor Theodore Boerner, a NORU instructor at Naval Air Station Pensacola. “Recruiting only selects the best out of all fleet Sailors. Candidates must have great evaluations and show sustained superior performance while adhering to strict BCA [body composition assessment] and discipline standards.”
In addition to having excellent qualifications, there is more that a Sailor must have and do to become a recruiter.
“You must be up for a challenge!” said Chief Navy Counselor Nivea Smith, a NORU instructor at Naval Air Station Pensacola. “Be the best in your rate; read MILPERS 1306-94 to verify you are eligible; contact your detailer to verify you can be released for special duty programs and complete the special duty screening. Once you have completed the process, you can apply for orders and attend NORU.”
While likeability and the ability to effectively communicate and listen are vital to a recruiter’s success, there are traits that are just as important for a recruiter to have in order to make mission.
“You must have the drive to want to be great,” Smith said. “You must want to help others be great and have good time management. We always say time is money! Every minute of the day counts, and you must be that go-getter Sailor who always thinks outside the box but also is able to motivate others.”
The curriculum at NORU teaches fleet Sailors the basics of recruiting and walks them through the process of putting someone in the Navy and shipping them to boot camp from start to finish.
“The curriculum is composed of developing a Sailor to become a recruiter and being able to check in at the next command with all the fundamentals,” Smith said. “We train Sailors on sales, public speaking, time management, how to prospect, recruiting instructions, Salesforce [recruiting software] and even challenge them their last week on how the process is in the field. We have a 98% pass rate because we have a large group of motivated instructors who take the time to develop each Sailor and challenge them to be better.”
In addition to teaching Sailors the basics of recruiting, NORU has specialized and advanced recruiting courses.
“We offer the classifier course for those becoming classifiers [Sailors who assign jobs/rates to other Sailors] and the officer recruiting course for those becoming officer recruiters from E-6 to O-5 paygrade,” Smith said. “We also have the Career Recruiting Force Academy for those who love recruiting and decide to convert into Navy Counselors with a recruiting designator. Later in their recruiting career, NC(R)s can attend advance courses to include command trainer and DLCPO [division leading chief petty officer] courses.”
While Sailors do enjoy downtown Pensacola, the public beaches and the amazing local restaurants, they also tend to gravitate toward the amenities and activities the naval base has to offer, such as a well-maintained private beach, fishing trips, kayaking, paddle boarding, competitive runs and a fitness center. The benefits of being a recruiter, however, do not stop there.
“Recruiting duty is very challenging but very rewarding!” Smith said. “Once you complete a tour as a recruiter, you will increase your leadership skills and time management skills, be awarded for your performance, have the possibility for advancement and mostly importantly [you will] know you have impacted the Navy by shaping it with the most qualified young men and women. You will have an impact on someone else’s life forever, once you become a recruiter, and that you are shaping our Navy’s future.”
When asked why Sailors should want to attend NORU, Boerner gave an impassioned response.
“This is a school like no other in the fleet,” Boerner said. “With a dedicated staff of instructors that only includes chief petty officers and above, instructors are the best of the best in recruiting and are hand selected and vetted individually to provide the students with the best outlook and preparation for recruiting. This school takes not only its curriculum seriously, but the level of motivation we uphold and spread is like no other in training commands. NORU is a school full of motivation and positivity. Students are aware of the positive energy this school exudes from the first day they report until they receive their graduation certificates. Our instructors love our jobs and take a personal commitment to ensure the most positive learning environment for all of our students.”
Becoming a recruiter is a challenge, but it can be a very rewarding job. Smith said the ideal mindset of a recruiter can be summed by thinking, “Don’t inspire to make a living; inspire to make a difference!”
Navy Recruiting Command consists of a command headquarters, three Navy Recruiting Regions and 26 Navy Talent Acquisition Groups that serve more than 1,000 recruiting stations across the world. Their combined goal is to attract the highest quality candidates to assure the ongoing success of America’s Navy.
For more news from Commander, Navy Recruiting Command, go to http://www.cnrc.navy.mil. Follow Navy Recruiting on Facebook (www.facebook.com/MyNAVYHR), Twitter (@USNRecruiter) and Instagram (@USNRecruiter).
| Date Taken: | 02.10.2022 |
| Date Posted: | 02.10.2022 13:59 |
| Story ID: | 414439 |
| Location: | MILLINGTON, US |
| Web Views: | 966 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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