SEAMAN RECRUIT (SR) — U.S. NAVY E-1
The Navy's entry-level enlisted paygrade — boot camp recruits and newly accessed Sailors.
OVERVIEW
Seaman Recruit (SR) is the U.S. Navy's entry-level enlisted paygrade at E-1. Most new enlisted Sailors enter the Navy as Seaman Recruits and remain in the grade through Recruit Training Command (RTC), Great Lakes, Illinois — the Navy's only enlisted boot camp. Seaman Recruits wear no rate insignia on the dress uniform; the absence of a rating mark visually signals their entry-level status.
Most Seaman Recruits promote automatically to Seaman Apprentice (E-2) after approximately nine months of satisfactory service, often coinciding with completion of "A"-school technical training and report to their first fleet command.
RESPONSIBILITIES
- Complete Recruit Training (boot camp) at RTC Great Lakes
- Master basic Sailor skills: drill, watchstanding, military bearing, damage control
- Begin "A"-school or report to first fleet command after graduation
HISTORY
The "Seaman Recruit" title in its modern form dates to mid-20th-century U.S. Navy reorganization of enlisted ratings and paygrades. The Navy has used the broader "seaman" designation for un-rated enlisted Sailors for centuries — drawing on age-of-sail terminology that distinguished an "ordinary seaman" or "able seaman" from a rated specialist.
The Navy's only enlisted accession point — Recruit Training Command, Great Lakes — has trained more than 4 million Sailors since opening in 1911 and is the singular gateway through which every active and reserve enlisted Sailor enters the U.S. Navy.
PAY
- U.S. citizenship or permanent residency
- High school diploma or GED equivalent
- Successful completion of MEPS processing and ASVAB testing
- Recruit Training Command (RTC), Great Lakes, IL — boot camp
- Navy "A"-school student in their selected rating
- Newly reported Sailor at first sea or shore command