How to Become Navy EOD

Have you thought about “How to Become Navy EOD?”

If so, you come to the right place.

Navy EOD is more than a rating, and it is a community.

Explosive Ordinance Disposal, or EOD, is a group of highly trained Sailors responsible for the safe disarmament and disposal of explosives, whether homemade or professionally constructed.

Navy EOD can also be called upon to dispose of specialized types of ordnance, such as chemical, biological, and nuclear weapons, whether on land, sea, or in the air.

This group of dedicated men and women is an integral part of America’s Special Forces community whose role in the military’s mission has been a pivotal piece of the greater war-fighting picture since the beginning of World War II.

Do I Qualify?

It is no secret that any part of our military’s Special Forces is not an easy group to join, with very strict guidelines for admission and waivers rarely granted.

Minimum requirements to apply to the Navy’s Explosive Ordnance Disposal program:

• 20/200 bilateral eyesight that is correctable to at least 20/25
• Applicant cannot be colorblind
• ASVAB AR and VE line scores combined must total at least 109, an MC score of 51, or a combined GS, MC, and EI score of 169
• Not older than the age of 30
• S. Citizen
• Capable of obtaining and maintaining a security clearance
• Have no medical conditions that render the applicant unable to meet requirements outlined in NAVMED P-117 (ask your recruiter for details)
• Pass a diver’s physical and medical examination
• Meet the Navy PRT Test standards
• Pass a Computerized-Special Operations Resiliency Test, or C-SORT

In addition to meeting the above requirements, you will have to participate in a Navy Physical Screening Test (PST), which requires, at a minimum:

• Swimming 500 yards using either the sidestroke or breaststroke within 12 minutes and 30 seconds
• 50 push-ups in 2 minutes
• 50 sit-ups in 2 minutes
• 6 pull-ups under no time limit
• 5-mile run in under 12 minutes and 30 seconds

It is important to remember that the physical requirements for the EOD program training and ongoing occupational responsibilities are extremely taxing.

The above standards are the MINIMUM requirements, but you are expected to EXCEED the minimum requirements when applying.

Males and females who meet the above requirements are eligible to enlist under the Navy EOD program.

No college degree is required to enlist as a Navy EOD Technician, but a bachelor’s degree will be required to consider commissioning as a Navy EOD Officer.

EOD Training and Qualifications

Navy EOD training is both extensive and rigorous, not just physically but mentally as well. It is intended to identify the highest quality candidates and then prepare that small group to become Navy EOD Technicians.

You can expect to be in the Navy and training for more than a year before becoming a rated Explosive Ordnance Disposal Technician, beginning with Navy boot camp at Navy Recruit Training Command in Great Lakes, Illinois.

Upon graduation of Navy Recruit Training, you will attend the Explosive Ordnance Disposal Preparatory Course of Instruction at Training Support Center Great Lakes.

Here, you will lay the groundwork that the rest of your EOD training will build on.

In this course, you will work on your long-range swimming capabilities and receive training on how to perfect your swim stroke.

You will also experience a more rigorous physical conditioning program to prepare you for future training.

This training cycle will last three weeks and will be the first point at which candidates will begin dropping out of the program.

Once you have completed the EOD Prep course, you will attend nine weeks of Diver Training at the Naval Diving and Salvage Training Center (NDSTC) in Panama City, Florida.

While at NDSTC, you will learn diving operation concepts, how to properly operate and maintain diving equipment, and how to properly dive under the water.

The next step in the Navy EOD training pipeline is the Explosive Ordnance Disposal A School at Eglin Air Force Base in Fort Walton Beach, Florida.

This 42-week course is split into four separate sections:

• Air Ordnance Division: disarming common types of bombs and missiles
• Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs): working with homemade bombs
• The Underwater Ordnance Division: disarming underwater explosives, such as torpedoes and mines, and underwater search techniques.
• Nuclear Ordnance Division: introduction to basic nuclear physics and procedures for working with nuclear material, including radiation monitoring and decontamination.

After completing EOD A School, you will head to Basic Airborne Training School at Fort Benning, Georgia for 3 weeks of basic parachutist training.

Finally, after completing jump school, you will begin the final leg of your journey to earn the Navy EOD Technician rating, in Coronado, California.

Throughout the 3-week Explosive Ordnance Disposal Tactical Training Course, you will learn important skills such as:

• Fast-roping
• Rappelling
• Special patrol insertion
• Extraction rigging
• Small arms training (M9, M16, Mossberg 500)
• Weapons training (.50 Caliber, M240)
• Small unit weapons tactics
• Hand-to-Hand Defense
• Land navigation
• Satellite and High-Frequency tactical communication

After completing these 63 weeks of the EOD training pipeline, you will officially be assigned a Navy Enlisted Code (NEC) of M02A designating you as a Basic Explosive Ordnance Disposal Technician.

What Does EOD Do?

Once training is complete and you are officially a rated Explosive Ordnance Disposal Technician, you will be assigned to an EOD Mobile Unit.

Mobile Units can be deployed anywhere in the world and are often attached to Naval Special Warfare Companies, Carrier/Expeditionary Strike Groups, and Marine Expeditionary Units (MEU).

Depending on your unit assignment, some of the tasks you will be completing day-to-day may include:

• Detonating and demolishing hazardous or outdated explosives
• Conducting underwater searches at ports of entry to ensure safe arrival for ships throughout the fleet
• Responding to bomb threats in support of the Navy, and local law enforcement agencies
• Training with and utilizing robotic technology to diffuse dangerous ordnance
• Disposing of discovered unexploded underwater ordnance
• Assisting the U.S. Secret Service in support of Presidential and Vice Presidential protection details during official visits
• Assisting local law enforcement agencies during large events

Why Navy EOD?

Navy EOD is not for the faint of heart.

It takes an immeasurable level of determination to make it through the training and a substantial amount of courage to do the job.

These men and women not only put their lives on the line by joining the World’s Finest Navy, but they also volunteer to endanger themselves even further to protect their Shipmates and Marines by disposing of the dangerous explosives that threaten their safety.

One day, they may jump out of a plane, the next they could be underwater, disarming an unexploded mine from World War II.

They work hand-in-hand with Special Forces worldwide and local law enforcement agencies to ensure the safety of Americans everywhere.

If this rating excites you, and you think you have what it takes to be one of the chosen few who can call themselves Navy EOD Technicians, talk to your recruiter and ask them how to begin your journey.

Want more EOD info? Click here to find your nearest Navy recruiter.