The USMC School of Infantry has two major locations: Marine School of Infantry East at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, and the School of Infantry at Camp Pendleton, California. The graduates of the Marine Corps Recruit Depot Paris Island -- for those recruits east of the Mississippi -- usually attend advanced training at Camp Lejeune as their counterparts in the west attend school at Camp Pendleton. These schools pride themselves on marksmanship training, with the schools' mottoes being "Every Marine Is, First and Foremost, a Rifleman." Both camps are home to Advanced Infantry Training Companies and are also home to the Advanced Infantry Battalion as well. Basic entry courses last 28 days.
Located in Quantico, Virgina, the United States Marine Corps University is specially designed to teach graduate-level courses to those career Marine officers who seek to further their knowledge of commanding and tactical strategies. The school was established in 1891 with 29 company officers attending what was then known as the School of Application. It includes the Marine Corps Command and Staff College and School of Advanced Warfighting. Formerly known as the Amphibious Warfare school, the Expeditionary Warfare School specializes in instructing Marine Corps captains in landing operations and management of wartime logistics. The school also is home to the USMC History Division, which records and archives the history of the USMC.
Within the School of Infantry West at Camp Pendelton, California, is the Marine's reconnaissance school, known as the Reconnaissance Training Company. The motto of the Marine Reconnaissance Company is "Swift, Silent, Deadly." This school specializes in training Marines in the amphibious reconnaissance required of all battlefield situations. The average workday for the Marines in the program is grueling, with 15.5 hours of the day spent in class or in field training. The course is 65 days long and allows Marines to learn in detail the battlefield support required of combined military forces with the Air Force and Navy. Skills learned include Combat Rubber Raiding Craft (CRRC) and Helicopter Rope Suspension Training (HRST).
Those Marines interested in furthering their career with the United States Marine Corps attend the Officer Candidates School in Quantico, Virgina. According to its website, the school's mission is to "train, evaluate, and screen" those officer candidates to assure the Marine Corps that they posses the moral, intellectual and physical qualities desirable in a Marine Corps officer. The officer candidates must fit several prerequisite qualifications before being able to enter the school, which include a high physical fitness test; a strict understanding of Marine Corp grooming, dress codes and conduct; and exhibiting an excellent personal record within their own Marine Corps division.