A Marine Corps poolee is someone who has signed an enlistment contract with the United States Marine Corps but has not yet left for boot camp. Every poolee sits in the Delayed Entry Program (DEP), a holding status that lets you lock in your enlistment and a guaranteed job field while you finish school or other obligations. The DEP can last up to 365 days, or 410 in certain circumstances.1Marines. Delayed Entry Program (DEP)
How Someone Becomes a Poolee
You reach poolee status by clearing the Marine Corps’ enlistment screening. Applicants must be legal U.S. residents between 17 and 28, with parental consent required under 18. A high school diploma is required before you can ship to recruit training, though you can sign the contract before graduation. GED holders can enlist but face a higher entrance-exam bar and fewer available slots.2U.S. Marine Corps. General Requirements3USAGov. Requirements to Join the U.S. Military
Every applicant takes the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB). The Marine Corps requires a minimum score of 31 on the Armed Forces Qualification Test portion, or 50 for those with a GED or nontraditional diploma.2U.S. Marine Corps. General Requirements You then complete a physical at a Military Entrance Processing Station (MEPS), similar to a sports physical, to confirm you’re medically fit.4Marine Corps. Frequently Asked Questions A criminal background check with no felony convictions is required for both enlisted and officer candidates. Once you clear every step and sign your enlistment contract at MEPS, you are officially a poolee.
What Poolees Do Before Boot Camp
Physical Training and the Initial Strength Test
The main job during the DEP is getting your body ready. Recruiters run regular training sessions built around running, calisthenics, and exercises that mirror recruit training. You are working toward the Initial Strength Test (IST), which every poolee must pass before boot camp begins. The minimums are:5Marines. Physical Requirements
- Pull-ups or push-ups in a two-minute window: 3 pull-ups or 34 push-ups for males; 1 pull-up or 15 push-ups for females.
- A 1.5-mile run in 13:30 for males and 15:00 for females.
- A plank held for at least 1:03 for everyone.
Those are floors. Poolees who ship well above them have a noticeably easier first few weeks of training.
Pool Functions and Marine Corps Knowledge
Poolees also attend monthly gatherings called pool functions, which combine fitness with team-building and lessons on Marine Corps history, rank structure, and core values.6United States Marine Corps Flagship. Marines, Poolees Conduct Pool Function After Pax Expect a mix of activities like paintball or hikes alongside classroom sessions.
You are also expected to study material you’ll be tested on at boot camp: the 11 General Orders of a Sentry, Marine Corps rank insignia, basic first aid, and the phonetic alphabet. Drill instructors will expect you to recite the General Orders from memory on day one.
Pay and Benefits During the DEP
Poolees are not paid. You’re in a holding status, not on active duty, so there is no paycheck, no housing allowance, and no access to military benefits until you ship. Any enlistment bonus in your contract also waits. For active-component bonuses, payment is triggered at your first School of Infantry join, which happens after boot camp graduation. Reserve bonuses typically pay out after all initial training is complete, including recruit training, combat training, and your occupational school.7United States Marine Corps Flagship. FY26 Total Force Enlistment Incentive Programs and Enlistment Bonuses
Can a Poolee Get Out of the DEP
Yes. Under Department of Defense policy, a DEP member may be separated at their own request when the service branch authorizes it.8Department of Defense. DoDI 1332.14 Enlisted Administrative Separations In practice, that means telling your recruiter you want out. No special paperwork is required, though putting the request in writing and keeping a copy is smart.
Expect resistance. Recruiters invest heavy time in each poolee and may push you to reconsider or ask you into the office to talk. That pressure does not change the policy. If a written request goes unanswered for a few weeks, contacting your congressional representative’s office to check on the status is a common next step. Leaving the DEP is not a criminal matter and carries no legal penalty, but you’ll receive an entry-level separation that can complicate enlisting in another branch later.
Ship Day and the End of Poolee Status
When your ship date arrives, you report back to MEPS for final processing. That day includes administrative forms, a pre-oath briefing, and the oath of enlistment.9United States Military Entrance Processing Command. USMEPCOM Regulation No. 601-23 Once you take the oath, you are on active duty and transported to a Marine Corps recruit depot. The poolee title is gone at that point; you are a recruit, and the 13 weeks of training the DEP was meant to prepare you for begin.10Marines. Recruit Training