DIRECT COMMISSION PROGRAMS

Direct Commission Aviator

There's no doubt about it, this is our "poster" job. Coast Guard aviators are involved in every mission area including drug interdiction, immigration, search and rescue, marine environmental protection, marine safety, and fisheries and general federal laws applicable in the maritime environment.

The Coast Guard aviation services are provided by approximately 800 aviators and an enlisted workforce of approximately 2500. Our aircrews fly various types of the Coast Guard's inventory of 200+ aircraft dispersed among our 26 Air Stations.

Qualifications and Application Procedures:

• Be a United States citizen
• Be between the ages of 21 and 34 (applicants must have reached their 21st birthday but not their 35th birthday as of 30 September of the fiscal year in which the panel convenes)
• Must access into the Coast Guard by 30 September of the fiscal year in which the panel convenes
• Meet prescribed physical standards
• Not be on active duty in the military (except USCG) at the time of commissioning; or submit a letter of resignation from your current service with your application
• Have less than 10 years of non-Coast Guard active duty military service
• Must be a graduate of a U.S. military flight training program
• Have full-time military or civilian flight experience within two years of the published application deadline
• Have a Baccalaureate Degree or have completed 30 semester hours (45 quarter hours) at an accredited college or university
• Have served a minimum of two years as either a Warrant Officer in the Army or a Commissioned Officer in any of the Armed Forces
• Rotary-wing applicants must present evidence of being a military rotary-wing designated aviator with a minimum of 500 rotary wing flight hours (not including flight training hours). Fixed-wing applicants must possess evidence of being a military fixed-wing designated aviator with a minimum of 500 hours in a fixed-wing aircraft. Waivers are not authorized for minimum flight hours requirement
• Present current Class I flight physical (with results of chest x-ray and Coast Guard anthropometric standards)
• Interested applicants should contact a recruiter immediately to allow ample time for eligibility screening and application preparation

Direct Commission Engineer

The Direct Commission Engineer (DCE) Program provides engineers and technologists with leadership opportunities in program management; implementing systems that enable and support CG missions. Depending on specialty, selected applicants could be in charge of overseeing the design, construction and maintenance of Coast Guard vessels, merchant vessels or shore facilities; designing systems to prevent oil spills; maintaining aids to navigation; designing and maintaining electronics, communication systems, information systems and much more.

For a look at the exciting projects Coast Guard Engineers are working on, please visit these links:
Deepwater
Rescue 21

For more information about the Coast Guard, please read the Coast Guard Overview.

After your initial tour serving in an Engineering or Command, Control, Communications, Computers, Information Technology (C4IT), related billet, you will have the chance to serve a general duty tour to broaden your knowledge of the Coast Guard. This is the only service where such a tour is possible for an engineer.

Direct Commission Officer School

You will have the privilege of being a Coast Guard officer from the outset. No boot camp. DCEs are required to complete a 3-5 week resident course, depending on their past military experience. For completely new personnel, the 5-week course includes a rigorous military indoctrination period during which trainees will be expected to meet strict standards of conduct, uniform appearance and military bearing.

Rank As An Officer

Based on your experience in the degree field, education, officer standards and other criteria, selected applicants will either receive a reserve commission, or temporary commission as a Lieutenant, Lieutenant (junior grade) or Ensign.

Eligibility Requirements For Temporary Commission

• Temporary regular commission is granted to those presently in the Coast Guard as an E-5 or above with at least four years active military service, two years of which must be active duty in the Coast Guard
• Those applying for a temporary regular commission must hold a Baccalaureate Degree or higher from a college or university with an accredited engineering and/or information technology program in one of the academic degree fields listed below
• Be between the ages of 21 and 40 (applicants must have reached their 21st birthday but not their 41st birthday as of 30 September of the fiscal year in which the panel convenes)
• Selected applicants for temporary commissions should refer to the Personnel Manual, COMDINST M1000.6A for terms of service
• Have a minimum GPA of 2.5
• Pass a Coast Guard pre-commissioning physical
• Be a U.S. Citizen
• Be able to perform unrestricted service on a 24-hour, 7-day-per-week basis. Any person, who is a conscientious objector, whether or not so classified, is not eligible

Eligibility Requirements For Reserve Commission

• All applicants not eligible for a temporary commission may be able to apply for a reserve commission
• Those applying for a reserve commission must hold a Baccalaureate Degree or higher from a college or university with an accredited engineering and/or information technology program in one of the academic degree fields listed below
• Be between the ages of 21 and 40 (applicants must have reached their 21st birthday but not their 41st birthday as of 30 September of the fiscal year in which the panel convenes)
• Selected applicants terms of service for reserve commissions will receive a three-year extended active duty contract
• Have a minimum GPA of 2.5
• Pass a Coast Guard pre-commissioning physical
• Be a U.S. citizen
• Be able to perform unrestricted service on a 24-hour, 7-day-per-week basis. Any person, who is a conscientious objector, whether or not so classified, is not eligible

Eligible Academic Programs

All degrees must be accredited programs; course work intensive and technical in nature.

• Communications Engineering
• Computer Engineering
• Computer Science 
• Command and Control
• Electrical Engineering
• Engineering Information Technology
• Network Engineering
• Software Engineering
• Systems Engineering
• Telecommunications Engineering

Additional Training

You will also have the opportunity to apply for full-time university graduate or post-graduate training. If accepted, the Coast Guard will pay all tuition expenses and salary while studying.

After the Program

For those who prefer not to remain on active duty after the initial three years, the leadership and work experience you will gain from working in program management and implementing systems that enable and support CG missions are highly regarded in the private sector.

Direct Commission Intelligence Officer

Since 2001, when the Coast Guard became a member of Homeland Security and the U.S. Intelligence Community, the modern Coast Guard Intelligence Program has cultivated extensive relationships and partnerships with other elements of the national intelligence community to provide timely, tailored support in a wide range of Coast Guard and national missions. These missions include port security, search and rescue, maritime safety, counter-narcotics, alien migration interdiction and living, marine-resources protection.

The Coast Guard stands ready to protect the nation, provide unique intelligence and ensure that the ports, waterways and coasts are safe and secure.

Graduates of accredited graduate and undergraduate programs in intelligence who have experience in the intelligence field, and who hold current Director of Central Intelligence Directive (DCID) Sensitive Compartmented Information (SCI) 6/4 eligibility may be selected for commissioning in the Coast Guard as a Lieutenant, Lieutenant (junior grade), or an Ensign through a highly competitive selection process. The DCIO program is currently seeking applicants with HUMINT, MASINT, SIGINT, CI, or CT education, training and experience.

Eligibility Requirements

Individuals must meet the following requirements to apply for this program:

• Be between the ages of 21 and 40 (applicants must have reached their 21st birthday but not their 41st birthday as of 30 September of the fiscal year in which the panel convenes)
• Be a U.S. citizen
• Character Standards: Meet Art. 4.B.1.a. character standards
• Education: Must have a baccalaureate or higher degree from an accredited program in intelligence. Other majors may be considered on a case-by-case basis with a waiver
• Military Service: Prior military personnel must not have completed more than 10 years of active duty service in a U.S. Armed Service, Reserve component thereof, or National Guard
• Applicants must have no break in service for more than 24 months from discharge date from service or agency to accepting oath of office with the Coast Guard
• Physically Qualified: Be physically qualified in accordance with Art. 4.B.1.e.
• Security Clearance: Must currently hold and be able to maintain Director of Central Intelligence Directive (DCID 6/4)/Sensitive Compartmented Information (SCI) eligibility
• Experience: Applicants must have practical and recent work experience in the intelligence field

Initial Indoctrination

Selected applicants will complete a three- to five-week Direct Commission Officer (DCO) course, the length depending on their past military experience. For personnel with no prior military service, the five-week course includes a rigorous military indoctrination period during which trainees will be expected to meet strict standards of conduct, uniform appearance and military bearing.

Term of Service

Active duty Coast Guard selectees may qualify for and be offered temporary regular commissions. All other selectees will be offered Coast Guard Reserve commissions and will initially be given four-year, extended active duty contracts. Upon expiration of the initial active duty contracts, reserve officers may apply for extensions, and may also apply for integration into the regular Coast Guard after meeting certain requirements, such as being selected for promotion by a "best-qualified" board.

Appointment Grade

The DCIO selection panel will determine rank based on formal intelligence education, training, work experience, prior military service and other factors. Selected applicants will receive a commission as a Lieutenant, Lieutenant (junior grade), or Ensign.

Direct Commission Lawyer

NOTE: The Coast Guard is modifying its qualifications for the Direct Commission Lawyer program and will be accepting applications from graduates of non-ABA accredited schools that meet the following criteria:

• Are admitted to practice before the bar of the highest court of any state jurisdiction
• Can demonstrate experience practicing law in one or more areas of the law with specific applicability to the Coast Guard

Are you a Licensed Attorney? A third-year law student? If you are, you may want to be part of the Coast Guard Team as a Coast Guard Judge Advocate through the United States Coast Guard Direct Commission Lawyer Program.

As a lawyer in the Coast Guard, you'll get opportunities that any private law firm would find hard to match. For instance, your duties can include such diverse matters as military justice, civil and criminal trial advocacy, maritime and admiralty law, legal assistance and international, fiscal and environmental law.

Because we are a small group, you'll get plenty of experience, quickly, both representing clients and trying cases. And, you'll have the opportunity to seek experience outside law practice because we have no separate judge advocacy corps. Plus, you'll have the chance to move up the chain of command.

Becoming a Coast Guard Attorney

The Coast Guard has two major programs providing military attorneys or Judge Advocates: The first is for officers already serving in the Coast Guard through the Coast Guard's Advanced Education Program (or Graduate School). The second is through the Direct Commission Officer (DCO) program as a Direct Commission Lawyer (DCL). DCL candidates selected for this program will be commissioned as a Lieutenant (O-3).

An application package (found at the bottom of this page) should be downloaded and taken to your local Coast Guard Recruiter, who will assist you through the application process and supply those forms not available online. In addition, the recruiter will schedule your Military Entrance Processing Station (MEPS) physical and your formal interview.

The practice of law in the Coast Guard

Core Competencies of Coast Guard Lawyers

• Legal Knowledge - Master the law
• Ethics & Professional Responsibility - Uphold the highest professional ethical standards of the legal profession
• Responsiveness - Provide legal services and counsel in the right place, at the right time
• Advocacy - Zealously represent our clients, effectively countering challenges to lawful Coast Guard operations and activities
• Client Relationships - Partner with Coast Guard decision makers at all levels, understanding their business and giving them legal capabilities needed to accomplish their mission
• Leadership - Develop skills and experiences needed to be leaders in the world's premier Coast Guard.
• Technology - Expertly use technology to deliver legal services to Coast Guard leaders and people, wherever they need them.

Practice Areas

The Coast Guard Legal Program is a "full service" legal support organization, providing legal advice and counsel for any and all requirements the service's decision makers place on us. This is done within 10 general legal practice areas: Criminal Law/Military Justice, Operations, International Activities, Civil Advocacy, Environmental Law, Procurement Law, Internal Organizational Law, Regulations & Administrative Law, Legislative Support and Legal Assistance.

Criminal Law/Military Justice

As an armed force, the Coast Guard is subject to the Uniform Code of Military Justice. The Judge Advocate General is designated the Coast Guard's senior military attorney. Military Judge Advocates serve as defense counsel and prosecutors for military court-martials and as military judges at the trial and appellate level. Judge Advocates assigned as appellate counsel (both for the government and defense) brief and argue cases before the Coast Guard Court of Criminal Appeals, the Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces, and the Supreme Court of the United States. Coast Guard attorneys serve as Staff Judge Advocates to Coast Guard commanders, providing advice on military criminal matters.

Operations

Legal counsel and enforcement guidance in key mission areas, including: maritime homeland security, enforcement of laws and treaties (particularly drug laws, fisheries laws, customs laws, environmental laws, and immigration law), search and rescue, icebreaker operations, intelligence law, national security and defense operations, marine environmental protection, port safety and security (including Captain of the Port functions & homeland security, maritime defense zone responsibilities), and other Coast Guard missions as well as in the following general areas: vessel inspection and commercial vessel safety, merchant vessel personnel, and review of appeals by merchant seamen of suspension and revocation orders entered by Administrative Law Judges, investigations of marine casualties and violations of law by merchant mariners; appeal adjudication for civil penalty cases; determines the navigable status of U. S. waters.

International Activities

Coast Guard attorneys serve as advisors or representatives of the United States at most of the several bodies of the International Maritime Organization (IMO), headquartered in London, including the Assembly, the Facilitation Committee, the Marine Safety Committee, the Safety of Navigation subcommittee and the Radio-communications and Search and Rescue subcommittee and the Legal Committee. The principal and alternate U.S. Representative to the IMO Legal Committee are Coast Guard attorneys. One Coast Guard attorney is currently assigned as liaison to the Department of State, another is attached to the Department of Defense Institute for International Legal Studies.

Civil Advocacy, Claims & Litigation

The Coast Guard actively manages an extensive claims program under several federal statutes. These involve adjudicating claims made against the agency and collecting monies owed the government due to penalties assessed for violations of federal law, for damage to Coast Guard property, and for cleanup and recovery costs. Coast Guard attorneys are actively involved in a wide variety of civil litigation, from simple tort defense to Constitutional challenges. Judge Advocates are assigned to the Department of Justice where they provide valuable Coast Guard experience to DOJ attorneys in the shipping and admiralty and environmental defense areas.

Procurement Law

Coast Guard attorneys in the Office of Procurement Law at Headquarters, in the two Maintenance and Logistics Commands, and in some field legal offices, provide contract law advice to management, technical, and contracting officials at all levels of the Coast Guard. This ranges from daily advice to field level contracting officers to serving as counsel for major construction, acquisition, and procurements. Advice is provided from the earliest planning stages of procurement through contract negotiation and award as well as through contract administration, which may include action on claims and contract litigation.

Environmental Law

Legal services are provided in support of Coast Guard compliance with federal, state and local environmental requirements, and for the acquisition and disposal of real property. Advice is given regarding federal, state and local requirements that may affect or constrain Coast Guard activities. We represent the Coast Guard, either directly or through the Department of Justice (DOJ), in environmental enforcement actions against the Coast Guard, environmental citizen suits, and challenges to Coast Guard activities brought under environmental statutes. The Office of Environmental Law at CG Headquarters evaluates requests for representation from Coast Guard personnel sued or criminally charged in their individual capacities for environmental violations, and forwards such requests to DOJ with appropriate recommendations.

Internal Organizational Law

This practice area encompasses a wide range of legal subjects with perhaps the largest number of clients. Coast Guard attorneys provide legal advice on issues including federal fiscal law, gift acceptance and standards of ethical conduct for government employees, management, military and civilian personnel law, civil rights, healthcare, privacy and the release of information. To some extent, Coast Guard attorneys do this work wherever they are. Attorneys at the Office of General Law at Headquarters and at the Maintenance & Logistics Commands provide advice and represent the Coast Guard on matters involving the Merit Systems Protection Board, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and labor relations. The Office of Military Justice is involved in two personnel law areas: the Board of Correction of Military Records and representation of Coast Guard members in physical disability cases.

Regulations and Administrative Law

The Judge Advocate General is responsible for the legal sufficiency, format, style and placement in the Code of Federal Regulations of all Coast Guard public regulatory documents and related rule-making matters under the statutory authority of the Commandant. The Office of Regulations & Administrative Law provides legal counsel, review, drafting assistance, and other support services for all rule-making activities by Coast Guard Headquarters and field managers. This office also provides legal counsel, review, and other support services for issues arising under the Freedom of Information Act and the Federal Advisory Committee Act.

Legislative Support

The Office of Legislation provides legal counsel for the drafting, reviewing and coordination of the legislative program for the Coast Guard, usually in the form of the annual Coast Guard authorization bill for future fiscal years. The office coordinates agency review of pending legislation, Congressional testimony, proposed executive orders, and other agencies' reviews of pending legislation. We also provide Coast Guard comments regarding draft statements of Administration policy on pending legislation.

Legal Assistance

The Coast Guard, as do the other military services, provides personal legal services to eligible beneficiaries. This program, provided in accordance with Title 10, United States Code, Section 1044, makes attorneys available to provide advice, counsel and in some cases representation on many civil legal matters including estate planning, financial issues, landlord/tenant and personal real property, domestic and family law, application of the Soldiers and Sailors Civil Relief Act and other federal laws impacting military personnel in the civilian community, and taxes.

For More Information on the Direct Commission Lawyer Program

To find out more about the practice of law in the Coast Guard, the application and selection process, and answers to frequently asked questions, please visit The Judge Advocate General's Web Site.

Qualifications

• U.S. Citizen
• Be between the ages of 21 and 40 (applicants must have reached their 21st birthday but not their 41st birthday as of 30 September of the fiscal year in which the panel convenes)
• Meet prescribed physical standards
• Not be on active duty in the military (except USCG) at the time of commissioning
• Be a graduate of, or a third-year law student in, an ABA-accredited law school
• Be a graduate of a non ABA accredited law school and meet the following condiditons:
  admitted to practice before the bar of the highest court of any state jurisdiction and demonstrate experience practicing law in one or more areas of the law with specific applicability to the Coast Guard
• Present evidence of either admission to the bar of the highest court of a state, the District of Columbia, or U.S. Territory, or application to take such a bar prior to the scheduled Direct Commission Officer Course

Direct Commission Selected School (DCSS) Program

College graduates who have been exposed to military training through Armed ervices Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) programs, equivalent regimented programs, or other Federal military academies, while earning an undergraduate degree may be commissioned in the Coast Guard Reserve.

Eligibility Requirements