Today Fort Jackson is the largest and most active Initial Entry Training (IET) Center in the U.S. Army, training over 50 percent of all individuals and 60 percent of all women entering the Army each year.
Providing the Army with newly trained soldiers is the post's primary mission. Each year 35,000 potential soldiers attend basic training and 8,000 Advanced Individual Training (AIT) Soldiers train at Fort Jackson. The training is provided by the 165th, 171st, and 193d Infantry Brigades, Monday through Sunday, for a ten week period. An additional 10,000 Soldiers attend courses at the Soldier Support Institute, Chaplain Center and School, and Drill Sergeant School. Also, 3,500 civilians are employed at Fort Jackson and 12,000 military Families make Fort Jackson their home.
While some military installations experienced downsizing and closure in past years, Fort Jackson benefitted and added several new schools and training institutions since 1995. These include the U.S. Army Soldier Support Institute, the Department of Defense Chaplain Center and School, and the National Center for Credibility Assessment, part of the Defense Intelligence Agency. In 2007, the Army consolidated all of its training facilities for Drill Sergeants at Fort Jackson.
Fort Jackson encompasses more than 52,000 acres of land, including 100 ranges and field training sites and more than 1,000 buildings. Located in the heart of the midlands region of South Carolina, Fort Jackson was incorporated into the city of Columbia in October 1968 and is midway between New York City and Miami, FL.
BCT is a ten week course comprised Soldiers in rifle marksmanship, dismounted land navigation, patrolling, military operations in urban terrain, convoy defense, improvised explosive device (IED) defeat, and several other skills that are essential for Soldiers in today’s Army.
Upon graduation from BCT, Soldiers are sent to the next phase of their training that in almost all cases is Advanced Individual Training (AIT), where Soldiers have the opportunity to practice their Military Occupational Specialty (MOS).
More than 8,000 Soldiers receive their AIT at Fort Jackson each year, and more than 50,000 soldiers graduate from BCT and AIT each year at Fort Jackson.
Fort Jackson provides additional advanced training to over 20,000 students each year through several advanced schools. The Drill Sergeant School trains all active duty and reserve Army Drill Instructors. The Soldier Support Institute (SSI), established at Fort Jackson in 1994, houses the Adjunct General School, the Army School of Music, Financial Management School, Noncommissioned Officers Academy, and the Recruiting and Retention School. The Defense Academy for Credibility Assessment, which trains personnel for careers as forensic psycho-physiologists, and the Armed Forces Chaplaincy Center and School, which houses the training for all U.S. military chaplains, are both located on post.
Medical support at Fort Jackson is provided by Moncreif Army Community Hospital, a 60-bed general medical and surgical hospital. Moncrief serves the personnel and families assigned to Fort Jackson and Shaw Air Force Base, as well as the thousands of military retirees residing in the Midlands.
Approximately 15,000 acres in the eastern portion of Fort Jackson is licensed to the South Carolina Army National Guard (SCARNG) which operates the McGrady National Training Center (MTC). MTC trains members of the SCARNG and is the central training facility for Navy and Air Force Personnel assigned as Individual Augmentees.
The installation hosts a wide array of recreational services and facilities and has one elementary school and one middle school. Additionally, Fort Jackson ahs two bowling alleys, several park and picnic areas, a sport-shooting range, a miniature golf course, hunting and fishing grounds, a recreational water park, and two 18-hole golf courses. Major renovations over the last five years significantly improved officer, enlisted, and family housing.