Rct. Chelsa Hazelwood, Platoon 4045, November Company,

Rct. Chelsa Hazelwood, Platoon 4045, November Company, 4th Recruit Training Battalion, uses her utility blouse as a flotation device during swim qualification Oct. 21, 2014, on Parris Island, S.C. Recruits learn basic water survival skills, including how to abandon ship, use uniform items as flotation devices and expediently shed excess equipment. Hazelwood, 21, from Murfreesboro, Tenn., is scheduled to graduate Dec. 19, 2014. Parris Island has been the site of Marine Corps recruit training since Nov. 1, 1915. Today, approximately 20,000 recruits come to Parris Island annually for the chance to become United States Marines by enduring 13 weeks of rigorous, transformative training. Parris Island is home to entry-level enlisted training for 50 percent of males and 100 percent of females in the Marine Corps. (Photo by Cpl. Caitlin Brink)