How To Become A Hospital Corpsman: What It Is and Career Path

What is a hospital corpsman and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

Quoted Expert

Dr. Felisa Albert

Hospital corpsmen work in military hospitals, supporting medical professionals. They administer medicine and immunization, provide emergency treatment, transport sick or injured soldiers, and conduct medical examinations.

As enlisted members of the Navy, hospital corpsmen have more education than emergency medical technicians, although their duties are quite similar. In addition, hospital corpsmen might specialize as clinical or specialty technicians, or medical administrative personnel.

They might be deployed and serve as battlefield corpsmen providing emergency treatment to soldiers in the field. As performing your tasks in a combat environment is very much in the mix, the ability to work under pressure is a must if you are considering this position.

What general advice would you give to a Hospital Corpsman?

Dr. Felisa Albert

Senior Instructor, Academic Success Coach, Cambridge College

I would like graduates beginning their career to understand that their journey is not a race but a self-discovery journey. One might start off on one track and later on realize that path is no longer the one they want to pursue. If that happens, please remember: be patient, and believe in yourself and the process in order to clear the mind of self-doubt. The number one goal is to find what one is passionate about, what gives one energy, and what makes the soul happy.

Because everyone has gifts for the world, a person should take action steps to find out what those are by journaling, creating a vision board, meditating, praying, or brainstorming with those who one is familiar with and, more importantly, who can support the exploratory process in that moment. One must remember to always set goals, reach goals, make new goals, and repeat.

College gives the foundation, but now the real world is going to give the test. Embrace the challenge. Stay current and knowledgeable about the professions of choice. One shouldn't be afraid to ask questions and for help, so find a mentor or coach to help guide in the process. The world owes you nothing; therefore, understand there will be obstacles, so creating action plans are necessary to stay focused and to keep moving with a vision in place.

ScoreHospital CorpsmanUS Average

Salary

2.7

Avg. Salary $34,357

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability Level

8.5

Growth Rate 9%

Growth Rate 0.3%

Diversity

10.0

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.93%

Asian 6.87%

Black or African American 10.84%

Hispanic or Latino 17.94%

Unknown 4.99%

White 58.43%

Gender

female 29.67%

male 70.33%

Age - 41

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 41

Stress Level

8.5

Stress level is very high

7.1 - high

Complexity Level

7.0

Complexity Level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work Life Balance

10.0

Work Life balance is excellent

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a hospital corpsman

Explore hospital corpsman education requirements

Most common hospital corpsman degrees

Bachelor's

41.4 %

Associate

25.0 %

High School Diploma

20.1 %

Start to develop specific hospital corpsman skills

Skills	Percentages
Patients	17.77%
Emergency Medicine	9.10%
Vital Signs	7.66%
Direct Patient Care	6.05%
Clinical Laboratory Tests	5.66%

Complete relevant hospital corpsman training and internships

Accountants spend an average of Less than 1 month on post-employment, on-the-job training. New hospital corpsmen learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a hospital corpsman based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real hospital corpsman resumes.

Gain additional hospital corpsman certifications

Hospital corpsman certifications can show employers you have a baseline of knowledge expected for the position. Certifications can also make you a more competitive candidate. Even if employers don't require a specific hospital corpsman certification, having one may help you stand out relative to other applicants.

The most common certifications for hospital corpsmen include Medical Assistant and Basic Life Support for Healthcare and Public Safety (BLS).

More About Certifications

Research hospital corpsman duties and responsibilities

Manage medical and dental records according to JHACO and HIPPA standards.
Lead and train junior sailors on general military training, including hazardous materials and safety clinical procedures.
Educate and teach basic physical therapy exercises to staff and patients to prevent or manage occupational/work relate injuries.
Provide both sick call, and emergency medical services at a BLS and ALS level.

Prepare your hospital corpsman resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your hospital corpsman resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a hospital corpsman resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose From 10+ Customizable Hospital Corpsman Resume templates

Build a professional Hospital Corpsman resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your Hospital Corpsman resume.

Apply for hospital corpsman jobs

Now it's time to start searching for a hospital corpsman job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

Browse job boards for relevant postings
Consult your professional network
Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
Watch out for job scams

How do hospital corpsmen rate their job?