(NEW LONDON, Conn.) – Approximately 300 young women and men arrived at the Coast Guard Academy on June 27 to start Day One of their training as part of the incoming Class of 2026.
According to current estimates, about 43 percent of the class are women, which will be the most in an incoming class ever, and 38 percent are from underrepresented minority groups. Also expected to join the class are nine international students from the Dominican Republic, the Philippines, Vietnam, Honduras, Palau, Guyana and Taiwan.
Day One marks the traditional start of Swab Summer, an intense seven-week training program designed to transform civilian students into military members ready to accept the challenges that await them in their pursuit to become Coast Guard officers. During their first day at the academy, the swabs (as the new cadets are called) cycled through haircuts, uniform issue, drill practice and various administrative in-processing.
– U.S. Coast Guard
