U.S. military hits recruitment goals after years of shortfalls

Nearly all of the U.S. military’s active-duty components hit recruitment targets in 2024 after years of shortfalls. 

U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin praised the recruitment efforts.

“The American military is the strongest fighting force on Earth. For more than 50 years, our all-volunteer force has been sustained by qualified patriots who stand up to serve and keep our republic secure,” he said. “Our greatest strategic asset is our people, and we must continue to recruit and retain the best that our country has to offer.”

The military services recruited 225,000 people in fiscal year 2024 – 25,000 more recruits than last year, said Katie Helland, the Pentagon’s director of military accession policy.

She pointed directly to the challenges military components will face in the coming years as they set higher recruitment goals. 

“We need to remain cautiously optimistic about the future recruiting operations as we continue to recruit in a market that has low youth propensity to serve, limited familiarity with military opportunities, a competitive labor market and a declining eligibility among young adults,” Helland said. 

Helland noted a growing divide between civilians and the military.

“Data indicate that many of today’s youth are not interested in military service and have many misperceptions about what life is like as a service member,” she said.

In fact, most young people never consider signing up. 

“For the first time since this metric has been tracked, the majority of youth have never even considered military service as an option,” Helland said. “That is it’s not even on the radar. This divide has been brought about by a confluence of many factors, including the shrinking military footprint and declining veteran presence across society.”

One challenge is fewer ties to a family member who served. In 1990, 40% of young adults had a parent who served. That’s down to 15%.

“In the past, those direct ties were key to conveying the boundless opportunities and experiences that are gained from military service,” Helland said. “And without these personal connections, we find fewer young adults are familiar with the benefits of service.”

The U.S. Army exceeded fiscal year 2024 recruiting goals for its active component. The Army will achieve at least 55,300 total accessions – entry or re-entry into service – for fiscal year 2024 and will place about 11,000 soldiers in the Delayed Entry Program for fiscal year 2025. By comparison, the Army achieved 50,181 accessions in fiscal year 23 and added 4,661 in the Delayed Entry Program.

The U.S. Navy exceeded its fiscal year 2024 recruiting goals, contracting 40,978 new recruits by the end of the fiscal year, what the Navy called “its most significant recruiting achievement in 20 years.”

The Air Force Recruiting Service achieved its fiscal year 2024 goal across all components, with the active-duty Air Force, Air National Guard, Air Force Reserve and Space Force all meeting their recruitment targets.

For the first time since 2017, the Coast Guard met its recruiting goals for enlisted active duty, the Reserve, and Non-Academy officer program accessions.  The Coast Guard accessed more than 4,400 active duty members.

“The all-volunteer force remains the foundation of America’s national defense, and it is all of our duty to ensure that it remains strong for generations to come,” Austin said. “The Department of Defense remains deeply committed to ensuring that every qualified patriot has the opportunity to answer the call.”