With thousands of Marines joining, changing duty stations, and being discharged

from the Corps, 0170 Personnel Officers work to ensure the accuracy of all Marines'

personnel records.  These 0170's are the Marine Corps' subject-matter experts on

all things related to personnel administration.  Many Personnel Officers,

affectionately called PersO's (pronounced purse-oh), work in the Installation

Personnel Administrative Center's as director, assistant director, or head of an

Inbound or Outbound section.  With one IPAC per base, these PersO's are responsible

for administrative accuracy of thousands of Marines at any given time. 

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Personnel Officers function as special staff advisors to commanders and staffs on

all personnel administration functions and operations. They are subject matter experts on all personnel administration disciplines and their application across the spectrum of military operations. They formulate plans, policies, and procedures pertaining to personnel administration operations at all levels of the Operating Forces and the Supporting Establishment.  

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Personnel Officers provide advice on issues related to personal affairs, benefits, privileges, and entitlements accrued to members of the Armed Forces. Due to the diversity of commands throughout the Marine Corps, the duties and tasks performed by the Personnel Officer may overlap those performed by the Manpower Officer.  There are approximately 250 PersO's in the Marine Corps with 70% at ranks of CWO2 or CWO3.  0170's must be be American citizens with a GT score of at least 110.  To be considered for selection as a Warrant Officer in MOS 0170, applicants should have a minimum of two years of experience in a personnel reporting unit (IPAC, stand-alone admin reporting unit, or I&I) at the rank of Sergeant or above. Completion of the Advanced Administration Specialist Course is encouraged prior to attendance at the Personnel Officer Course.