Navy Boot Camp Graduates List

Looking for a public list of Navy boot camp graduates — maybe to find a name, confirm a graduation date, or just see who else was in a division? Here's what actually exists, and what doesn't.

There Is No Public Graduates Roster

Unlike a high school or college graduation program, RTC does not release the names of individual recruits on any public list. This is consistent with how the Navy handles the graduation guest list too — RTC staff "cannot change these names or release the names of those on the list" per official guidance, and that same privacy approach extends to publishing recruit rosters publicly. If you're trying to confirm a specific person graduated, your best source is that person directly, or their family.

What Does Exist: Honor Graduates

Each week, RTC does publish a public Honor Graduates list on the official bootcamp.navy.mil site — this recognizes top-performing recruits by division for that week's graduating class, not a full roster of everyone who graduated.

What Does Exist: The Keel Yearbook

This is the closest thing to a "graduates list" that's real, and it's genuinely worth knowing about. The Keel is the official yearbook (sometimes called a cruise book) for each graduating division at Great Lakes. It includes:

• Photos of your Sailor's recruit division, and their "brother division" if there was one
• Individual and division portraits
• Leadership photos — Recruit Division Commanders, Recruit Chief Petty Officer, and other division leaders
• Photos from training events throughout the nine weeks

How to get one: The Keel can only be ordered in person at the Navy Exchange (NEX) at Great Lakes, on the day of PIR or that graduation weekend — it cannot be ordered by phone or after the weekend has passed, and only the exact quantity ordered and prepaid gets printed. It's included free with the top-tier photo package, or can be purchased separately (around $29, though prices can change). It typically ships about 12–13 weeks after graduation, to whatever address your Sailor provides when ordering.

Historical Keel Yearbooks (Genealogy & Research)

If you're researching a Sailor who graduated Great Lakes boot camp decades ago — for genealogy, family history, or veteran research — digitized historical editions of The Keel going back to the 1940s are archived and searchable through the GG Archives, a dedicated maritime and military archive project. This won't help for a recent graduate's Keel (recent editions aren't publicly archived), but it's a legitimate resource for older records.

If You Missed Ordering The Keel

If your Sailor didn't order photos, the Division Photo, or The Keel before or during PIR weekend, contact the Photo Lab at Great Lakes directly (847-578-6205) — but only after PIR, not before. Photos are generally orderable for up to a year after graduation, though The Keel specifically must be ordered during PIR weekend itself.

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