Are there any SERE type courses available to civilians? I think this type of training is good to know, could one day prove to be useful and save your life, and also a little fun.
This is something I stumbled upon while surfing the net, I don’t know anything about it’s credibility but I think it’s along the lines of what your asking about.
There are quite a few of them. Mostly you find them listed as survival schools here are only a couple but there are plenty more:
What is the cost of the school?
$9,950.00
Thats a little more than I was looking for and $10,00 is pretty steep. I also feel like it would be filled strange people trying to live out there “Special Operations” fantasy.
Thanks though.
I am sure for that price K.L. Davis will teach you everything you want to know and then some.
Yeah it appears to be rather expensive, and like you said they would probably be some real werdo’s running around.
Eeee’gads! 10K? I don’t think I know 10,000 dollars worth of stuff?
As for the OP, most survival classes are ran with eye toward being found… take a look at some advanced SAR and tracking classes/instructors, they should be able to offer the inverse of their standard fare as at least a good primer.
Thanks. I’ll be doing some research on the different classes. In the mean time, has anyone taken such a class or recommend a certain one?
Are you looking for an actual SERE course or just a wilderness survical course for like a week where you learn fire making and stuff?
It depends on the kind of “civilian” you are and what you’re trying to get out of it. A true SERE course is not probable because of the classified material, but as others have said, survival courses are available.
Hey guys. We have something similar to a SERE course down here in the Philippines. Its actually more of a jungle survival course that was taught to sailors and marines at the Subic naval base. We have condensed and full survival courses and it wouldnt cost you 10K!
Well, either it is or isn’t.
SERE is not something you “kinda or sorta” do. Lets not forget that survival training is only a part of it. It is the S in SERE. Its the ERE that makes it SERE, with the R probably being the toughest.
There is more to SERE than sneaking around the woods in multicam eating bunny rabbits and dandilions. I doubt very few people would want to pay for this training, let alone go through it. That is why we probably don’t see a lot of SERE courses for pure civilians.
Well, either it is or isn’t.
SERE is not something you “kinda or sorta” do. Lets not forget that survival training is only a part of it. It is the S in SERE. Its the ERE that makes it SERE, with the R probably being the toughest.
There is more to SERE than sneaking around the woods in multicam eating bunny rabbits and dandilions. I doubt very few people would want to pay for this training, let alone go through it. That is why we probably don’t see a lot of SERE courses for pure civilians.
I agree. surviving in adverse conditions in a foreign environment is just part of SERE training. I also agree that not many people would want to pay for a physically and mentally stressful, almost to the breaking point, type of SERE course.
However, there are tons of alternatives like tracking or wilderness survival courses around the world, like those that were already mentioned in this thread.
I dunno about you guys, but life has been SERE school for me already 
If you’ve got the bones, and can get admitted, there are outfits and contractors that provide SERE-esque training to corporate and other certain types operating in high risk environments. Kidnap avoidance and survival, escape/evasion, etc. Netsearch should get you there.
Thanks Ninja, that brought a smile
Crucible, you’re talking about JEST (Jungle Environmental Survival Training) right? I used to go there for a week every year when I was in high school in the Philippines. We always had a guide that we called Pepe. He grew up in the jungle and trained U.S. Special Forces for Vietnam. Just an example how these guys define resourcefulness - he has goggles for spear fishing that he made out of bamboo, clear plastic and rubber. During the week we would spend our time learning about different plants and we could use from them, what to trap (lizards), fish (shrimp, eel) and hunt(bats and frogs) for (only food we brought was rice), how to create shelter, etc. We were under no illusions that this was anything like SERE. Mainly just for fun and to learn how to be prepared.
Did you go to Dewey???
B
Yup, thats it johnclark075.
Its funny, now that I’ve thought of it, that bats or lizards or frogs don’t taste anything close to chicken
A friend out of 7th Group once told me that SERE school was the single worst experience of his life, including burrying his father.
I think the kind of survival in the woods stuff you’re looking for can be found in the boy scouts (seriously, heck I’d like to know some of that stuff too). I agree with Ninja. You don’t WANT the kind of psychological exposure these guys get at SERE. Just my humble opinion.