The day-to-day life of the Soviet armed forces at the troop level is depicted, based on information from unclassified military journals and other open sources. With most of the population exposed from an early age to military training, including adults in civil defense work, recent emphasis has been on compulsory pre-induction military training for all 16-18 year olds. Objectives and methods of inductee training are examined; discipline, morale, and political indoctrination are described, along with an estimate of the current role of the Party in the military. Some peculiarities of Soviet military administration are cited and a number of constraints on Soviet military effectiveness are discussed.