Full size military medals are authorized for wear by honorably discharged veterans or military retirees and active military personnel on active, guard or reserve status. In wearing full size medals, it is important to ensure you are authorized to wear the medals before you place them on your uniform or civilian attire. Check your records and it is also important that military personnel consult their service’s uniform regulations to ensure the awards are properly worn and displayed.
Medals can be earned for performance (decoration) or for service. Medals are mounted on racks for wear, whether they are minis or full size, except for the Medal of Honor which is worn around the neck.Service medals are awarded for participation in a specific operation or mission. For example, the Humanitarian Service Medal or the Global War on Terror Service Medal are both service medals and it is easy to figure out because they have the term “Service Medal” in their name, sort of like the Korea Defense Service Medal. Those medals tell everyone that you’ve “been there, done that.” Other service medals are presented for good conduct. Campaign-centric medals are medals like the Iraqi Campaign Medal or the Afghanistan Campaign Medal that represent participation in a particular campaign during a specific period of time.
Decoration medals are awarded for meritorious service and bravery and therefore tend to rank higher in the order of precedence. Finally, decorations have a wide array of shapes like hexagons, gears, stars and crosses whereas service award medallions tend to by round.