The Marine Corps War College (MCWAR), is the senior school of the

Marine Corps University Marine Corps University is a professional military education university system of the United States Marine Corps. It is accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools to award Master's Degrees. ...

, providing

Joint Professional Military Education Joint Professional Military Education (JPME) is a form of Professional Military Education (PME) in the United States that emphasizes a multiservice approach. Joint Professional Military Education was established following greater awareness during ...

(JPME) to selected United States military officers, civilian Government officials, and international military officers. The college prepares officers for future senior command and staff responsibilities requiring exceptional operational competence, sound military judgment, and strategic thinking.Southwick, Curt B. (1991). "The Marine Corps Art of War Studies." ''Marine Corps Gazette,'' 75(1), 47. The college is located within the

aboard

Marine Corps Base Quantico Marine Corps Base Quantico (commonly abbreviated MCB Quantico) is a United States Marine Corps installation located near Triangle, Virginia, covering nearly of southern Prince William County, Virginia, northern Stafford County, and southeaster ...

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

History

On 1 August 1990, the 29th Commandant of the Marine Corps, General

Alfred M. Gray, Jr. Alfred Mason Gray Jr. (born June 22, 1928) is a retired United States Marine Corps four-star general who served as the 29th Commandant of the Marine Corps from 1 July 1987 until his retirement on 30 June 1991 after 41 years of service. Early li ...

, instituted the Art of War Studies program under the Marine Corps Command and Staff College. General Gray's vision was to establish a "world-class educational institution for the study of war and the profession of arms." The original seminar was attended by six lieutenant colonels and was ten months long. The course of study matured into the current College and was patterned after other United States military senior-level service colleges. By 1999, the college became an accredited JPME Phase-I institution, enrolling 16 students from all five branches of the Armed Forces and various government agencies. In 2002, the college received full accreditation from both the

United States Department of Education The United States Department of Education is a Cabinet-level department of the United States government. It began operating on May 4, 1980, having been created after the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare was split into the Department ...

and the

Southern Association of Colleges and Schools The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) is an educational accreditor recognized by the United States Department of Education and the Council for Higher Education Accreditation. This agency accredits over 13,000 public and priv ...

to confer a Master of Strategic Studies degree. In 2006, the college received JPME Phase-II accreditation. In 2009, the college expanded its student population and opened enrollment to include international military officers. The maximum enrollment each academic year is 30 students. In 2011, the college published the inaugural edition of the "MCWAR Papers" in cooperation with the Marine Corps University Press. The MCWAR papers is compilation of analytical papers by the college's students on strategic-level issue . MCWAR is located in Dunlap Hall aboard Marine Corps Base Quantico, Virginia. Dunlap Hall is named in honor of Brigadier General Robert H. Dunlap, USMC.

Curriculum

The curriculum is designed to ensure officers "develop intellectual and technical approaches to warfighting and strategic thinking, hone military judgment, evaluate methodologies, expand academic expertise, and sharpen teaching skills through reading, research, writing, and participation in seminars." In order to achieve this, the curriculum partners military competence with political, economic, social, and informational studies which converge to form a complete national strategy. Collaborative efforts provide a diverse educational experience: students routinely interact with policy makers such as the Secretary of Defense, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the Secretary of Homeland Defense, the Director of the FBI, the National Security Adviser, and members of congress.Schultz, Tammy s, ed. (2011). "Preparing for an Era of Persistent Conflict." ''MCWAR Papers 2010,'' iii. Non-government agencies such as JP Morgan, the Council on Foreign Relations, the New York Stock Exchange, and J Walter Thompson also supplement the college's coursework. Domestic and international travel opportunities are integrated with the curriculum. These travel opportunities have included trips to

Unified Combatant Command A unified combatant command (CCMD), also referred to as a combatant command, is a joint military command of the United States Department of Defense that is composed of units from two or more service branches of the United States Armed Forces, an ...

s such as

United States Central Command The United States Central Command (USCENTCOM or CENTCOM) is one of the eleven unified combatant commands of the U.S. Department of Defense. It was established in 1983, taking over the previous responsibilities of the Rapid Deployment Joint Tas ...

(USCENTCOM) as well as international trips to allies in Europe, Asia, and Latin America. The curriculum is a ten-month resident program consisting of 33-38 credit hours in the following core courses: *Leadership and Ethics *Warfighting and Economics *National Security *Joint Warfare *Diplomacy and Statecraft *Advanced Studies Program Extracurricular educational activities are offered through the auspices of The

, Library of the Marine Corps (Alfred M. Gray Research Center),

National Museum of the Marine Corps The National Museum of the Marine Corps is the historical museum of the United States Marine Corps. Located in Triangle, Virginia near MCB Quantico, the museum opened on November 10, 2006, and is now one of the top tourist attractions in the st ...

, Marine Corps University Foundation, and Marine Corps Heritage Foundation. Graduates are awarded a Master of Strategic Studies degree and JPME Phase-II certification by the President of the Marine Corps University. The degree is accredited by the

Students and admissions

Admission to the college is based on allocations granted by the Commandant of the Marine Corps and are solicited each academic year through a Marine Administrative Message. The admissions policy supports the mission and purpose of the college and reflects the needs of the United States Marine Corps and the educational criteria of the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff's Officer Professional Military Education Policy. The student body is composed from three populations: ;U.S. Military officers *

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combi ...

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Signal ...

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

United States Coast Guard The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and law enforcement service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the country's eight uniformed services. The service is a maritime, military, mult ...

United States Space Force The United States Space Force (USSF) is the space service branch of the U.S. Armed Forces, one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and the world's only independent space force. Along with its sister branch, the U.S. Air Force, the Space ...

;Government officials: *

Central Intelligence Agency The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gathering, processing, ...

Defense Intelligence Agency The Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) is an intelligence agency and combat support agency of the United States Department of Defense, specializing in defense and military intelligence. A component of the Department of Defense (DoD) and the I ...

Department of State The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations. Equivalent to the ministry of foreign affairs of other nati ...

Federal Bureau of Investigation The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic intelligence and security service of the United States and its principal federal law enforcement agency. Operating under the jurisdiction of the United States Department of Justice, ...

United States Agency for International Development The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is an independent agency of the U.S. federal government that is primarily responsible for administering civilian foreign aid and development assistance. With a budget of over $27 bi ...

;International military officers have attended from: *

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan Jordan ( ar, الأردن; Romanization of Arabic, tr. ' ), officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan,; Romanization of Arabic, tr. ' is a country in Western Asia. It is situated at the crossroads of Asia, Africa, and Europe, within the Levan ...

Georgian Republic Georgia (, ; ) is a transcontinental country at the intersection of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is part of the Caucasus region, bounded by the Black Sea to the west, by Russia to the north and northeast, by Turkey to the southwest ...

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...

Islamic Republic of Afghanistan The Islamic Republic of Afghanistan was a presidential republic that ruled Afghanistan from 2004 to 2021. The state was established to replace the Afghan interim (2001–2002) and transitional (2002–2004) administrations, which were formed ...

Islamic Republic of Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 243 million people, and has the world's second-lar ...

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia (The Middle East). It is located at th ...

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

Republic of the Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

Republic of Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guinea. Ind ...

U.S. military officers are admitted through their services' selection/assignment processes; Federal Government civilian employees are admitted through an invitational nomination and approval process; International military officers are selected through the Department of State. As of 1995, the number of graduates promoted to O-6 (

Colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...

) was 93% which exceeds the Marine Corps average.Bedard, Emil R. (1995). "Great Leaders Teach and Great Teachers Lead." ''Marine Corps Gazette'', 79(1), 25. Also, 96% have been selected for command.

Notable alumni

References

External links