The

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, ...

's Warrant Officer Candidate School (WOCS), located at

Fort Rucker Fort Rucker is a U.S. Army post located primarily in Dale County, Alabama, United States. It was named for a Civil War officer, Confederate General Edmund Rucker. The post is the primary flight training installation for U.S. Army Aviators and ...

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = " Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County , LargestMetro = Greater Birmingham , area_total_km2 = 135,7 ...

, provides

training Training is teaching, or developing in oneself or others, any skills and knowledge or fitness that relate to specific useful competencies. Training has specific goals of improving one's capability, capacity, productivity and performance. I ...

for Soldiers to become a

warrant officer Warrant officer (WO) is a rank or category of ranks in the armed forces of many countries. Depending on the country, service, or historical context, warrant officers are sometimes classified as the most junior of the commissioned ranks, the mo ...

in the U.S. Army or U.S. Army National Guard (also conducted via state Regional Training Institutes—RTI programs), with the recent exception of

U.S. Army Special Forces The United States Army Special Forces (SF), colloquially known as the "Green Berets" due to their distinctive service headgear, are a special operations force of the United States Army. The Green Berets are geared towards nine doctrinal mi ...

Warrant Officers. Since 2007, Special Forces Warrant Officers attend the Special Forces Warrant Officer Technical and Tactical Certification Course (SF-WOTTC) at

Fort Bragg Fort Bragg is a military installation of the United States Army in North Carolina, and is one of the largest military installations in the world by population, with around 54,000 military personnel. The military reservation is located within Cu ...

, North Carolina. , WOCS and SF-WOTTC are the only two training institutions which are authorized to appoint warrant officers in the U.S. Army. Warrant officer candidates are typically drawn from enlisted members (up to

Command Sergeant Major A command sergeant major (CSM) is a non-commissioned rank and position of office in the United States Army. The holder of this rank and position is the most senior enlisted member of a color-bearing Army unit (battalion or higher). The CSM is ap ...

) and inter-service transfers.Warrant Officer Candidate School overview
/ref> In this case, Inter-Service Transfer refers to enlisted members of the

U.S. 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 Sign ...

, U.S. Coast Guard,

U.S. 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 o ...

, or

U.S. 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 co ...

transferring to the U.S. Army to attend WOCS, or civilian high school graduates who enlist for guaranteed attendance as

aviation Aviation includes the activities surrounding mechanical flight and the aircraft industry. ''Aircraft'' includes airplane, fixed-wing and helicopter, rotary-wing types, morphable wings, wing-less lifting bodies, as well as aerostat, lighter- ...

(flight) candidates at WOCS after they complete

Basic Combat Training Military recruit training, commonly known as basic training or boot camp, refers to the initial instruction of new military personnel. It is a physically and psychologically intensive process, which resocializes its subjects for the unique deman ...

(BCT). Warrant officer candidates without prior enlisted service are informally referred to as ''high school to flight school'' or ''street to seat'' recruits by warrant officer candidates with prior enlisted service.About Warrant Officers
Retrieved 25 January 2011.How to Become an Army Aviator with the WOFT Program
Army-Aviation-Pilot.com. Retrieved 25 January 2011.

Overview

WOCS is a rigorous five-week course designed to train, assess, evaluate, and develop

s for fourteen of the U.S. Army's sixteen basic branches (excluding Infantry and Armor). The course is designed to provide a base to assist in the development of Army Warrant Officers into self–aware and adaptive technical experts, combat leaders, trainers, mentors, and advisors to both soldiers and commanders. Later, through progressive levels of expertise in assignments, training, and education, Warrant Officers administer, manage, maintain, operate, and integrate Army systems and equipment across the

full-spectrum Full-spectrum light is light that covers the electromagnetic spectrum from infrared to near-ultraviolet, or all wavelengths that are useful to plant or animal life; in particular, sunlight is considered full spectrum, even though the solar spectral ...

of Army operations. Warrant officers in the Army are accessed with specific levels of technical ability. They refine their technical expertise and develop their leadership and management skills through tiered progressive assignments and education. WOCS focuses on

Officer training A military academy or service academy is an educational institution which prepares candidates for service in the officer corps. It normally provides education in a military environment, the exact definition depending on the country concerned. ...

and candidates serve in various student leadership positions throughout the course. The course includes classroom instruction focusing on officership, military history, problem solving, professional development, and other topics. Graduation from WOCS is held at the

United States Army Aviation Museum The United States Army Aviation Museum is an aviation museum located on Fort Rucker near Daleville, Alabama. It has the largest collection of helicopters held by a museum in the world.Phillips 1992, p. 37.Purner 2004, p. 204. The museum feature ...

on Fort Rucker, where a candidate is appointed to WO1 and moves to their respective branch schools to attend the

Warrant Officer Basic Course Warrant Officer Basic Course (WOBC) is the technical training program a newly appointed U.S. Army Warrant Officer receives after attending Warrant Officer Candidate School. WOBC is designed to certify warrant officers as technically and tacticall ...

. For example,

United States Army Signal Corps The United States Army Signal Corps (USASC) is a branch of the United States Army that creates and manages communications and information systems for the command and control of combined arms forces. It was established in 1860, the brainchild of Ma ...

branched Warrant Officers attend WOBC at Fort Gordon, where

Aviation Aviation includes the activities surrounding mechanical flight and the aircraft industry. ''Aircraft'' includes airplane, fixed-wing and helicopter, rotary-wing types, morphable wings, wing-less lifting bodies, as well as aerostat, lighter- ...

branched Warrant Officers attend WOBC at Fort Rucker.

Notes and references

External links

Warrant Officer Candidate School
(Official website)

Warrant Officer Heritage Foundation
USAJFKSWCS
(Official website) {{US military navbox United States Army schools United States Army education Warrant officers

Overview

See also

Notes and references

External links