Analysis of Officer Accession Programs and the Career Development of U.S. Marine Corps Officers

摘要

The purpose of this thesis is to identify and evaluate factors that affect career development of U.S. Marine Corps officers. The analysis includes evaluation of fitness reports, performance at The Basic School (TBS), retention, and promotion to 0-4 and 0-5 ranks. The primary goal is to explain the effect of officer commissioning programs on officers' careers. The personnel database used for the analysis includes more than 28,000 Marines who entered between FY 1980 and 1999. The performance models assume that commissioning programs that provide longer and more intensive pre-commissioning acculturation, or that credit enlisted service experience, will be associated with better performance Performance models are specified and estimated for TBS class rank, retention to 10 years of service, promotion to 0-4 and 0-5, and for a Performance Index (PI) derived from fitness report marks.