war college
2023-2024 War College Fleet Seminar Program
This is how I got my Joint Professional Military Education (JPME) I:
This NAVADMIN announces the U.S. Naval War College (NWC) Fleet Seminar Program (FSP), which offers intermediate-level Joint Professional Military Education (JPME-I) through a set of three courses: Strategy and War (S and W), Theater Security Decision Making (TSDM) and Joint Maritime Operations (JMO). Each course typically requires one academic year to complete, which runs from September through the following May. All three courses are not offered simultaneously at all locations. There is no tuition fee, and course materials are provided on a loan basis at no cost to the students. Applicants must apply by 31 May 2023. Please see the NAVADMIN:
CLASSIFICATION: UNCLASSIFIED//
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SUBJ/ACADEMIC YEAR 2023-2024 NAVAL WAR COLLEGE FLEET SEMINAR PROGRAM//
RMKS/1. This NAVADMIN announces the U.S. Naval War College (NWC) Fleet
Seminar Program (FSP) which offers intermediate level Joint Professional
Military Education (JPME-I) through a set of three courses: Strategy and
War (S and W), Theater Security Decision Making (TSDM) and Joint Maritime
Operations (JMO). Each course normally requires one academic year to
complete, which runs from September through the following May. All three
courses are not offered simultaneously at all locations. There is no
tuition fee and course materials are provided on a loan basis at no cost
to the students. Applicants must apply by 31 May 2023.
2. Background:
a. The NWC FSP will be offered in 18 regional locations in the United
States for academic year 2023-2024. Planned locations and courses are:
(1) Annapolis, MD (S and W, TSDM and JMO)
(2) Everett, WA (S and W)
(3) Dahlgren, VA (JMO)
(4) Fort Worth, TX (S and W)
(5) Great Lakes, IL (TSDM)
(6) Jacksonville, FL (TSDM and JMO)
(7) Kitsap, WA (TSDM)
(8) Mayport, FL (S and W)
(9) Millington, TN (S and W)
(10) New Orleans, LA (JMO)
(11) Newport, RI (S and W, TSDM and JMO)
(12) Norfolk, VA (S and W, TSDM and JMO)
(13) Patuxent River, MD (TSDM)
(14) Pearl Harbor, HI (S and W, TSDM and JMO)
(15) Pensacola, FL (Whiting Field) (S and W)
(16) San Diego, CA (S and W, TSDM and JMO)
(17) Washington, DC (S and W, TSDM and JMO)
(18) Whidbey Island, WA (JMO)
b. Seminars meet once a week in the evening for 34 weeks. Completion
of all three courses results in the award of a College of Naval Command and
Staff diploma, as well as credit for JPME-I. The FSP also provides a path to
attain the NWC Masters Degree through the College of Distance Education (CDE)
Graduate Degree Program (GDP). FSP students may apply for the GDP following
successful completion of their first FSP course. The FSP at all locations are
conducted in-step with each other, so students who transfer to or are
assigned temporary additional duty at another location may attend class at
the new location.
3. Criteria:
a. NWC accepts program applications from commissioned officers (active
and reserve) and civilian employees of the federal government, subject to the
following eligibility requirements:
(1) Members of the sea services (Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard)
in the paygrade of O-3 or above, while officers from the other services must
be in the paygrade of O-4 or above. Civilian employees of the federal
government in the grade of GS-11 and above, or equivalent, are also eligible
for enrollment.
(2) All applicants must have previously earned at least a
baccalaureate degree.
b. Qualified individuals currently stationed in areas listed in
paragraph two, or those who expect transfer to those sites prior to 1
September 2023 are encouraged to apply.
4. Application Process. More information is available and applications must
be submitted at the NWC College of Distance Education FSP website at
https://www.mnp.navy.mil/group/training-education-qualifications (NWC
Academic Programs link). The application period will remain open until 31 May
2023.
5. Selection Notifications. NWC will make enrollment selections and accepted
applicants will be advised of their enrollment selection status via email.
6. Points of contact are Ms. Kelly Folger who can be reached at (401) 856-
6530 or via email at fsp(at)usnwc.edu and Professor Ronald Oard who can be
reached via email at oardr(at)usnwc.edu.
7. Request widest dissemination of the above information. Regional
coordinators at the sites listed in paragraph two are requested to pass this
information to all Army, Marine Corps, Air Force, Space Force, and Coast
Guard units and all reserve units located within safe-driving distance of an
FSP site.
8. This message will remain in effect until superseded or 31 May 2023,
whichever occurs first.
9. Released by Vice Admiral J. W. Hughes, Deputy Chief of Naval Operations
for Warfighting Development (N7).//
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CLASSIFICATION: UNCLASSIFIED//
Throwback Thursday Classic Post – U.S. Naval War College Launches Streamlined Program for Earning JPME-I Credit
By Jeanette Steele, U.S. Naval War College Public Affairs
NEWPORT, R.I. (NNS) — U.S. Naval War College’s College of Distance Education has launched a streamlined version of its online program for delivering professional military education coursework required by the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
The new Online Naval Command and Staff Program allows students to finish the intermediate joint professional military education requirement, known as JPME-I, in 10 months. The previous framework, called the Web-Enabled Program, usually took 18 months to two years to complete.
“The closure of the college’s CD-ROM Program necessitated the development of a pathway to JPME-I certification in less than 12 months to satisfy the Navy’s requirement for the joint education of its officer corps,” said Dean of the College of Distance Education Walt Wildemann.
Officials said they were able to condense the time frame without sacrificing quality by doing away with administrative pauses and some redundancies in the coursework of the legacy Web-Enabled Program.
“The goal was to deliver JPME-I education in a shorter period of time while maintaining the graduate-level standards and professional military education career requirements,” said Tim Garrold, deputy dean of the College of Distance Education.
Adding to the efficiency, students will now only register once for the program, instead of having to register three times – once for each core course – in the past. The new design is a single program made up of five blocks.
The first eight seminars in the new program started Nov. 15, and similar numbers will follow each quarter. The seminars, which accommodate 20 students each, are moderated by full-time and adjunct faculty members.
The online program is intended for Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard officers whose career commitments make them unable to complete the certification in residence at the War College or in the face-to-face classroom model of other College of Distance Education programs.
Eligible Navy unrestricted line officers, Marine Corps and Coast Guard officers receive the highest enrollment priority, followed by those services’ staff corps officers. Based on availability, the program is also open to Navy Reservists, officers from other U.S. military branches, Coast Guard officers, federal civilian employees grades GS-11 and higher and U.S. Public Health Service officers.
Unlike the Naval War College’s 10-month resident program and the non-resident Fleet Seminar Program, the online program is not accredited to award the Master of Arts degree in defense and strategic studies. However, the program fully covers the concepts and skills required for the award of JPME-I credit.
The program engages students in the complexities of the national security and theater security arenas and develops their critical-thinking skills.
Successful students will gain an understanding of the fundamentals of U.S. national security policy and military strategy – and appreciate the relationships between the two. Students will also learn to plan and conduct military operations that achieve national-level goals and objectives.
The program also introduces students to the role of both political and military leaders in the formulation of policy, the planning of joint and combined military operations and the conduct of war.
Students who completed College of Distance Education core courses through the Fleet Seminar Program, the former Web-Enabled Program or the former CD-ROM Program will receive credit for the appropriate blocks of the new online program.
To submit an application for the Online Naval Command and Staff Program, or for more information, go to https://usnwc.edu/college-of-distance-education/Online-Program.
2021 Non-Specialty Specific Billet Opportunities
Please see the note below from the Senior Detailer. Anyone who applied for XO, CO, OIC, CMO, or Senior Executive/Operational is highly encouraged to also apply for any positions on this list that interest them. Not everyone who applied for the jobs I slate will get one. There are not enough positions available:
Greetings from PERS,
Reaching out to invite your attention to a number of outstanding billet opportunities available to MC officers in 2021. Please see the attached documents for information regarding our “Non-Specialty Specific Billet” assignment process, including a PDF application, and a listing of available opportunities to include:
- Operational Assignments (FST OICs/CATF Surgeons, Marine Regimental Surgeons, LHD SMOs, and others)
- Administrative Assignments (BUMED, DHA, PERS, and others)
- Research Assignments (NMRC, NMRU-San Antonio, and others)
- Naval War College – JPME Phase II – Newport, RI
Please contact your detailer if you would like to discuss these options.
Applications are due to your detailer NLT 25 SEP.
VR/
Todd A. Gardner, MD, MPH, FAAFP
CAPT, MC, USN
Head, Medical Corps Assignments
Executive Medicine, Surgical Specialties
Navy Personnel Command, PERS-4415
5720 Integrity Drive
Millington, TN 38005
901-874-4094 DSN 94+ 312-882-4094
todd.a.gardner2 < at > navy.mil
Joint Chiefs Vision Changes Military Education Philosophy
Here’s a link to this DoD article:
Academic Year 2020-21 Naval War College Fleet Seminar Program (JPME I)
Here’s the NAVADMIN for the Fleet Seminar Program discussed in our JPME I primer. Remember that there is an increased focus on education on fitreps:
UNCLASSIFIED//
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FM CNO WASHINGTON DC//N7//
INFO CNO WASHINGTON DC//N7//
MSGID/NAVADMIN/CNO WASHINGTON DC/N7/MAY//
SUBJ/ACADEMIC YEAR 2020-2021 NAVAL WAR COLLEGE FLEET SEMINAR PROGRAM//
RMKS/1. This NAVADMIN announces the Naval War College (NWC) Fleet Seminar
Program (FSP) which offers intermediate level Joint Professional Military
Education (JPME-I) through a set of three courses: Strategy and War (S and
W), Theater Security Decision Making (TSDM), Joint Maritime Operations (JMO),
offered at multiple locations. Each course normally requires one academic
year to complete, which runs from September through the following May. All
three courses are not offered simultaneously at all locations.
There is no tuition fee and course materials are provided on a loan basis at
no cost to the students.
2. Background:
a. The NWC FSP will be offered in nineteen regional locations in the
United States for academic year 2020-2021. Planned locations and courses
are:
(1) Annapolis, MD (S and W, TSDM and JMO)
(2) Dahlgren, VA (JMO)
(3) Everett, WA (S and W)
(4) Fort Worth, TX (S and W)
(5) Great Lakes, IL (TSDM)
(6) Jacksonville, FL (TSDM and JMO)
(7) Kitsap, WA (TSDM)
(8) Mayport, FL (S and W)
(9) Millington, TN (S and W)
(10) New Orleans, LA (JMO)
(11) Newport, RI (S and W, TSDM and JMO)
(12) Norfolk, VA (S and W, TSDM and JMO)
(13) Patuxent River, MD (TSDM)
(14) Pearl Harbor, HI (S and W, TSDM and JMO)
(15) Pensacola, FL (Whiting Field) (TSDM and JMO)
(16) Port Hueneme, CA (TSDM)
(17) San Diego, CA (S and W, TSDM and JMO)
(18) Washington, DC (S and W, TSDM and JMO)
(19) Whidbey Island, WA (JMO)
b. FSP courses are similar in content and delivery methodology to the
intermediate level program of study offered by the resident College of Naval
Command and Staff in Newport, RI. Seminars for each course meet once a week
in the evening for approximately 34 weeks, commencing in early September 2020
and ending in May 2021. Successful completion of all three courses results in
the award of a College of Naval Command and Staff diploma, as well as credit
for JPME-I. The FSP seminars at all locations are conducted in-step with
each other so it is possible for a student who is transferring to or assigned
temporary additional duty at another seminar location to attend class at that
location.
3. Criteria:
a. NWC accepts program applications from commissioned officers (active
and reserve) and civilian employees of the federal government, subject to the
following eligibility requirements:
(1) Members of the sea services (Navy, Marine Corps and Coast
Guard) in the paygrade of O-3 or above, while officers from the other
services must be in the paygrade of O-4 or above. Civilian employees of the
federal government in the grade of GS-11 and above, or equivalent, are also
eligible for enrollment.
(2) All applicants must have previously earned at least a
baccalaureate degree.
b. Qualified individuals currently stationed in areas listed in
paragraph two, or those who expect transfer to those sites prior to
1 September 2020 are encouraged to apply.
4. Application Process:
a. More information is available and applications must be submitted at
the NWC College of Distance Education FSP website at
https://www.mnp.navy.mil/group/training-education-qualifications (NWC
Academic Programs link). The application period is currently open and will
remain open until 14 June 2020.
5. Selection Notifications:
a. NWC will make enrollment selections and accepted applicants will be
advised of their enrollment selection status via email.
6. Points of Contact:
a. Points of contact are Ms. Stephanie Accaputo who can be reached at
(401) 841-7677/DSN 841 or via email at fsp(at)usnwc.edu, Ms.
Kelly Folger who can be reached at (401) 841-6520/DSN 841 or via email at
fsp(at)usnwc.edu and Professor Ronald Oard who can be reached via email at
oardr(at)usnwc.edu.
7. Request widest dissemination of the above information. Regional
coordinators at the sites listed in paragraph two are requested to pass this
information to all Army, Marine Corps, Air Force and Coast Guard units and
all reserve units located within safe driving distance of an FSP site.
8. This message will remain in effect until superseded or 14 June 2020,
whichever occurs first.
9. Released by Vice Admiral S. B. Munsch, Deputy Chief of Naval Operations
for Warfighting Development (N7)//
BT
#0001
NNNN
UNCLASSIFIED//
U.S. Naval War College Launches Streamlined Program for Earning JPME-I Credit
By Jeanette Steele, U.S. Naval War College Public Affairs
NEWPORT, R.I. (NNS) — U.S. Naval War College’s College of Distance Education has launched a streamlined version of its online program for delivering professional military education coursework required by the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
The new Online Naval Command and Staff Program allows students to finish the intermediate joint professional military education requirement, known as JPME-I, in 10 months. The previous framework, called the Web-Enabled Program, usually took 18 months to two years to complete.
“The closure of the college’s CD-ROM Program necessitated the development of a pathway to JPME-I certification in less than 12 months to satisfy the Navy’s requirement for the joint education of its officer corps,” said Dean of the College of Distance Education Walt Wildemann.
Officials said they were able to condense the time frame without sacrificing quality by doing away with administrative pauses and some redundancies in the coursework of the legacy Web-Enabled Program.
“The goal was to deliver JPME-I education in a shorter period of time while maintaining the graduate-level standards and professional military education career requirements,” said Tim Garrold, deputy dean of the College of Distance Education.
Adding to the efficiency, students will now only register once for the program, instead of having to register three times – once for each core course – in the past. The new design is a single program made up of five blocks.
The first eight seminars in the new program started Nov. 15, and similar numbers will follow each quarter. The seminars, which accommodate 20 students each, are moderated by full-time and adjunct faculty members.
The online program is intended for Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard officers whose career commitments make them unable to complete the certification in residence at the War College or in the face-to-face classroom model of other College of Distance Education programs.
Eligible Navy unrestricted line officers, Marine Corps and Coast Guard officers receive the highest enrollment priority, followed by those services’ staff corps officers. Based on availability, the program is also open to Navy Reservists, officers from other U.S. military branches, Coast Guard officers, federal civilian employees grades GS-11 and higher and U.S. Public Health Service officers.
Unlike the Naval War College’s 10-month resident program and the non-resident Fleet Seminar Program, the online program is not accredited to award the Master of Arts degree in defense and strategic studies. However, the program fully covers the concepts and skills required for the award of JPME-I credit.
The program engages students in the complexities of the national security and theater security arenas and develops their critical-thinking skills.
Successful students will gain an understanding of the fundamentals of U.S. national security policy and military strategy – and appreciate the relationships between the two. Students will also learn to plan and conduct military operations that achieve national-level goals and objectives.
The program also introduces students to the role of both political and military leaders in the formulation of policy, the planning of joint and combined military operations and the conduct of war.
Students who completed College of Distance Education core courses through the Fleet Seminar Program, the former Web-Enabled Program or the former CD-ROM Program will receive credit for the appropriate blocks of the new online program.
To submit an application for the Online Naval Command and Staff Program, or for more information, go to https://usnwc.edu/college-of-distance-education/Online-Program.
FY20 War College Cheat Sheet
Everyone should try to get Joint Professional Military Education (JPME), especially in our new operationally focused environment. To assist you, here is the FY20 War College Cheat Sheet:
FY20 War College Cheat Sheet (Final)
I also added it to the Useful Documents page.
If you want more info about JPME, you can go to this page at Navy Personnel Command.
Throwback Thursday Classic Post – Could a Master’s Degree Get You Promoted?
When discussing why they failed to promote, one of the more common reasons that officers give is that they were unable to get a leadership position. When I ask them how they prepared themselves for these positions and what they did to improve their chances of getting one, they often don’t have much to say. Frankly, they didn’t do anything “extra” or above and beyond their normal duties to prepare for and get a leadership position.
Don’t be one of those officers.
The recipe for promotion is fairly simple. Superior performance in leadership positions leads to early promote (EP) fitreps, which leads to promotion. As promotion gets more difficult, the competition for leadership positions is likely to increase, and officers need to find a way to differentiate themselves from the crowd, increasing the chance they’ll get leadership positions. Obtaining a master’s degree can be one of the things that will distinguish you from other physicians and can dramatically increase the chances that you are competitive for career advancing positions.
What Kind of Degree Should You Consider Getting?
This depends on your career goals. If you want to become a leader in research or global health engagement, an area of increased focus in the Navy, you probably want to get a Master in Public Health (MPH) or similar degree. If you want to become a residency or fellowship director, a master’s degree in adult or medical education would fit the bill. If you want to become an operational leader, attending a war college would make sense. And if you want to become a clinical administrator or pursue executive medicine, obtaining a management degree, such as a Master in Business Administration (MBA), Master in Medical Management (MMM), or Master in Healthcare Administration (MHA), would make sense to me.
How Can You Get a Master’s Degree While on Active Duty?
There are many ways you can do this, but the most common include:
- Complete a fellowship that includes a master’s degree. Some fellowships either include or have the option of obtaining a MPH, such as the Global Emergency Preparedness and Disaster Response Fellowship. I also know of multiple officers who asked the Graduate Medical Education Selection Board for an additional year of fellowship to obtain a degree or simply for permission to obtain a degree alone. What are the chances this will be granted? Well I’m sure the chances change from year to year, but they are zero if you don’t ask.
- Complete the distance learning Executive MBA from the Naval Postgraduate School. This is how I got my MBA for the cost of books alone, and I think the program is excellent. You have to go to Monterey for 1 week at the beginning of the 2-year program, but after that all classes are held on-line.
- Apply for the Navy Career Intermission Program and take time off to get a degree.
- Attend a war college. Intermediate colleges are for officers who are O4 or below, while senior college is for O5 and above. If you’re interested, contact your Detailer.
- USUHS offers a Master in Health Professions Education.
- Pay for it yourself and do it in your free time on-line or in person. One program to look into is offered by the American Association for Physician Leadership (https://www.physicianleaders.org/education/physicians/masters). By taking some CME you can then enroll in various patient safety and management degrees that are all physician focused. The on-line University of Massachusetts healthcare focused MBA that they offer is the most reasonably priced MBA that I could find that is accredited by the top business school accreditation body. If you want a fast MBA (but pricey), look into the University of Tennessee Physician Executive MBA program (http://pemba.utk.edu).
While committing to a master’s degree program will take major time and effort, that is the point. It is a well-recognized way to demonstrate to the Navy that you’ve made a serious commitment to your professional development and could go a long way toward giving your next interview for a leadership position.
Joel Schofer's Career Planning Blog 