MARINE CORPS OFFICER ACCESSION: AN ANALYSIS OF EFFECTS ON CAREER-LEVEL PROMOTION

Abstract

The purpose of this research was to determine the significance of Marine Corps officer accession sources in relation to achieving career-level promotion benchmarks. The study first determined what characteristics the Marine Corps values in selecting officers for promotion to major and lieutenant colonel. Then, the study compared the focus variables of accession source to determine if any specific program is more likely to produce career-level officers. Logit multivariate analysis models were applied to officer data from 2000 to 2010 to answer these questions. The results suggest that master’s degrees, personal awards, physical fitness, marksmanship, and fitness report evaluations, particularly Reviewing Officer assessments, are statistically significant in determining promotion to major and lieutenant colonel. The findings also indicate that accession source has a negligible impact on promotion, with only marginal statistical evidence suggesting that United States Naval Academy graduates are more likely to remain in service and promote to major and lieutenant colonel when compared to graduates of other accession sources. Based on these results, this research concludes with policy recommendations and suggestions for future research topics related to officer performance and promotion.