The impact of fully-funded graduate education and resident JPME on aviator promotion and command selection

Abstract

The purpose of this thesis is to examine the impact that FFGE and JPME have on aviator promotion to the ranks of Commander and Captain and on selection for command. This thesis accurately measures their impact by incorporating new measures of performance, namely good jobs. These two proxies for performance were developed to help capture those unmeasurable characteristics that do not show up on officer Fitness Reports. This study examines officers appearing before the 1988-1994 Commander and Captain promotion boards. Two separate Log it models are used to estimate the effects of these educational opportunities on promotion both before and after the start of the drawdown. Separate Logit regression models for command screen are also specified for these two time periods. Model results indicate that FFGE had a significant positive impact on Commander selection and a significant negative impact on command selection in the pre-FY90 period. The impact of JPME was significant and positive for promotion to Commander in both periods and for command screen in the pre-FY90 period. Joint Duty Assignment had a significant and negative impact on command selection in both periods. The results of these models may reflect changes in the policies of the aviation community toward FFGE and JPME as well as differences in the officers who choose the educational opportunities. This thesis provides evidence of difficulties in combining FFGE, JPME and JDA in an aviation career