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ERIC Number: ED546050
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 2012
Pages: 369
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: 978-1-2675-8792-3
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Inquiry into the Potential Effects of Establishing a Joint ROTC Program to Be Implemented during the Early Years of College
Meyer, Herman Skeets
ProQuest LLC, Ed.D. Dissertation, The George Washington University
This is the report of a policy research study that examined the potential outcomes of instituting a standardized "Joint Reserve Officer Training Corps" during the first two years of college. Focus groups at three ROTC universities and interviews with subject matter experts were conducted to explore the meaning and purpose of jointness and the distinct cultures of the military Services. The data were gathered through three focus groups and interviews with three senior subject matter specialists and analyzed following the Qualitative Paradigm. As students complete their secondary education and make decisions related to attending college they face myriad issues in selection of a school, major, and eventual career path. Colleges generally accommodate goal changes students may experience in the early college years by providing opportunities to delay declaring an academic major while taking courses that satisfy core courses required in most or all majors. For those considering entering military service as graduates of an ROTC program, these decisions are further complicated because they often know little about the relative benefits of each branch of Service, or what career path within a Service they might wish to pursue upon commissioning. Hence, the purpose of this study was to better understand the potential outcomes of instituting a standardized "Joint Reserve Officer Training Corps" during the first two years of college. This study yielded no evidence to support extending Joint Professional Military Education (JPME) to the college pre-commissioning level. However, it was found that exposure to all military Services during the first two years of college could yield several benefits for students. This exposure would help candidates to determine their academic field of study preference as it relates to choice of a major consistent with skills and knowledge valued by the separate Services. Finally, allowing students two years to make these decisions could significantly reduce the average fifty percent dropout rate for each ROTC candidate's class, and potentially save millions of dollars yearly in each military Service and the Department of Defense. This concept is worth further study and evaluation by the Department of Defense. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]
ProQuest LLC. 789 East Eisenhower Parkway, P.O. Box 1346, Ann Arbor, MI 48106. Tel: 800-521-0600; Web site: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml
Publication Type: Dissertations/Theses - Doctoral Dissertations
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A