The purpose of the study was to examine generic instructor characteristics capable of predicting learning outcomes for application to the evaluation process of formalized trainers within U.S. Marine Corps vocational specialty courses. A survey instrument was created based on research findings from multiple training disciplines and educational settings to assess student's reaction to perceived instructor quality and associated performance. The study's methodology implemented a non-experimental research design. A nonrandom purposive sample of participants selected from entry-level U.S. Marines currently undergoing vocational training was used for the study. Data analysis techniques included exploratory factor analysis. Means, standard deviation, frequencies, and percents were computed for descriptive data. Step-wise multiple regression analysis was used to examine the relationships between instructor characteristics and student's perception of instructor quality and student learning, as evidenced by post-lesson test scores. By examining participant ratings of perceived instructor characteristics, the initial findings allowed for the creation of an instrument. Subsequent findings indicate that participants positively rated their instructors on effective delivery and concern for learning while concurrently rating instructors less high on negativity items. Participants also rated their instructor positively in overall instructor quality. Post-lesson test scores indicate that nearly 90% of participants mastered the lesson objectives, as taught by the rated instructor, at the outset without remediation. Data analysis revealed correlations that indicate that none of the instructor characteristics had significant relationships with, or could explain a significant amount of variance of, student's perception of instructor quality or post-lesson test scores. The study's findings question the validity of employing Donald Kirkpatrick's evaluation model, and more specifically, the student reaction phase, to measure vocational training effectiveness when perceived instructor characteristics are unrelated to instructor quality, and more importantly, student performance. [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.]