Tracing the professionalization process of the officer corps sheds light on the effectiveness and efficiency of the U.S. Marine Corps. A highly educated, trained, and experienced officer corps generally signifies an effective and efficient military force. Since the occupational objective of a military is to wage war for national interests, many military professionals go through their entire career without participating in the real-life version of their profession. The opportunity for an officer to engage in warfare is minimal; therefore, examining the training of officers is necessary to assess the Marine Corps’s potency as an instrument of national policy.

The Marine Corps has a multifaceted officer training program. Introductory training is conducted at Officer Candidates School (OCS) and The Basic School (TBS). Both schools are physically and ...