On Officers
University vs Academy
Someone once posed the question…
“From your experience do you think officers are better when they start as enlisted, study at military academies or come from civilian universities?”
My initial thoughts were if someone conducted themselves as a dirtbag while enlisted then they’d likely conduct themselves the same while commissioned too. Character matters. While any military experience will give someone an advantage early on in their officer training, it will not enhance their credibility forever. Eventually, troops under their command will figure out who’s who and rate an officer’s ability against their peers.
One common mistake prior enlisted officers make is forgetting they are no longer enlisted. They sometimes fail to realize they are now commanders and not one of the boys. Being too chummy with your troops will only lead to disaster. Officers should cultivate a relationship with their platoon sergeants not neccessarily their troops. Former Staff Non Commissioned Officers may go so far as to try to take their platoon sergeant’s work over. A good platoon sergeant will not let them, but it happens.
The flip side of that coin are former enlisted officers who look down their nose at enlisted Marines. We refer to them as Marines who forgot where they came from. At one battalion function, the staff and officers put money together to buy the Marines some beer. One of the captains, a former NCO, remarked, “I’m not pitching in to buy those animals more alcohol.” Our battalion commander, a former sergeant, gently but firmly suggested to the good captain if he really had such a low opinion of the men he might seek employment elsewhere.
From my experience, military academy ninjas come in two flavors; totally awesome superstar or complete bag of dung. There doesn’t seem to be an in between. The advantage academy graduates have is four years of experience which resembles being in the military. They are held somewhat more accountable than their civilian counterparts and this tends to work in their favor. On the down side, they do not attend Officer Candidate School (OCS) like other Marine officers and in my opinion are not always properly indoctrinated in an orthodox Marine Corps manner (every Annapolis officer I know is going to flay me for saying that). I had a lieutenant in 3rd Recon who’d graduated from the Air Force Academy. A great officer actually (superstar), but I’d always observed he seemed a little different. One day he admitted to me he’d never been to OCS since he went right to The Basic School (TBS) out of the Academy. He’d taken a Marine option since he was unable to become a pilot. Upon arriving at TBS, the other officers had to show him how to wear a Marine uniform since it was his first time. I spent the rest of the day lecturing him about proper indoctrination into the tribe and questioning his loyalty to the Emperor of Mankind (Chesty Puller).
Although not technically military academies, private military colleges like Virginia Military Institute and The Citadel produce a similar product, but they still attend OCS. VMI graduates are personally forged the largest class rings in the galaxy. I had a company commander who only wore his VMI ring at the Marine Corps Ball. I thought he sported a set of brass knuckles the first time I saw it. It was so massive, every time he saluted the tide came in.
The biggest drawback of being from a private military collage or academy is the danger of developing a sense of superiority and privilege. Occasionally, academy types may think themselves better than their peers and subordinates. A sense of entitlement is a dangerous trait to develop in oneself. I recommend against it.
Public and private university graduates are the classic example of the wide eyed lieutenant. Not a one of them has any idea what in the world is going on (except for prior service types). Almost every one of these officers seems to have majored in Criminal Justice. Not sure why except perhaps as preparation for dealing with felonious first sergeants. The danger for private university graduates is not setting aside the frat-boy mentality after leaving campus. I had a platoon commander who went on a bender with his platoon one night on liberty. They ended up in a fight and busting up the club they were in. This kind of thing does not generate joy and good will. Remember the disaster I warned you about above? If you show your ass to your buddies you only lose cool points. Show your ass to your subordinates and you lose their respect. Something to think about.
As to which starting point is better? From what I can tell their success and failure rate are about the same. Sometimes our perception is what seems different. Again, character matters. Someone of low character will make a lousy ditch digger let alone an officer. Self interest and fundamental character flaws are not curable conditions in any university I ever heard of, nor are three months of Boot Camp or OCS for that matter.
In the end, the best officers are those who show a genuine enthusiasm for the mission and concern for their Marines. Those you command will always see through a fraud. Be yourself and stick to the leadership fundamentals. You can’t go wrong there.
I love the metaphor of the VMI ring and the tidal change.
Sage advice and no mistake.