Predictors of Success at the U.S. Army Officer Candidate School

The U.S. Army Officer Corps is composed of officers with varying backgrounds, education, experience, commissioning source, and resources required to produce those officers. The Army has invested varying resources depending on the officer and commissioning source. The Office of Economic and Manpower Analysis has found that the Officer Candidate School In Service (OCS-IS) officer is the most resource intensive officer to produce because of the cost to replace an experienced soldier and their educational costs. Some may expect experience of OCS-IS coupled with the greater cost, would yield greater performance from that group when compared to Enlistment Option Candidates (OCS-EO). The central research question was: How does the experience of OCS-IS affect the performance at OCS, as indicated by Distinguished Military Graduate (DMG) status? DMG status is equally available to all OCS students. How do the following variables impact DMG status of OCS-IS and OCS-EO: (1) degree achievement, (2) time in military service, (3) military rank, and (4) combat experience. Results: This study found that OCS-IS students from the class of 2008, were more likely to earn DMG status than their OCS-EO peers. Among OCS-IS students, the variables: time in military service; and prior military rank; supported DMG list attainment.