Higher Education System and Professional Military Education (PME) Policy in the United States Armed Forces:

—Focus on Master's Degree Holders among United Sates Marine Corps Generals—

Abstract

This paper clarifies the malfunctions and insufficiencies of the education policy and system of the Japan Defense Ministry and Self-Defense Forces (SDF). Currently, there is a low number of SDF officers who hold Master’s degrees compared with foreign armed forces, so this paper also addresses the reason why an SDF personnel cannot enjoy the opportunity of attending Professional Military Education (PME) as the same level of higher education (i.e., above Master’s degree level courses) outlined by the Council for Examination of Drastic Reforms in the Personnel Field of the Defense Force. I analyzed personal biography data of 91 Marine Generals and discovered the following three findings: (1) the excellence of the United States Marine Education Policy and system (similar to PME); (2) the efficient education system of the United States Marine Corps (USMC) University, which includes Marine Corps War College, School of Advanced Warfighting, and Marine Corps Command & Staff College; and (3) the healthy competition in promotional systems in the USMC that will contribute to the Japan Defense Ministry and SDF policy-making in the education system reforms.