Military Schools

Sources for this data set are documented in the data itself, but are generally academic works. The following five sources are cited most often in the data: 

1. Barnard, Henry. 1969 [1872]. Military Schools and Courses of Instruction in the Science and Art of War, in France, Prussia, Austria, Russia, Sweden, Switzerland, Sardinia, England, and the United States. New York, NY: Greenwood Press.

2. Dupuy, Trevor N., et al. 1993. International Military and Defense Encyclopedia, vol. 1, “Academies, Military.” Washington, DC: Brassey’s (US), Inc.

3. Dupuy, Trevor N., et al. 2003. Dictionary of Military Terms: A Guide to the Language of Warfare and Military Institutions. “Academies, military.” New York, NY: H.W. Wilson Co.

4. Heyman, Charles, ed. 2002. Jane's World Armies. Southampton, U.K.: Hobbs.

5. Keegan, John. 1983. World armies, 2nd ed. Detroit, MI: Gale Research Co.

• School Name (schlname) [string]: Name by which the military school was known in 2022.

• Country Code (ccode) [integer]: COW country code for the country of observation (if available). If the country does not appear in the COW2 data set, then the observation is left blank.

• Country Abbreviation (cabbr) [string]: COW abbreviated country name (if available). A missing value means that the country-year was not in the COW State System Membership List. 

• Opening Date (schlopen) [integer]: Year that the military school first matriculated students. 

• Closure Date (schlclsd) [integer]: Last year that the military school matriculated students (if 2022, the school is still open).

• Notes (notes) [string]: School-specific notes, usually related to uncertainty about opening/closure dates, naming, or disambiguation.

• National Control (control) [dummy]: 1 = military school is under the control of national government authorities; 0 = not under control of national authorities. 

• Pre-Commissioning Academy (commis) [dummy]: 1 = military school educates cadets prior to receiving an officer’s commission; 0 = not a pre-commissioning academy.

• Junior-Level Staff School (company) [dummy]: 1 = military school educates officers (usually lieutenants or captains) at the junior staff level (company or brigade staff, e.g., Captain’s Career Course); 0 = not a junior-level staff school.

• Staff College (staff) [dummy]: 1 = military school educates field-grade officers (usually majors and junior lieutenant colonels) for staff functions at levels above brigade (e.g., Command and General Staff College); 0 = not a staff college.

• War College (senior) [dummy]: 1 = military school educates senior field-grade officers (usually senior lieutenant colonels, colonels, and above) in preparation for senior staff or military strategic roles, 0 = not a war college.

• First Source (source1) [string]: Bibliographic source entry

• Second Source (source2) [string]: Bibliographic source entry [if necessary]

• Third Source (source3) [string]: Bibliographic source entry [if necessary]

• Fourth Source (source4) [string]: Bibliographic source entry [if necessary]

• Fifth Source (source5) [string]: Bibliographic source entry [if necessary]

• Years of Closure (closdyrs) [string]: Single of range(s) of years the military school was not in operation (often due to armed conflict… see notes)

• First Year of Closure (close1) [integer]: Year the military school suspended operations [if necessary]

• First Year of Reopening (reopen1) [integer]: Year the military school resumed operations [if necessary]

• Second Year of Closure (close2) [integer]: Year the military school suspended operations [if necessary]

• Second Year of Reopening (reopen2) [integer]: Year the military school resumed operations [if necessary]

• Third Year of Closure (close3) [integer]: Year the military school suspended operations [if necessary]

• Third Year of Reopening (reopen3) [integer]: Year the military school resumed operations [if necessary]

• Fourth Year of Closure (close4) [integer]: Year the military school suspended operations [if necessary]

• Fourth Year of Reopening (reopen4) [integer]: Year the military school resumed operations [if necessary]

• Fifth Year of Closure (close5) [integer]: Year the military school suspended operations [if necessary]

• Fifth Year of Reopening (reopen5) [integer]: Year the military school resumed operations [if necessary]

• First Alternate Name (othnam1) [string]: Other name by which the military school is known [if necessary]

• Second Alternate Name (othnam2) [string]: Other name by which the military school is known [if necessary]

• Third Alternate Name (othnam3) [string]: Other name by which the military school is known [if necessary]

• Other Names (othnams) [string]: Any additional names by which the school has been known.

This data focuses on national military schools, so the cataloging of private or local military schools is not exhaustive. A national military school is one that is funded and controlled by national government authorities. Military schools focus on educating future and serving officers in the skills and knowledge they will need to perform their duties. In addition, they instill in the officer corps a sense of duty and loyalty to the state or to society. Attendance at a pre-commissioining academy is typically regarded as necessary for gaining an officer’s commission, and is often beneficial for advancement in the higher ranks, making it a marker of exclusiveness.

The source of student matriculation and the type of curriculum are the main discriminators of the different levels of military schools. Education at a pre-commissioining academy almost always follows secondary education and often results in a tertiary educational degree (most exceptions follow the British model, where courses can range from six months to two years). Academies also prepare cadets to lead at the squad and company level. A junior-level staff course generally occurs in the first few years of an officer’s career and introduces the officer to staff functions and decision-making. Education at a staff college often occurs about halfway through an officer’s career and usually results in a postgraduate degree, in preparation of responsibilities on large military staffs. A war college usually matriculates senior officers and often grants a postgraduate degree in strategic studies, in preparation of leadership roles at the large staff or military strategic level.