Army faces projected officer shortage (free grad school offered)

[deadparrot]

The U.S. Army is offering free grad school to entice officers to stay on and calling back other officers to stem a predicted shortage of active-duty officers.

The Washington Post said the Army projects it will be short 3,500 active-duty officers by 2007 -- officers that will be needed for new combat brigades and other units critical to the planned expansion and reorganization of ground forces.

The Army is offering full-rides to graduate school, an expansion of the current program, for officers who agree to serve three years in the Army for every year of free study.

Col. Mark Patterson, chief of officer policy for the Army, called it being proactive.

http://news.webindia123.com/news/showdetails.asp?id=247904&cat=World

[bemildred]

1. This is not new.

The low level commissioned types have been leaving for a while now, those that live.
The real news would be numbers on how many short we are now, not next year.

[Earth_First]

2. Col. Mark Patterson calls it "proactive" Earth_First calls it as it is...

an obvious recruiting shortage.

[sabra]

3. WP: Army Offers Incentives to Try to Retain Officers

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/02/11/AR2006021101240.html

Army Offers Incentives to Try to Retain Officers
Data Project Shortage of 3,500 Experienced Leaders Mostly in Active-Duty Units

The Army, forecasting a shortage of several thousand officers as wartime demands grow, is boosting the incentives it offers to try to hold on to experienced commanders.

By 2007, the Army projects it will be short 3,500 active-duty officers, primarily captains and majors -- positions that are needed for new combat brigades and other units that are critical to plans for expanding and reorganizing the nation's ground forces. One factor in the shortfall is that the Army took in too few officers in the 1990s, personnel officials say.

The need for officers is expected to be acute in career fields strained by the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, such as transportation, aviation, Special Forces and military intelligence, Army personnel statistics show. Demand is also high for skills concentrated in Army Reserve units heavily deployed in Iraq, such as military police and civil affairs. The Army projects it will fall 7 percent short of the number of active-duty officers it needs with ranks from captain to colonel, with shortages rising to 15 to 50 percent for dozens of specific ranks and skills.

In another sign of the pressing demand for officers, the Army is recalling hundreds of officers who had returned to civilian life but who are still subject to call-up, sparking protests from some who have already served in Iraq and now face more than a year of extended war-zone duty.

[zann725]

6. Haven't Officers often been "induced" to sign up as "Life-er's"...30 yrs.

That's part of Officer "Training"...along with "Finding the Officer's Wife"...or it WAS about 30 years ago when someone close to me went through OTC. The "Officer's Wife" handbook was quite amusing, as I recall...similar to Stepford Wife training.

[PatGund]

4. Curious

I wonder if the next step would be "poaching" IRR officers from the other branches of the Armed Forces. The US Army is already pushing a voluntary "Blue into Green" programme for former USAF, USN, or USMC personnel to join the Army, I'm curious how long before IRR officers from the other branches find themselves recalled and transfered to the US Army?

[Neshanic]

5. Can't say they did not learn from Vietnam. Money solves all.

Pretty soon even the young repigs will be signing up against their parents wishes. That's after a stock portfolio and golden parachute is offered for a stint.

[zann725]

7. 'Course they "offer" statistically what know most won't live to 'collect.'

Smart enlistees, would negotiate these Grad. School benefits be transferrable to their son or immediate surviving relative.

Guaranteed that would IMMEDIATELY cease the Grad School offer by Military! They never offer "rice pilaf" to anyone who they think will be receiving that "pilaf" long.

[gratuitous]

8. Ooooh, grad school!

Now if that's not an incentive, what is? Of course, after some schlub has served his time and asks the Pentagon to deliver on their part of the bargain, the schlub will suddenly be discovered to have been come kind of incorrigible, disgruntled discipline problem during his entire tenure with the military who lied on his initial application and has an overtime parking ticket. Summarily discharged, the schlub will find out that he's not eligible for all those goodies promised so very long ago.